In-vivo cutaneous burn characterization and scar assay with multi-functional optical coherence tomography

Abstract

Accurate and timely assessment of burn wound severity is critical for wound management due to different treatment for dermal and deep burns. Various non-invasive burn assessment methods have been developed and applied but have limited contrast. In this report, multi-functional optical coherence tomography (MF-OCT) providing information on tissue structure, vasculature, and birefringence was applied to characterize early-stage burn wounds of different severities in a rat model. Burn wounds of various severities were induced on the rat dorsal skin by attaching a heated brass rod for different amounts of time. MF-OCT imaging was conducted on early stage burn regions before and after burn induction as well as contralateral control regions. Burn wound types were confirmed by assessing characteristics the healed wound, at approximately 30 days post burn induction. Dermal and deep burns showed distinguishing change patterns in attenuation coefficient, angiographic OCT signal, and birefringence; deep burn showed less reduction of attenuation coefficient in the dermis, more decrease in birefringence, and no angiographic OCT signal at 24 h post burn compared to dermal burns. These results suggest that MF-OCT has the potential for being used as an new method of burn assessment.