José Custódio Feres Vieira

Summary

New microcirculatory imaging techniques allowed direct observation of microcirculation at the bedside. This study presents a new device that assists the operator with the unprecedented Hands Free technique. To this end, a replica of Handheld Vital Microscopy was developed to simulate the method of capturing the image in the sublingual area, the most used site to assess microcirculation in critically ill patients. We achieved a reduction in the displacement of microscope replica with a Hands Free method . The immediate consequence is an increase in the stability of HVM replica by 75 times, or more, over the current 4 seconds, during its contact with the sublingual tissue. The device also offers better control of the pressure of the tip of the HVM replica over the sublingual area. The results demonstrated that the Hands Free technique, operating in the same sublingual area for 900 seconds, should allow for future research aimed at therapeutic maneuvers in patients with serious illnesses.

KEY WORDS: hands free technique, stabilizer, HVM imaging, artefacts, sublingual, microcirculation, SDF imaging, IDF imaging.

How to cite this article

VIEIRA, J. C. F. Hands free technique: new tool possibility for image capture of sublingual microcirculation with handheld vital microspopy – HVM. Int. J. Odontostomat. 15(1):181-188, 2020.