Hyperspectral Imaging Tympanoscope: System Development and preliminary Study for Assessment of Its Potential as a Diagnostic Tool
-
Tayebe Taghizade
,
Saeid Farahani
,
Ali Kouhi
,
Ali Balooch
,
Alireza Akbarzade-baghban
,
Mohammad Esmaili
Abstract
Background and Aim: Accurate diagnosis of middle ear effusion (MEE) remains one of the most challenging tasks in the medical field due to the lack of reliable diagnostic tools available to physicians and audiologists. This study aimed to design and develop a hyperspectral imaging tympanoscope for diagnosing MEE as the first phase, focusing on system design and preliminary evaluation in a small sample.
Methods: The tympanoscope system was constructed using an ear endoscope, lens, camera, and near-infrared wavelength, and its performance was evaluated with a middle ear-mimicking phantom. Additionally, a preliminary study was conducted on middle ear images from ten children—five healthy and five diagnosed with MEE.
Results: Results from the phantom experiments demonstrated that the Weber contrast difference between phantoms with and without fluid in visible otoscopy and hyperspectral tympanoscopy was 0.16 and 0.49, respectively. As a result, in hyperspectral tympanoscopy, the contrast difference between fluid presence and absence was nearly tripled. Furthermore, in the preliminary human study, significant difference was found in Weber contrast between healthy children and those with MEE (p<0.001), confirming higher contrast in the MEE group.
Conclusion: The hyperspectral imaging tympanoscope could quantitatively distinguish between the presence or absence of fluid in the middle ear and the developed system has potential as a diagnostic and monitoring tool for middle ear effusion.
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