BACKGROUND/PURPOSE: A new enhancement imaging technique for visualizing two-dimensional distribution of water content in human tissue is proposed based on optical properties such as reflectance spectra and the scattering from the skin surface.

METHODS

The method consists of two fundamental functions: spectral filtering for estimating skin hydration and polarization control for the appropriate measurement depth. Spectral filtering is simply achieved by utilizing the bandpass filters, whereas the measurement depth control is performed by changing the polarization directions in front of a light source and a detector.

RESULTS

The combined method of spectral filtering and polarization imaging effectively visualized the water content distribution in skin as a shading on a composed black and white image. The result was compared with the measured value of the capacitance method, and the result of the proposed method was validated.

CONCLUSION

Our results suggest that the proposed method enhances the scattering property in the skin according to the water content. Detailed discussions are given.