Apparatus of measuring glucose concentration by using optical coherence tomography and method of operating the apparatus

• US 20070027372A1
• Filed: 03/22/2006
• Published: 02/01/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 07/28/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Kim, Kyung, Hwang, In
• Granted Patent: US 7,822,451 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 600/316
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0066 Optical coherence imaging
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/14532 for measuring glucose, e.g. by tissue impedance measurement
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/7239 using differentiation including higher order derivatives

Abstract

Disclosed is an apparatus and method for measuring glucose concentration by using Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT), and more particularly, an apparatus and method for increasing the blood volume around a measurement part by using a blood concentrating device and noninvasively measuring glucose concentration of the measuring portion by using OCT. A glucose concentration measuring apparatus and method using OCT according to the invention can noninvasively measure glucose concentration by using OCT and help a user to easily measure glucose concentration.

Claims

1. An apparatus of measuring glucose concentration by using Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT), comprising:

a light source;

a beam splitter splitting the light generated from the light source into a first beam and a second beam;

a scan probe emitting the first beam to a measurement part where blood is concentrated via a blood concentrating device and receiving at least one backscattering signal from the measurement part wherein the blood concentrating device fastens around the measurement part to concentrate blood within the measurement part;

a reference signal generating unit emitting the second beam to a reference mirror and generating at least one reference signal corresponding to penetration depth information of the first beam from reflected light of the reference mirror; and

a glucose concentration measuring unit generating an OCT signal corresponding to the penetration depth information from an interference signal of the reference signal and the backscattering signal, and measuring glucose concentration of the measurement part by differentiating the OCT signal.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the reference signal generating unit comprises a predetermined actuator displacing the reference mirror.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the reference signal generating unit strains an optical fiber connected to the reference mirror and generates the reference signal corresponding to the penetration depth information.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the blood concentrating device further comprises a blood pressure measuring instrument.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the measurement part is a fingernail.

6. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein a sideface where the scan probe makes surface contact with the measurement part is in the shape of a curved surface corresponding to a curvature of the fingernail.

7. The apparatus of claim 5, further comprising a fastener attachable to the fingernail and having a cavity in the size of the contact surface of the scan probe,

wherein the scan probe makes contact with the fingernail via the cavity of the fastener.

8. A method for measuring glucose concentration by using Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT), comprising the steps of:

generating light via a light source;

splitting the light generated from the light source into a first beam and a second beam having the same quantity of light via a beam splitter;

emitting the first beam to a measurement part where blood is concentrated by a blood concentrating device and receiving at least one backscattering signal from the measurement part via a scan probe wherein the blood concentrating device fastens around the measurement part to concentrate the blood within the measurement part;

emitting the second beam to a reference mirror and generating at least one reference signal corresponding to penetration depth information of the first beam from reflected light of the reference mirror; and

generating an OCT signal corresponding to the penetration depth information from an interference signal of the reference signal and the backscattering signal, and measuring glucose concentration of the measurement part by differentiating the OCT signal.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the measurement portion is a fingernail.

10. A computer readable record medium recording a program for implementing the method according to any one of claim 8 or 9.

11. A medical apparatus, comprising;

a blood concentrating device that fastens around a measurement area to concentrate blood within the measurement area; and

a glucose concentration measuring unit measuring glucose concentration in the measurement area.

12. A medical apparatus, comprising:

a blood concentrating and blood pressure measuring device that fastens to a measurement area and measures blood pressure and concentrates blood; and

a glucose concentration measuring unit measuring glucose concentration in the measurement area.