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Clinical Trial
. 2017 Dec;32(10):658-664.
doi: 10.1177/0268355517718760. Epub 2017 Jul 3.

Prediction of venous wound healing with laser speckle imaging

Timme Maj van Vuuren  1   2 , Carina Van Zandvoort  1 , Suat Doganci  3 , Ineke Zwiers  1 , Arina J tenCate-Hoek  2   4 , Ralph Lm Kurstjens  1   2   5 , Cees Ha Wittens  1   2   6
Affiliations
Clinical Trial

Prediction of venous wound healing with laser speckle imaging

Timme Maj van Vuuren et al. Phlebology. 2017 Dec.

Abstract

Introduction Laser speckle imaging is used for noninvasive assessment of blood flow of cutaneous wounds. The aim of this study was to assess if laser speckle imaging can be used as a predictor of venous ulcer healing. Methods After generating the flux speckle images, three regions of interest (ROI) were identified to measure the flow. Sensitivity, specificity, negative predictive value, and positive predictive value for ulcer healing were calculated. Results In total, 17 limbs were included. A sensitivity of 92.3%, specificity of 75.0%, PPV of 80.0%, and NPV 75.0% were found in predicting wound healing based on laser speckle images. Mean flux values were lowest in the center (ROI I) and showed an increase at the wound edge (ROI II, p = 0.03). Conclusion Laser speckle imaging shows acceptable sensitivity and specificity rates in predicting venous ulcer healing. The wound edge proved to be the best probability for the prediction of wound healing.

Keywords: Venous ulceration; venous disease; wound care.

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Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
(a) Flux image, red flux indicating highest flow, blue flux indicating lowest flow. ROI I in the center of the wound, ROI II at the wound edge, ROI III at the surrounding. (b) Black and white image of venous ulcer indicating where ROIs were placed. (c) Color image of venous ulcer indicating where ROIs were placed. (d) The lines represent the microcirculation of different ROIs in time. Flux 1 corresponds to ROI I, flux 2 corresponds to ROI II, flux 3 corresponds to ROI III.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
(a) Flux image of venous ulcer with healing tendency, red flux indicating highest flow, blue flux indicating lowest flow. ROI I in the center of the wound, ROI II at the wound edge, ROI III at the surrounding. (b) Black and white image of venous ulcer with healing tendency indicating where ROIs were placed. (c) Color image of venous ulcer with healing tendency indicating where ROIs were placed.
Figure 3.
Figure 3.
(a) Flux image of venous ulcer without healing tendency, red flux indicating highest flow, blue flux indicating lowest flow. ROI I in the center of the wound, ROI II at the wound edge, ROI III at the surrounding. (b) Black and white image of venous ulcer without healing tendency indicating where ROIs were placed. (c) Color image of venous ulcer without healing tendency indicating where ROIs were placed.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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