iThera Medical’s optoacoustic imaging (OAI) systems are based on the photoacoustic effect. In 1881, Alexander Graham Bell discovered that light energy absorbed by a material results in an acoustic signal. While Alexander Graham Bell used sunlight as incident light and a hearing tube as acoustic detector, modern optoacoustic imaging systems use high-energy pulsed lasers and highly sensitive broadband ultrasound detectors. By exciting tissue with a laser pulse and detecting the signals generated by the conversion of light energy into sound waves, optical absorption in tissue can be detected and visualized.
Leveraging the photoacoustic effect, OAI has the unique capability of visualizing optical contrast at high resolution (down to 10 µm) in deep tissue (up to 3 cm) and displaying the image in real time. The frame rate is dependent on the pulse repetition rate of the light source and can reach up to hundreds of Hertz.
iThera Medical’s MSOT inVision series is the only optoacoustic imaging (OAI) system with real-time whole-body imaging capability for small animals. Multispectral optoacoustic tomography (MSOT) introduces a new standard for the exploration of biological processes and the kinetics of pharmacological substances.
At the same time, iThera Medical is the undisputed leader in translating OAI into the clinic. A significant number of clinical trials has been successfully completed using the MSOT Acuity, ranging from melanoma to breast cancer, from Crohn’s disease to systemic sclerosis.
