The aim of the Biomedical Optics Research Laboratory (BORL) at the Department of Neonatology, University Hospital Zurich is to develop, test and clinically apply diagnostic tools using light. Thus it follows the modern trend of medical diagnostics, that is moving towards non-invasive, portable and inexpensive methods. The wide field of expertise and research includes: |  |
Quantitative near-infrared spectrophotometry (NIRS), a
non-invasive, continuous technique at the bedside, which uses light to
analyze tissue, e.g. quantitative measurement of hemoglobin concentration
and oxygenation. The expertise of the Biomedical Optics Research
Laboratory (BORL) includes the development of NIRS instrumentation
(sensors, electronics, spectrometers, chip design), software (drivers,
graphic user interfaces, and post-processing) and algorithms (signal
analysis, physiological parameter extraction). BORL successfully invented,
developed and clinically applied optical technology to study brain,
muscle, cervix, breast oxygenation, perfusion and function.
3D near-infrared optical tomography (NIROT), where BORL works on
instrumentation to investigate tissue in reflection mode up to 3cm deep or
transmission mode up to 7cm deep with an unprecedented 3D spatial
resolution of ~5mm. These instruments will be capable of non-invasively,
rapidly and quantitatively measuring the concentration of oxy- and
deoxyhemoglobin and the oxygen
saturation of hemoglobin in 3D. So far
a resolution of 5mm was achieved in the laboratory, which is leading in
the field.
The development of a new sensor principle based on smart
materials, which enables to quantitatively and non-invasively measure the
concentration of different molecules in the blood.
Clinical testing and research, such as the assessment of tumor,
muscle and brain function, perfusion and oxygenation and the measurement
of tissue composition in patients in the hospital during clinical studies.
One key application is the functional investigation of the brain. The aim
is to develop a method to assess the functional severity of brain lesions
in neonatal intensive care patients at the bedside. Brain activity can be
observed non-invasively through the intact skull using light. We are using
imaging techniques, which allow an online assessment of a whole region of
the brain.
Links
Biomedical Photonics Network www.bmpn.ch
Swiss Society for Optics and Microscopy www.ssom.ch
Forschungsdatenbank der Universität Zürich www.research-projects.uzh.ch/a390.htm
