Temperature-dependent optical properties of individual vascular wall components measured by OCT

Abstract

Optical properties of tissues and tissue components are important parameters in biomedical optics. We report measurements of tissue refractive index n , and the attenuation coefficient μ t using optical coherence tomography of individual vascular wall layers and plaque components. Moreover, since the temperature dependence of optical properties is widely known, we compared measurements at room and body temperatures. A decrease of n and μ t was observed in all samples, with most profound effect on samples with high lipid content. The sample temperature is of influence on the quantitative measurements within OCT images. For extrapolation of ex vivo experimental results, especially for structures with high lipid content, this effect should be taken into account.