JP4480831B2 - Biological light measurement device - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a biological light measurement apparatus, and more particularly to a biological light measurement apparatus that enables real-time display of a biological passage light intensity image.
[0002]
[Prior art]
A conventional biological light measurement device includes, for example, a modulated semiconductor laser that generates light having different modulation frequencies, as described in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 9-98972 (hereinafter referred to as “Document 1”), and the semiconductor laser. Irradiating optical fiber that guides the light emitted from the living body to irradiate different positions, and optical fiber for detection that collects the light that has passed through the living body (hereinafter referred to as “biological passing light”) and guides it to the photodiode. And a fixing member for fixing the distal end portions of the irradiation and detection optical fibers at predetermined positions of the living body, and an electric signal (hereinafter referred to as “biological passing light intensity signal”) representing the intensity of light passing through the living body output from the photodiode. ), A lock-in amplifier for separating the reflected light intensity corresponding to the wavelength and irradiation position, an A / D converter for converting the output of the lock-in amplifier into a digital signal, and after A / D conversion The relative change amount ΔC of the oxygenated hemoglobin concentration of each measurement point from a living body passed light strength signals_oxyAnd relative change ΔC of deoxygenated hemoglobin concentration_deoxyTo calculate the relative change ΔC_oxy, ΔC_deoxy, And ΔC_oxyAnd ΔC_deoxyAn image generation unit that outputs a relative change amount of the total hemoglobin concentration as a sum of the above to the input / output unit as a biological passage light intensity image (topography image), an operation instruction input of the apparatus main body, and a biological passage light intensity image are displayed. It consisted of an input / output unit.
[0003]
In the measurement using this conventional biological light measuring device, first, a fixing member is attached to a living body, and the irradiation and detection optical fibers are fixed by a probe holder arranged on the fixing member, thereby irradiating and detecting. The optical fiber for use was fixed at a desired position. Next, the living body is irradiated with modulated light from the irradiation optical fiber, and the passing light intensity signal that has passed through the living body is displayed on the input / output unit, so that the irradiation and detection optical fibers are normal on the body surface of the living body. It was judged whether it is arranged in. After this, as the main measurement, the living body passage light intensity signal when the living body is at rest is measured, and then the living body passage light intensity signal when the stimulus is applied to the living body is measured, and the oxygenated hemoglobin concentration at each measurement point is measured. Relative change ΔC_oxyAnd relative change ΔC of deoxygenated hemoglobin concentration_deoxyTo calculate the relative change ΔC_oxy, ΔC_deoxy, And ΔC_oxyAnd ΔC_deoxyThe relative change amount of the total hemoglobin concentration as the sum of the above and the light intensity is generated as a biological light intensity image.
[0004]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
As a result of examining the prior art, the present inventor has found the following problems.
The image generation unit of the conventional biological light measurement device sequentially stores the biological passage light intensity signal after A / D conversion and sequentially outputs the biological passage light intensity signal after A / D conversion to the input / output unit. The processing means is configured to display and generate a living body passage light intensity image based on the image generation instruction after the end of the main measurement and output it to the input / output unit. The processing means first reads the biological light intensity signal stored in the recording means based on the instruction to generate the biological light intensity image, and displays the biological light intensity signal for each measurement point on the display screen of the input / output unit. Display above. Next, using the living body light intensity selected based on the displayed living body light intensity signal as a resting living body light intensity, that is, a reference value (base value), the processing means determines the oxygenated hemoglobin concentration at each measurement point. Relative change ΔC_oxyAnd relative change ΔC of deoxygenated hemoglobin concentration_deoxyIt was the composition which calculates.
[0005]
For this reason, the conventional biological light measurement device has a problem in that a so-called real-time display in which a biological light intensity image is generated and displayed with the progress of the main measurement cannot be performed.
[0006]
The objective of this invention is providing the technique which can perform the real-time display of a biological body passage light intensity image.
[0007]
Another object of the present invention is to provide a technique capable of performing real-time display of a living body passing light intensity image corresponding to fluctuations of a living body.
[0008]
The above and other objects and novel features of the present invention will be apparent from the description of this specification and the accompanying drawings.
[0009]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
Of the inventions disclosed in this application, the outline of typical ones will be briefly described as follows.
[0010]
  (1) A measurement probe that arranges irradiation and detection optical fibers on the surface of a living body, and image generation means that generates a living body passage light image of the living body from the passing light detected by the detection optical fiber. In the living body light measurement device,Storage means for storing the preliminary measurement value based on the biological passage light intensity signal measured in the preliminary measurement and the main measurement value based on the biological passage light intensity signal measured in the main measurement, and the biological passage light intensity of the preliminary measurement value Using the signal as a reference, the relative change in oxygenated hemoglobin concentration, the relative change in deoxygenated hemoglobin concentration, and the relative change in total hemoglobin concentration at each measurement point are measured from the light intensity signal passing through the living body of the main measurement value. The image generation means generates the light image passing through the living body based on the respective relative change amounts.
[0011]
(2) In the biological light measurement device according to (1) described above, the biological light measurement apparatus includes an update unit that updates the intensity of the passing light stored in the storage unit, and the image generation unit is an update stored in the storage unit. The intensity of the transmitted light as a reference is used as a reference for the living body in the main measurement.Living body light imageIs generated.
[0012]
According to the above-described means (1) and (2), the storage means for storing the intensity of the passing light in the preliminary measurement is provided, and the image is generated on the basis of the intensity of the passing light in the preliminary measurement stored in the storage means. Since the means generates the living body passage light intensity image of the living body in the main measurement, it is possible to generate the living body light intensity image accompanying the progress of the main measurement, that is, to display the living body passage light intensity image in real time.
[0013]
At this time, an update means for updating the intensity of the passing light stored in the storage means is provided, and the living body passes through the living body in the main measurement based on the updated intensity of the passing light stored in the storage means. By generating the light intensity image, it is possible to correct the intensity change of the passing light at rest due to the fluctuation of the living body, so even if the biological light measurement is performed for a long time, Real-time display of the corresponding living body passage light intensity image can be performed.
[0014]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings together with embodiments (examples) of the invention.
Note that components having the same function are denoted by the same reference symbols throughout the drawings for describing the embodiment of the invention, and the repetitive description thereof is omitted.
[0015]
(Embodiment 1)
FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining a schematic configuration of a biological light measurement apparatus according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. 1 is a light source unit, 2 is an optical module, 3 is a semiconductor laser, 8 is an optical fiber for irradiation, and Is a living body, 10 is a detection optical fiber, 11 is a photodiode, 12 is a lock-in amplifier module, 16 is an A / D converter, 17 is a control unit, 18 is a recording unit, 19 is a processing unit, and 20 is an input / output unit. , 21 indicates an image generation unit. In the following description, the configuration other than the control unit 17, the input / output unit 20, and the image generation unit 21 is the same as that of a known biological light measurement device.
[0016]
In the following description, as living body light measurement, for example, the living body of the first embodiment in which light is irradiated from the skin surface of the head of the subject 9 and the inside of the cerebrum is imaged from the passing light detected on the skin surface of the head. The configuration and operation of the optical measurement device will be described in the case where the number of measurement channels, that is, the measurement position is 12. Of course, the present invention is not limited to the head as a measurement target, and can be applied to other parts, and also to living organisms other than the human body. Further, by further increasing the number of light irradiation positions and light detection positions, the number of measurement channels can be increased, and the measurement area can be expanded.
[0017]
In FIG. 1, the light source unit 1 is composed of four optical modules 2. Each optical module 2 includes two semiconductor lasers 3 that respectively emit light having a plurality of wavelengths, for example, two wavelengths of 780 nm and 830 nm, in a visible to infrared wavelength region. These two wavelength values are not limited to 780 nm and 830 nm, and the number of wavelengths is not limited to two wavelengths. For the light source unit 1, a light emitting diode may be used instead of the semiconductor laser 3. All of the eight semiconductor lasers included in the light source 1 are modulated by oscillation units each composed of an oscillator (not shown) having different oscillation frequencies. However, as this modulation, the case of analog modulation using a sine wave is shown in the first embodiment, but the present invention is not limited to this, and digital modulation using rectangular waves at different time intervals may be used. The optical module 2 includes an optical fiber coupler (not shown) that introduces light having wavelengths of 780 nm and 830 nm emitted from the respective semiconductor lasers into one optical fiber (irradiation optical fiber 8). Yes.
[0018]
Therefore, the light mixed with the two-wavelength light emitted from the light source unit 1 is irradiated to the head of the subject 9 to be measured from the tip portions of the four irradiation optical fibers 8 connected to each optical module 2. Is done. At this time, each irradiation optical fiber 8 is fixed by a fixing member (not shown), and irradiates light at different positions. However, in Embodiment 1, the tip portions of the irradiation optical fiber 8 and the detection optical fiber 10 are alternately arranged on a square lattice. Details of the measurement probe are described in Document 1.
[0019]
The light that has passed through the head, that is, the light passing through the living body, is collected by the five detection optical fibers 10 fixed to the fixing member, and is connected to the other end of each detection optical fiber 10. It is detected by the photodiode 11. As the photodiode 11, a known avalanche photodiode capable of realizing highly sensitive optical measurement is desirable. The photodetector may be any other photoelectric conversion element such as a photomultiplier tube.
[0020]
The biological passage light guided to the photodiode 11 is converted into an electrical signal (biological passage light intensity signal), and then a modulation signal selective detection circuit, for example, a lock-in amplifier module 12 including a plurality of lock-in amplifiers. Thus, a modulation signal corresponding to the irradiation position and wavelength is selectively detected. At this time, the modulation signal output from the lock-in amplifier module 12 is separated into a biological passage intensity signal corresponding to the wavelength and the irradiation position. However, in the first embodiment, since measurement is performed at 12 measurement positions using light of two wavelengths, the number of signals to be measured is 24. Therefore, the lock-in amplifier module 12 of the first embodiment uses a total of 24 lock-in amplifiers (not shown). However, when digital modulation is used, a digital filter or a digital signal processor is used for detection of the modulation signal.
[0021]
The biological passage light intensity signal analog-output from the lock-in amplifier module 12 is converted into a digital signal by a 24-channel A / D converter (analog-digital converter) 16, respectively. Each digital signal is a biological light intensity signal for each wavelength and irradiation position. These measurements are controlled by the control unit 17.
[0022]
The biological light intensity signal converted into a digital signal is sequentially output to the recording unit 18 and the processing unit 19. The recording means 18 sequentially records the input light intensity signal passing through the living body.
[0023]
On the other hand, the processing means 19 averages the biological passage light intensity signal measured in the preliminary measurement stored in the recording means 18 and obtains the biological passage light intensity at rest as a relative change amount of the oxygenated hemoglobin concentration at each measurement point. ΔC_oxyAnd relative change ΔC of deoxygenated hemoglobin concentration_deoxyTo calculate the relative change ΔC_oxy, ΔC_deoxy, And ΔC_oxyAnd ΔC_deoxyIs displayed on the display screen of the input / output unit 20 as a biological light intensity image. The method for calculating the relative change in oxygenated and deoxygenated hemoglobin concentration and the relative change in the total hemoglobin concentration from the in-vivo light intensity signal at each detection position is described in Reference 1, and thus will be described in detail. Is omitted.
[0024]
As described above, in the biological light measurement device according to the first embodiment, it is confirmed whether or not the measurement optical probes 8 and 10 and the measurement probe including the fixing member (not shown) are normally attached to the subject 9. The biological light intensity signal measured in the preliminary measurement is stored in the recording means 18. On the other hand, the processing means 19 reads the average value, that is, the base value of the biological passage light intensity signal measured in the preliminary measurement stored in the recording means 18 with the start of the main measurement. Next, the processing means calculates the relative change amount ΔC of the oxygenated hemoglobin concentration at each measurement point from the living body passing light intensity when the subject 9 is at rest and the living body passing light intensity signal sequentially measured._oxyAnd relative change ΔC of deoxygenated hemoglobin concentration_deoxyTo calculate the relative change ΔC_oxy, ΔC_deoxy, And ΔC_oxyAnd ΔC_deoxyIs displayed on the display screen of the input / output unit 20 as a biological passage light intensity image, so that the biological passage light intensity image can be displayed in real time.
[0025]
FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining a schematic configuration of the image generation unit according to the first embodiment, in which 201 is a preliminary measurement value storage area (storage means), 202 is a main measurement value storage area, 210 is a calculation means, Reference numeral 211 denotes an imaging unit.
[0026]
In FIG. 2, a preliminary measurement value storage area 201 and a main measurement value storage area 202 are storage areas related to the biological passage light intensity signal, which is a measurement value, of all the storage areas of the storage unit 18 according to the first embodiment. Is shown. In particular, the preliminary measurement value storage area 201 is an area for storing, among the passing light intensity signals input from the A / D converter 16, the passing light intensity signal measured by the preliminary measurement. On the other hand, the storage area 202 for the main measurement value is an area for storing the main light measurement, that is, the continuous light intensity signal that is continuously measured, among the transmission light intensity signals input from the A / D converter 16. . Whether the measurement value output from the A / D converter 16 is stored in the preliminary measurement value storage area 201 or the main measurement value storage area 202 depends on the measurement mode input from the input / output unit 20. Based on this, the control unit 17 selects.
[0027]
The calculation unit 210 can be realized by a program that operates on a known information processing apparatus that constitutes the biological light measurement apparatus according to the first embodiment, and is stored in the preliminary measurement value storage area 201 and the main measurement storage area 202. Relative change ΔC of oxygenated hemoglobin concentration at each measurement point_oxyAnd relative change ΔC of deoxygenated hemoglobin concentration_deoxyIs calculated along with the progress of the main measurement, or the data at rest after the end of the main measurement is designated, and the measurement point is determined from the light intensity signal passing through the living body stored in the storage area 202 of the main measurement value based on this. Relative change ΔC of oxygenated hemoglobin concentration for each_oxyAnd relative change ΔC of deoxygenated hemoglobin concentration_deoxyIs a means of calculating The calculation means 210 also calculates the relative change amount ΔC of the oxygenated hemoglobin concentration at each measurement point._oxyAnd the relative change ΔC of the deoxygenated hemoglobin concentration_deoxyIs calculated as a relative change in the total hemoglobin concentration. The relative change ΔC in oxygenated hemoglobin concentration at each measurement point_oxyAnd relative change ΔC of deoxygenated hemoglobin concentration_deoxyIn addition, the control unit 17 inputs / outputs whether the calculation of the relative change amount of the total hemoglobin concentration is performed in real time, that is, with the progress of the measurement, or is performed after the end of the main measurement in the same manner as the conventional biological light measurement device. This is performed based on the display mode input from the unit 20.
[0028]
The imaging unit 211 can be realized by a program that operates on a known information processing device that constitutes the biological light measurement device according to the first embodiment, and the oxygenated hemoglobin concentration at each measurement point output from the calculation unit 210. Relative change ΔC_oxyAnd relative change ΔC of deoxygenated hemoglobin concentration_deoxy, As well as the relative change in total hemoglobin concentration, the relative change in oxygenated hemoglobin concentration between adjacent measurement points ΔC_oxyAnd relative change ΔC of deoxygenated hemoglobin concentration_deoxy, As well as a known means for interpolating the relative change in the total hemoglobin concentration. However, the interpolation position at this time is, for example, a position corresponding to a pixel position on the display screen of the input / output unit 20. The imaging unit 211 also calculates the relative change amount ΔC of the oxygenated hemoglobin concentration for each pixel position obtained by the calculation unit 210 and the interpolation calculation._oxyAnd relative change ΔC of deoxygenated hemoglobin concentration_deoxyIn addition, based on the relative change amount of the total hemoglobin concentration, imaging is performed in which the color of the pixel and the luminance thereof are converted into preset values. The imaging unit 211 compares the relative change amount ΔC of the oxygenated hemoglobin concentration for each imaged pixel position._oxyAnd relative change ΔC of deoxygenated hemoglobin concentration_deoxyIn addition, by outputting the relative change amount of the total hemoglobin concentration to the input / output unit 20, it is displayed on the display screen as a living body light intensity image. The operation of the imaging means 211 described above is the same as that of the well-known imaging means. In the first embodiment, the progress of the main measurement is performed in parallel with the interpolation calculation and imaging. It is a new configuration to do.
[0029]
Next, the real-time operation in the continuous mode in the biological light measurement device according to the first embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. However, in the following description, an operation in the case where only the real-time display of the living body passage light intensity image is instructed from the input / output unit 20 will be described.
[0030]
First, when real-time display is specified from the input / output unit 20, the control unit 17 stores the biological passage light intensity signal measured in the preliminary measurement in the storage area of the storage unit 20 constituting the image generation unit 21. The storage area 201 for the preliminary measurement value, which is an area of the
[0031]
When preliminary measurement is instructed from the input / output unit 20 after the measurement probe is attached to the subject 9, the control unit 17 drives the semiconductor laser 3 to modulate from the irradiation optical fiber 8 to the subject 9. Irradiate light. On the other hand, the light that has passed through the subject is guided to the photodiode 11 by the detection optical fiber 10, separated for each wavelength by the lock-in amplifier module 12, and then digitally transmitted through the living body by the A / D converter 16. Captured as an intensity signal. The control unit 17 outputs the captured biological passage light intensity signal to the imaging unit 211 so that the measurement value in the preliminary measurement is directly displayed on the display screen of the input / output unit 20. At this time, the control unit 17 outputs the measurement value in the preliminary measurement to the storage unit 18, thereby storing the measurement value in the preliminary measurement in the storage area 201 for the preliminary measurement value.
Preliminary measurement values are averaged to obtain a base value.
[0032]
Next, when an instruction to start the main measurement is input from the input / output unit 20, the control unit 17 causes the calculation unit 210 to read out the biological light intensity signal stored in the base value storage area 202, and read this out. This value is set as the light passing through the living body when the subject 9 is at rest. In addition, the control unit 17 causes the living body passage light intensity signal output from the A / D converter 16 to be stored in the storage area 203 of the main measurement value in the storage unit 18. Thereafter, the control unit 17 causes the calculation means 210 to immediately read the biological passage light intensity signal stored in the storage area 203 of the actual measurement value, and the read biological passage light intensity signal and the biological passage light at rest. Relative change ΔC of oxygenated hemoglobin concentration at each measurement point based on intensity_oxyAnd relative change ΔC of deoxygenated hemoglobin concentration_deoxyIn addition, the relative change in the total hemoglobin concentration is calculated.
[0033]
This calculation result is immediately output to the imaging unit 211, and after the interpolation unit 211 performs an interpolation calculation between the measurement points, the imaging unit 211 performs a relative change in the oxygenated hemoglobin concentration for each pixel position on the display screen. Amount ΔC_oxyAnd relative change ΔC of deoxygenated hemoglobin concentration_deoxyIn addition, based on the relative change amount of the total hemoglobin concentration, imaging is performed to convert the color of the pixel and its luminance into a preset value, and the image is displayed on the display screen of the input / output unit 20.
[0034]
Thereafter, until the end of the main measurement is instructed, the calculation means 210 promptly reads out the biological light intensity signal stored in the storage area 203 of the main measurement value and measures from the read biological light intensity signal. Relative change ΔC of oxygenated hemoglobin concentration for each point_oxyAnd relative change ΔC of deoxygenated hemoglobin concentration_deoxyIn addition, by calculating the relative change amount of the total hemoglobin concentration, a real-time display of the in-vivo light intensity image is performed.
[0035]
As described above, in the biological light measurement apparatus of the first embodiment, the storage area 201 for storing the biological passage light intensity signal in the preliminary measurement is provided in the storage area of the storage unit 18 and the actual measurement is started. If instructed, the calculation means 210 uses the average value of the biological passage light intensity signal stored in the storage area 201 for the preliminary measurement value as the biological passage light intensity when the subject 9 is at rest, ie, the reference value, for each measurement point. Relative change ΔC of oxygenated hemoglobin concentration_oxyAnd relative change ΔC of deoxygenated hemoglobin concentration_deoxyIn addition, the relative change amount of the total hemoglobin concentration is calculated, and based on the calculation result, the imaging unit 211 performs interpolation calculation between the measurement points and oxygenation for each pixel position on the display screen obtained by the interpolation calculation. Relative change in hemoglobin concentration ΔC_oxyAnd relative change in deoxygenated hemoglobin concentration Δ_deoxyC, and the color for each display pixel based on the relative change amount of the total hemoglobin concentration and the luminance thereof are converted into preset values and displayed on the display screen of the input / output unit 20, so that it passes through the living body. Real-time display of the light intensity image can be performed.
[0036]
Along with the real-time display of the living-body light intensity image, it is possible to make a diagnosis using the living-body light intensity image together with the measurement, so that the diagnosis efficiency can be improved.
[0037]
In the living body light measurement device according to the first embodiment, the light passing through the living body at the time of preliminary measurement is set as the light passing through the living body at rest, but the present invention is not limited to this. Needless to say, the measurement value immediately after the measurement, the average value of the measurement values within a predetermined period from the start of the main measurement, or the like may be used as the in-vivo light intensity at rest.
[0038]
Further, in the biological light measurement apparatus of the first embodiment, only the measurement value when the measurement probe is normally attached to the subject 9 is selected from the biological light intensity signal measured in the preliminary measurement. By providing the selection switch in the input / output unit 19 and causing the recording means 18 to record only the measurement value in a state where the measurement probe is normally mounted, only the normal measurement value is used as the light intensity passing through the living body at rest. It goes without saying that it can be done.
[0039]
Furthermore, in the living body light measurement device according to the first embodiment, the case where only the living body light intensity image is displayed in the display area of the input / output unit 20 has been described. However, the display area of the input / output unit 20 is divided into a plurality of parts. By displaying the living body passage light intensity image or the living body passage light intensity signal in the divided area, the living body passage light intensity signal can be displayed in real time together with the living body passage light intensity image. It is possible to easily determine whether the probe is caused by a positional deviation of the probe or noise. As a result, the diagnostic efficiency can be further improved.
[0040]
(Embodiment 2)
FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining a schematic configuration of the image generation unit in the biological light measurement apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention, where 301 is a base value storage area (storage means), 302 is an averaging means, and 303. Indicates a calculation means, and 304 indicates a setting means. The biological light measurement apparatus according to the second embodiment has the same configuration as that of the biological light measurement apparatus according to the first embodiment except for the control unit 17 and the image generation unit 21. Therefore, in the following description, The control unit 17 and the image generation unit 21 will be described in detail. The averaging unit 302 and the setting unit 304 constitute an updating unit.
[0041]
In FIG. 3, a base value storage area 301 is an area for storing a biological passage light intensity signal output from the averaging means 302. In the biological light measurement apparatus according to the second embodiment, the image generation unit 21. Is configured to use a part of the storage area of the storage means 18 constituting the. Further, the living body light measurement apparatus according to the second embodiment is configured such that the living body light intensity signal stored in the base value storage area 301 is the living body light intensity when the subject 9 is at rest.
[0042]
The averaging means 302 is a means for reading the biological passage light intensity signal of the measurement section designated by the input / output unit 20 and setting the average value of the designated section in the storage area of the base value. This can be realized by a program that operates on a known information processing device that constitutes the biological light measurement device. However, reading of the actual measurement value from the storage area 202 by the averaging means 302, averaging of the read biological passing light intensity signal, and writing of the base value of the value obtained by the averaging calculation to the storage area 301 The operation, that is, the update operation of the base value is executed simultaneously with the measurement of the light passing through the living body.
[0043]
The calculation means 303 calculates the relative change ΔC of the oxygenated hemoglobin concentration at each measurement point from the biological light intensity signals stored in the base value storage area 301 and the main measurement storage area 202._oxyAnd relative change ΔC of deoxygenated hemoglobin concentration_deoxyOr the relative change amount ΔC of oxygenated hemoglobin concentration for each measurement point after the end of the main measurement from the light intensity signal passing through the living body stored in the storage area 202 for the main measurement value._oxyAnd relative change ΔC of deoxygenated hemoglobin concentration_deoxyIs calculated as the measurement progresses, and can be realized by a program that operates on a known information processing apparatus that constitutes the biological light measurement apparatus according to the second embodiment. The calculation means 303 also calculates the relative change amount ΔC of the oxygenated hemoglobin concentration for each measurement point._oxyAnd the relative change Δ in the deoxygenated hemoglobin concentration_deoxyThe sum with C is calculated as the relative change in total hemoglobin concentration. The relative change ΔC in oxygenated hemoglobin concentration at each measurement point_oxyAnd relative change ΔC of deoxygenated hemoglobin concentration_deoxyIn addition, the control unit 17 switches whether the calculation of the relative change amount of the total hemoglobin concentration is performed in real time, that is, with the progress of the measurement, or after the end of the main measurement as in the conventional biological light measurement device. Based on the display mode input from. Further, the calculation means 303 re-reads the living body light intensity signal from the base value storage area 301 based on the updated output from the averaging means 302, thereby updating the living body light intensity at rest. It is possible to perform an operation based on the above. However, similar to the calculation unit 210 of the first embodiment, the calculation unit 303 reads the living body light intensity signal from the base value storage area 301 and the main measurement storage area 203 for each calculation. It goes without saying.
[0044]
The setting means 304 displays a predetermined mark superimposed on the biological body passage light intensity signal displayed on the display screen of the input / output unit 20, and a movement button and a mark position for moving the mark position in the time axis direction Is a means for displaying a confirmation button for confirming, and can be realized by a program operating on a known information processing apparatus constituting the biological light measurement apparatus of the second embodiment. The selection input of the movement button is input from the input / output unit 20 to the setting unit 304 via the control unit 17 and becomes an instruction in a desired direction of the mark. On the other hand, the selection input of the confirmation button is an input instruction from the input / output unit 20 to the control unit 17, and the control unit 17 operates as an operation instruction to the storage unit 18, the averaging unit 302, and the calculation unit 303 related to the confirmation button input. It is the structure which controls each means.
[0045]
Next, the operation of the biological light measurement apparatus according to the second embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. However, in the following description, the display area of the input / output unit 20 is divided into two areas, the living body light intensity image is displayed in one of the divided areas, and the living body light intensity signal is displayed in the other area. The operation when performing biological light measurement will be described.
[0046]
First, when an instruction for real-time display is specified from the input / output unit 20, the control unit 17 becomes an area for storing the biological light intensity signal of the subject 9 at rest in the storage area of the storage unit 20. Reserve a storage area for base values.
[0047]
When a preliminary measurement instruction is input from the input / output unit 20 after the measurement probe is attached to the subject 9, the control unit 17 drives the semiconductor laser 3 to irradiate the subject 9 from the irradiation optical fiber 8. Is irradiated with modulated light. On the other hand, the modulated light that has passed through the inside of the subject 9 is guided to the photodiode 11 by the detection optical fiber 10, separated for each wavelength by the lock-in amplifier module 12, and then digitally converted by the A / D converter 16. It is taken in as a biological light intensity signal. The control unit 17 outputs the captured biological passage light intensity signal to the imaging unit 211 to directly display the measurement value in the preliminary measurement on the display screen of the input / output unit 20. At this time, the control unit 17 outputs the biological passage light intensity signal measured by the preliminary measurement to the storage unit 18, thereby obtaining the average value of the biological passage light intensity signal measured by the preliminary measurement as the base value storage area 301. To store. The operation until the start of the main measurement described above is basically the same as the operation of the biological light measurement apparatus of the first embodiment described above.
[0048]
Next, when an instruction to start the main measurement is input from the input / output unit 20, the control unit 17 causes the living body passing light intensity signal stored in the base value storage area 301 to be read out by the computing unit 303, and The passing light intensity is set as a value when the subject 9 is at rest. Further, the control unit 17 stores the living body passage light intensity signal output from the A / D converter 16 in the storage area 203 of the main measurement value in the storage unit 18. Thereafter, the control unit 17 causes the calculation unit 303 to immediately read the biological light intensity signal stored in the storage region 203 of the actual measurement value. Next, the calculation means 303 outputs the read biological passage light intensity signal to the imaging means 211 and displays it on the other display area on the display screen of the input / output unit 20. Further, the calculation means 303 calculates the relative change in the oxygenated hemoglobin concentration at each measurement point from the read biological passage light intensity signal and the biological passage light intensity at rest of the subject 9 read from the base value storage area 301. Amount ΔC_oxyAnd relative change ΔC of deoxygenated hemoglobin concentration_deoxyIn addition, the relative change amount of the total hemoglobin concentration is calculated, and the result is output to the imaging means 211.
[0049]
The imaging unit 211 first performs an interpolation calculation between the measurement points, and then the relative change amount ΔC of the oxygenated hemoglobin concentration for each pixel position on the display screen._oxyAnd relative change ΔC of deoxygenated hemoglobin concentration_deoxyIn addition, based on the relative change amount of the total hemoglobin concentration, imaging is performed to convert the color of the pixel and its luminance to a preset value, and the image is displayed in one area on the display screen of the input / output unit 20.
[0050]
Thereafter, until the confirmation button is selected, the calculation means 303 promptly reads the biological light intensity signal stored in the storage area 203 of the actual measurement value, and the measurement point from the read biological light intensity signal. Relative change ΔC of oxygenated hemoglobin concentration for each_oxyAnd relative change ΔC of deoxygenated hemoglobin concentration_deoxyIn addition, by calculating the relative change amount of the total hemoglobin concentration, real-time display of the light intensity image passing through the living body in one of the two display areas of the input / output unit 20, and light passing through the living body in the other area The intensity signal is displayed in real time.
[0051]
At this time, for example, the operator operates the selection button after operating the movement button displayed in the other area to move the mark to the desired position of the biological passage light intensity signal on the display screen. By performing twice, the time position information of the selected section is output to the averaging means 302 by the control unit 17. The averaging means 302 searches the storage area 203 of the actual measurement value, sequentially reads the biological light passing light intensity signal corresponding to the set section, calculates the average of the read biological passing light intensity signals, The obtained value (average value) is set in the storage area 301 of the base value in the storage means 18.
[0052]
Further, the control unit 17 causes the calculation means 303 to read the living body passage light intensity signal stored in the base value storage area 202 to update the living body passage light intensity signal when the subject 9 is at rest.
[0053]
Thereafter, until the confirmation button is selected again, the calculation means 303 causes the relative change amount ΔC of the oxygenated hemoglobin concentration at each measurement point based on the updated biological light intensity signal when the subject 9 is at rest._oxyAnd relative change ΔC of deoxygenated hemoglobin concentration_deoxyCalculate the relative change in total hemoglobin concentration.
[0054]
As described above, in the biological light measurement device according to the second embodiment, the averaging means 302 stores the biological passage light intensity signal when the subject 9 is at rest in real time based on the update instruction from the input / output unit 20. Since the base value storage area 301 is updated, the real-time display of the in-vivo light intensity image corresponding to the fluctuation of the living body is performed even when the biological light measurement is performed for a long time. be able to.
[0055]
In the living body light measurement apparatus according to the second embodiment, the light passing through the living body at the time of preliminary measurement is the initial value of the light passing through the living body at rest. However, the present invention is not limited to this. Needless to say, a measurement value immediately after the start of measurement, an average value of measurement values within a predetermined period from the start of the main measurement, or the like may be used as an initial value of the light intensity passing through the living body. Furthermore, it goes without saying that the generation of the biological-passage light intensity image may not be performed until the base value is set.
[0056]
Further, in the living body light measurement apparatus according to the first and second embodiments, a part of the storage area of the storage unit 18 is used as a storage area for the light passing through the living body at rest, but the present invention is not limited to this. Needless to say, the processing means 19 may be provided with means for storing the light passing light intensity signal at the time.
[0057]
The invention made by the present inventor has been specifically described based on the embodiment of the invention, but the invention is not limited to the embodiment of the invention and does not depart from the gist of the invention. Of course, various changes can be made.
[0058]
【The invention's effect】
The effects obtained by the representative ones of the inventions disclosed in the present application will be briefly described as follows.
[0059]
(1) Real-time display of a living body passage light intensity image can be performed.
(2) Real-time display of the light intensity image passing through the living body corresponding to the fluctuation of the living body can be performed.
(3) The diagnostic efficiency of biological light measurement can be improved.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining a schematic configuration of a biological light measurement device according to a first embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining a schematic configuration of an image generation unit according to the first embodiment.
FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining a schematic configuration of an image generation unit in a biological light measurement device according to a second embodiment of the present invention.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Light source part, 2 ... Optical module, 3 ... Semiconductor laser, 8 ... Optical fiber for irradiation, 9 ... Living body, 10 ... Optical fiber for detection, 11 ... Photodiode, 12 ... Lock-in amplifier module, 16 ... A / D Converter: 17 ... Control unit, 18 ... Recording unit, 19 ... Processing unit, 20 ... Input / output unit, 21 ... Image generating unit, 201 ... Storage area for preliminary measurement values, 202 ... Storage area for base values, 210, 303 ... Calculation means, 211 ... Imaging means, 301 ... Storage area for actual measurement values, 302 ... Average means, 304 ... Setting means

Claims (4)

Biological light provided with a measurement probe that arranges irradiation and detection optical fibers on the body surface of a living body, and image generation means for generating a living body passage light image of the living body from the passing light detected by the detection optical fiber In the measuring device,
Storage means for storing a preliminary measurement value based on the biological passage light intensity signal measured in the preliminary measurement and a main measurement value based on the biological passage light intensity signal measured in the main measurement ;
Relative change amount of oxygenated hemoglobin concentration and relative change amount of deoxygenated hemoglobin concentration and total hemoglobin for each measurement point from the biological passage light intensity signal of the main measurement value with reference to the preliminary measurement value. An arithmetic means for calculating a relative change amount of the concentration with the progress of the main measurement,
The living body light measuring apparatus , wherein the image generating means generates the living body passage light image based on each relative change amount . The biological light measurement apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the storage unit stores only preliminary measurement values in a state where the measurement probe is normally attached. The biological light measurement apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the storage unit stores an average value of measurement values within a predetermined period from the start of the main measurement as a preliminary measurement value. The biological light measurement apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising an update unit that updates a preliminary measurement value stored in the storage unit, wherein the image generation unit uses the updated preliminary measurement value as a reference. A biological light measurement device that generates a passing light image.

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