Microwave radar imaging for monitoring dysphagia

Food bolus obstruction in the esophagus associated with dysphagia is an urgent medical emergency, and is at the risk of serious complications without prompt diagnosis and treatment. Typically, computed tomography or plain X-rays scans can be useful tools for the diagnosis of esophagus food bolus, but those methods have ionizing radiation and are harmful to living tissues. In addition, they are difficult to implement portable devices for real-time monitoring. Recently, microwave imaging is an emerging noninvasive technology that has shown great potentials for medical diagnosis. The dielectric properties of malignant tissues behave significantly in comparison with the properties of normal tissues, and lower frequency microwaves are easily to reach tissues of interest. This study investigated the possibility of using ultra-wideband microwave to monitor food bolus transit through esophagus or throat for people suffered dysphagia.