Patent ID: 11890077
Assignee: THE GENERAL HOSPITAL CORPORATION
Field: Medical technology (Instruments)
Classification: CPC A | IPC A

Claim 18:
19. An apparatus, comprising:
a catheter configured and structured to be inserted into a blood vessel;
an energy source arrangement configured to provide, through the catheter, at least one first light radiation to the blood vessel at at least one first wavelength that is between 550 nm and 800 nm;
a detector arrangement configured to detect, through the catheter, at least one second light radiation at at least one second wavelength that is between 640 nm and 900 nm, wherein the at least one second light radiation is based on an autofluorescence of at least one portion of the blood vessel being impacted by the at least one first light radiation; and
a computer arrangement configured to determine at least one characteristic of the blood vessel indicative of inflammation based on the autofluorescence,
the determining procedure including processing the detected signal based on the at least one second light radiation to further determine the at least one characteristic.