ABSTRACT
Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is a light-based imaging modality utilizing newly developed fiberoptic technologies for medical imaging applications. It was initially developed by researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the early 1990s and the first report was published in Science in 1991.1 OCT technology uses a broadband light source to create images in a manner analogous to pulse-echo ultrasound. Since the speed of light is five orders of magnitude faster than the speed of sound, an ‘interferometric’ technique must be used to ‘range gate’ the returning reflections.The major difference in the image is that the resolution of OCT is an order of magnitude higher that commercially available intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) imaging systems, however, the penetration is significantly worse.
