Photoacoustic imaging platforms for multimodal imaging.

Photoacoustic (PA) imaging is a hybrid biomedical imaging method that exploits both acoustical and optical properties and can provide both functional and structural information. Therefore, PA imaging can complement other imaging methods, such as ultrasound imaging, fluorescence imaging, optical coherence tomography, and multi-photon microscopy. This article reviews techniques that integrate PA with the above imaging methods and describes their applications.