Method of investigation of microcirculation functional dynamics of physiological liquids in skin and apparatus for its realization

A method for investigating the microcirculation of physiological liquids in skin comprising the steps of:

• subjecting a preselected area of the skin to electromagnetic radiation within a range of 0.3 .mu.m to 2.0 .mu.m;
• detecting infrared (IR) electromagnetic radiation emitted from and electromagnetic radiation backscattered from preselected locations on said preselected area of the skin over a preselected period of time;
• providing output signals representative of said emitted infrared electromagnetic radiation and said backscattered electromagnetic radiation;
• providing a functional map of said preselected area of the skin based upon said signals representative of an interrelationship between temporal variations in said emitted infrared electromagnetic radiation and said backscattered electromagnetic radiation;
• and
• comparing preselected aspects of said functional map in order to provide an analysis of the microcirculation of physiological liquids in the preselected area of the skin.

A method for investigating the microcirculation of physiological liquids in skin comprising the steps of:

• subjecting a preselected location on the skin to electromagnetic radiation within a range of 0.3 .mu.m to 2.0 .mu.m;
• detecting backscattered electromagnetic radiation simultaneously with infrared radiation emitted from the skin at a multiplicity of observation points at preselected distances from the location at which the skin is illuminated;
• determining a concentration of physiological pigments at a given depth of the skin by measuring the logarithm of a change in intensity registered by shifting the observation point by a preselected distance and calculating a value for a parameter which is proportional to the concentration of said physiological pigments;
• determining an interrelationship between temporal variations for blood flow and blood content by measuring and comparing corresponding variations of intensities of said emitted infrared and backscattered electromagnetic radiation in a preselected period of time;
• performing said measurement over a preselected area of the skin and providing output signals representative of said measurement;
• converting said output signals into video signals;
• and
• displaying said video signals as a video image in the form of a functional map of said preselected area.

A method for investigating the microcirculation of physiological liquids in skin comprising the steps of:

• subjecting a preselected multiplicity of locations on the skin to electromagnetic radiation within a range of 0.3 .mu.m to 2.0 .mu.m;
• detecting backscattered electromagnetic radiation simultaneously with infrared radiation emitted from the skin at a preselected observation point at preselected distance from the locations at which the skin is illuminated;
• determining a concentration of physiological pigments at a given depth of the skin by measuring the logarithm of a change in intensity registered by shifting the observation point by a preselected distance and calculating a value for a parameter which is proportional to the concentration of said physiological pigments;
• determining an interrelationship between temporal variations for blood flow and blood content by measuring and comparing corresponding variations of intensities of said emitted infrared and backscattered electromagnetic radiation in a preselected period of time;
• performing said measurement over a preselected area of the skin and providing output signals representative of said measurement;
• converting said output signals into video signals;
• and
• displaying said video signals as a video image in the form of a functional map of said preselected area.