In vivo bidirectional color Doppler flow imaging of picoliter blood volumes using optical coherence tomography.

We describe a novel optical system for bidirectional color Doppler imaging of flow in biological tissues with micrometer-scale resolution and demonstrate its use for in vivo imaging of blood flow in an animal model. Our technique, color Doppler optical coherence tomography (CDOCT), performs spatially localized optical Doppler velocimetry by use of scanning low-coherence interferometry. CDOCT is an extension of optical coherence tomography (OCT), employing coherent signal-acquisition electronics and joint time-frequency analysis algorithms to perform flow imaging simultaneous with conventional OCT imaging. Cross-sectional maps of blood flow velocity with <50-microm spatial resolution and <0.6-mm/s velocity precision were obtained through intact skin in living hamster subdermal tissue. This technology has several potential medical applications.