System and method for observing an object in a blood vessel

A method for creating a virtual 2D image of a single object moving in a blood vessel to determine a velocity of said single object comprising the steps of:

• acquiring multiple 1D images across a blood vessel disposed about adjacent to a substantially fixed footprint on a surface of an organ over a period of time by use of an adaptive optics scanning light ophthalmoscope (AOSLO) or a scanning light ophthalmoscope (SLO) imaging apparatus capable of acquiring 1D images, said substantially fixed footprint defining a line disposed in a plane about parallel to the surface of the organ, said line in said plane about perpendicular to the blood vessel, said imaging apparatus communicatively coupled to a computer;
• combining by computer said multiple 1D images to form a virtual 2D image showing said single object moving in said blood vessel;
• determining a velocity of a single object moving in said blood vessel from said virtual 2D image by said computer using an elongation ratio based on a known physical width of said single object and a distance as a single object width per time as determined from a subset of said multiple 1D images;
• and
• wherein a first axis of said single object falls along a 1D scan line to provide a representation of a physical length which is substantially independent of single object velocity and a second axis of said single object in said virtual 2D image provides a measurement of an elongation of the object which is directly related to the velocity of the object traveling through the blood vessel across said 1D scan line.