Applications

doi:10.1117/3.637760.ch8

Applications

Book: Optical Clearing of Tissues and Blood

Author(s): Valery V. Tuchin

Published: 2005

https://doi.org/10.1117/3.637760.ch8

Author Affiliations +

Abstract

Approximately 17 million people in the USA (6% of the population) and 140 million people worldwide (this number is expected to rise to almost 300 million by the year 2025) suffer from diabetes mellitus. The development of a noninvasive test method would considerably improve the quality of life for diabetic patients, facilitate their compliance for glucose monitoring, and reduce complications and mortality associated with this disease. Noninvasive and continuous monitoring of glucose concentration in blood and tissues is one of the most challenging and exciting applications of optics in medicine. The major difficulty preventing development and clinical application of a noninvasive blood glucose sensor is associated with the very low signal produced by glucose molecules. This results in low sensitivity and specificity of glucose monitoring.