Abstract：
Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) is an optical imaging technology occupying a unique position in the resolution vs. imaging depth spectrum. It is already well established in the field of ophthalmology, and its application in other fields of medicine is growing. This is motivated by the fact that OCT is a real-time sensing technology with high sensitivity to precancerous lesions in epithelial tissues, which can be exploited to provide valuable information to clinicians. In the prospective case of OCT-guided endoscopic laser surgery, these real-time data will be used to assist surgeons in challenging endoscopic procedures in which high-power lasers are used to eradicate diseases. The combination of OCT and laser is expected to enhance the detection of tumors, the identification of tumor margins, and ensure total disease eradication while avoiding damage to healthy tissue and critical anatomical structures. Therefore, OCT-guided endoscopic laser surgery is an important nascent research area. This paper aims to contribute to this field with a comprehensive review of state-of-the-art technologies that may be exploited as the building blocks for achieving such a system. The paper begins with a review of the principles and technical details of endoscopic OCT, highlighting challenges and proposed solutions. Then, once the state of the art of the base imaging technology is outlined, the new OCT-guided endoscopic laser surgery frontier is reviewed. Finally, the paper concludes with a discussion on the constraints, benefits and open challenges associated with this new type of surgical technology.
摘要：
光学相干断层扫描（OCT）是一种光学成像技术，在分辨率与成像深度谱。它已经在眼科领域得到了很好的确立，其在其他医学领域的应用也越来越多。这是由于OCT是一种对上皮组织癌前病变高度敏感的实时传感技术,可以用来为临床医生提供有价值的信息。在OCT引导的内窥镜激光手术的前瞻性病例中，这些实时数据将用于帮助外科医生进行具有挑战性的内窥镜手术，在这种手术中，高功率激光用于根除疾病。OCT和激光的结合有望增强对肿瘤的检测，肿瘤边缘的鉴定，并确保彻底根除疾病，同时避免对健康组织和关键解剖结构的损害。因此,OCT引导下的内窥镜激光手术是一个重要的新兴研究领域。本文旨在通过全面审查最先进的技术来为这一领域做出贡献，这些技术可以用作实现此类系统的基础。本文首先回顾了内窥镜OCT的原理和技术细节，强调挑战和提出的解决方案。然后，一旦概述了基础成像技术的最新水平，回顾了新的OCT引导的内窥镜激光手术前沿。最后,本文最后讨论了制约因素，与这种新型外科技术相关的好处和开放挑战。
