Linear Polarization-based Diagnostic Tool for characterizing Normal and Fibrotic Heart tissues
Problem Statement:
Cardiovascular diseases (CVD) are the primary source of disease burden across the globe, according to the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) statistics. CVD deaths steadily increased from 12.1 million in 1990 to 18.6 million in 2019. After China, India has the second-highest number of fatalities from CVD. As a result, it is crucial to create healthcare technologies that can aid in early predicting cardiovascular illnesses to preserve lives and early treatment of such heart-related disorders. Myocardial fibrosis is a pathological characteristic that is prevalent in most cardiovascular diseases. Fibrosis is the formation of fibrous connective tissue in response to injury, characterized by the accumulation of extracellular matrix components, mainly collagen, at the injury site. Such pathological alterations in the heart tissue are precious for the early detection of cardiovascular disease if anticipated at an early stage. The research problem aims to predict myocardial fibrosis in the heart tissues to aid cardiothoracic surgeons in the early diagnosis of cardiovascular disorders.
Concept:
A portable, affordable, and accurate linear polarization-based diagnostic tool is designed and developed to measure the degree of linear polarization (DOLP) for delineating the healthy and fibrotic myocardial tissues. The diagnostic tool is based on optical polarimetry, an emerging modality that effectively quantifies the bulk optical properties that correlate with the anisotropic structural properties of cardiac tissues. The project efficiently demonstrates the application of a polarimetric tool for characterizing healthy and fibrotic human myocardial tissues. The project’s second phase involves quantifying the electrical properties of the healthy and fibrotic heart tissues. Also, we intend to create and develop a probe to quantify the DOLP of in vivo heart tissues during surgery.
Technology/Science involved:
Optical polarimetry, Tissue optics, Cardiovascular diseases, Myocardial fibrosis, Heart anatomy and physiology, and Diagnostic tool.