Thermal endoscopic systems and their applications in the biomedical field

Thermal endoscopic systems could provide not only useful information concerning abnormalities in spaces within tubular tissues or inside the body, but could also have other applications such as in emergency rescue situations. This project examined the possibility of developing endoscopic systems to produce thermal images using fibers and their bundles which can transmit infrared (IR) light, and investigated the feasibility of such systems. Although it was possible to identify and observe the organs inside a subject's oral cavity and the viscella of experimental animals through the fiber bundle, the transmitted quality of the thermal images is still not good enough for diagnostic purposes. However, recent advances in infrared light detectors, the development of new materials for IR fibers, and improvements in the IR electronic endoscopic system should lead to the development of endoscopic systems for thermal images with the required temperature resolution in the near future.