Phototherapy progress measuring method, processor, and phototherapy system
AssigneeOlympus Corporation
InventorSusumu Yamashita
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Provided is phototherapy progress measuring method for measuring a progress of a phototherapy of an affected portion by employing a fluorescent agent. The method includes: detecting a first fluorescence intensity, which is an intensity of fluorescence generated in the affected portion as a result of radiating therapeutic light beam onto the affected portion; and calculating, by employing the first fluorescence intensity and reference data, progress information representing the progress of the phototherapy of the affected portion. The reference data are determined on the basis of a fluorescence intensity associated with the fluorescent agent that is in the affected portion and that is not involved in the phototherapy.
Claims18
A phototherapy progress measuring method for measuring a progress of a phototherapy of an affected portion, a fluorescent agent being administered to the affected portion and comprising a pre-accumulated fraction accumulated in the affected portion prior to the phototherapy and a re-accumulated fraction not accumulated in the affected portion prior to the phototherapy and re-accumulated in the affected portion during the phototherapy, the method comprising:
- radiating a therapeutic light beam onto the affected portion from a therapeutic light source, the therapeutic light beam being used for treating the affected portion by exciting the fluorescent agent;
- detecting, by a photodetector, a first fluorescence intensity, which is an intensity of fluorescence generated as a result of exciting the fluorescent agent;
- and
- calculating, by employing the first fluorescence intensity and reference data, progress information representing the progress of the phototherapy of the affected portion, wherein the reference data is:
- data of a second fluorescence intensity, which is an intensity of fluorescence in the re-accumulated fraction of the fluorescent agent;
- or
- preset data that is prepared and stored in a memory prior to the phototherapy and that represents a temporal change of an intensity of fluorescence of the fluorescent agent due to an irradiation of the therapeutic light beam, excluding the intensity of fluorescence in the re-accumulated fraction of the fluorescent agent.
A processor that measures a progress of a phototherapy of an affected portion, a fluorescent agent being administered to the affected portion and comprising a pre-accumulated fraction accumulated in the affected portion prior to the phototherapy and a re-accumulated fraction not accumulated in the affected portion prior to the phototherapy and re-accumulated in the affected portion during the phototherapy, the processor being configured to:
- control a therapeutic light source to radiate a therapeutic light beam onto the affected portion, the therapeutic light beam being used for treating the affected portion by exciting the fluorescent agent;
- control a photodetector to detect a first fluorescence intensity, which is an intensity of fluorescence generated as a result of exciting the fluorescent agent;
- and
- calculate, by employing the first fluorescence intensity and reference data, progress information representing the progress of the phototherapy of the affected portion, wherein the reference data is:
- data of a second fluorescence intensity, which is an intensity of fluorescence in the re-accumulated fraction of the fluorescent agent;
- or
- preset data that is prepared and stored in a memory prior to the phototherapy and that represents a temporal change of an intensity of fluorescence of the fluorescent agent due to an irradiation of the therapeutic light beam, excluding the intensity of fluorescence in the re-accumulated fraction of the fluorescent agent.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.