TY - JOUR
T1 - MicroTools enables automated quantification of capillary density and red blood cell velocity in handheld vital microscopy
AU - Hilty, Matthias Peter
AU - Guerci, Philippe
AU - Ince, Yasin
AU - Toraman, Fevzi
AU - Ince, Can
PY - 2019
Y1 - 2019
N2 - Direct assessment of capillary perfusion has been prioritized in hemodynamic management of critically ill patients in addition to optimizing blood flow on the global scale. Sublingual handheld vital microscopy has enabled online acquisition of moving image sequences of the microcirculation, including the flow of individual red blood cells in the capillary network. However, due to inherent content complexity, manual image sequence analysis remained gold standard, introducing inter-observer variability and precluding real-time image analysis for clinical therapy guidance. Here we introduce an advanced computer vision algorithm for instantaneous analysis and quantification of morphometric and kinetic information related to capillary blood flow in the sublingual microcirculation. We evaluated this technique in a porcine model of septic shock and resuscitation and cardiac surgery patients. This development is of high clinical relevance because it enables implementation of point-of-care goal-directed resuscitation procedures based on correction of microcirculatory perfusion in critically ill and perioperative patients.
AB - Direct assessment of capillary perfusion has been prioritized in hemodynamic management of critically ill patients in addition to optimizing blood flow on the global scale. Sublingual handheld vital microscopy has enabled online acquisition of moving image sequences of the microcirculation, including the flow of individual red blood cells in the capillary network. However, due to inherent content complexity, manual image sequence analysis remained gold standard, introducing inter-observer variability and precluding real-time image analysis for clinical therapy guidance. Here we introduce an advanced computer vision algorithm for instantaneous analysis and quantification of morphometric and kinetic information related to capillary blood flow in the sublingual microcirculation. We evaluated this technique in a porcine model of septic shock and resuscitation and cardiac surgery patients. This development is of high clinical relevance because it enables implementation of point-of-care goal-directed resuscitation procedures based on correction of microcirculatory perfusion in critically ill and perioperative patients.
UR - https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?partnerID=HzOxMe3b&scp=85071186447&origin=inward
UR - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31240255
U2 - https://doi.org/10.1038/s42003-019-0473-8
DO - https://doi.org/10.1038/s42003-019-0473-8
M3 - Article
C2 - 31240255
SN - 2399-3642
VL - 2
JO - Communications Biology
JF - Communications Biology
IS - 1
M1 - 217
ER -