Characterization of blood coagulation dynamics and oxygenation in ex-vivo retinal vessels by fluorescence hyperspectral imaging

In brief

In our study, we combined fluorescence hyperspectral imaging (fHSI) combined with a spectral analysis algorithm to assess physical as well as functional information of blood coagulation in real-time.

We were able to track the spatio-temporal evolution of local blood coagulation in retinal vessels through direct identification of the change of oxyhemoglobin concentration. Also, we confirmed the essential role of erythrocytes in the coagulation cascade as the suppliers of oxygenated hemoglobin, and we showed immediate aggregation of erythrocytes at the coagulation site.