One of the most severe consequences of diabetes is diabetic neuropathy. Researchers have shown a close correlation between diabetic neuropathy and microvascular blood flow in human skin. Finite element based light tissue interaction studies and its analysis for the development of an in-built static optical parameter extractor that aid in calculating the flow within the microvascular bed, was discussed in the research proposal.
This presentation will discuss in-vitro validation studies to quantify soft tissue parameters using the developed static optical parameter estimator. Finite element based study on the optical response of microcirculation through dermal regions and estimation of blood flow from immediate subsurface tissue layers at a short source to the detector separation distance will be discussed. The experimental condition replicating actual blood flow through dermal capillaries during diabetic neuropathic condition will be discussed further. In-vitro validation studies demonstrated that short-range diffuse correlation spectroscopic (DCS) system quantifies blood flow with changes in blood flow rate and fluid properties in the immediate skin subsurface. Thus, the proposed short-range DCS system offers a reliable, cost-effective method for long-term non-invasive monitoring of changes in blood flow patterns for patients affected with different stages of diabetes, leading to diabetic neuropathy.