A new handheld scanner generates highly detailed photoacoustic tomography (PAT) imaging scans in real time, providing doctors with an accurate view of a patient’s blood vessels.

Researchers involved in the study at University College London (UCL) say this medical imaging breakthrough could offer the potential for earlier diagnosis of diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular disease and arthritis.

PAT imaging uses laser-generated ultrasound waves to visualise subtle changes (an early marker of disease) in veins less than 1mm in scale and arteries up to 15mm deep in human tissues.

However, existing PAT scanners require the patient to be completely still for more than five minutes in order for the technology to generate a high enough quality 3D image of their blood vessels.

In this study, the UCL researchers sought to reduce the time it takes to acquire images. They achieved this by making innovations in the scanner design and the mathematics used to generate the images.

Unlike traditional...