Integrated IVUS-OCT Imaging for Atherosclerotic Plaque Characterization.

For the diagnosis of atherosclerosis, biomedical imaging techniques such as intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) and optical coherence tomography (OCT) have been developed. The combined use of IVUS and OCT is hypothesized to remarkably increase diagnostic accuracy of vulnerable plaques. We have developed an integrated IVUS-OCT imaging apparatus, which includes the integrated catheter, motor drive unit, and imaging system. The dual-function imaging catheter has the same diameter of current clinical standard. The imaging system is capable for simultaneous IVUS and OCT imaging in real time. Ex vivo and in vivo experiments on rabbits with atherosclerosis were conducted to demonstrate the feasibility and superiority of the integrated intravascular imaging modality.