As there recently has been increased interest in the applications of optical techniques in biomedical research and clinical diagnostics, it seemed to be appropriate to organize a comprehensive international conference on optics in medicine and biology. Such a broad international meeting had not been held before. An international conference on Optics in Biomedical Sciences was organized and took place in Graz, Austria, September 7th through 11th, 1981, sponsored by the International Commission for Optics (ICO) in co­ operation with the European Optical Committee, the Austrian Association on Biomedical Engineering, and the German Society for Applied Optics. It seemed timely to establish a forum for communication among specialists on an international level. This book, presenting the papers given at this conference, demonstrates the state of the art of this increasingly expanding field of applications of optics. Furthermore, the interested reader will find an extended list of references in the various contributions. This book helps to overcome the difficulty, inherent in all interdisciplinary research fields, of gathering widely scattered literature. The contributions to this book are focussed on the following topics: Biomedical applications of - unconventional imaging in microscopy, - image processing, - interferometry and holography, - speckle-techniques and spectroscopy, - optometry, and - Moire methods. In addition, the brilliant and humorous closing remarks of Nils Abramson from the Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm, have been included.

Inhalt

I. Unconventional Imaging in Microscopy.- Electron Microscopy in Medicine and Biology: Methods and Recent Developments.- Electron Microscopy in Medicine and Biology: Applications.- Laser Projection Microscope: Principle and Applications in Biology.- Ultrasonic Microscopy in Medicine and Biology.- Imaging and Microscopy with Optoacoustic and Photothermal Methods.- II. Image Processing.- Biomedical Image Classification by Data Reduction.- Optimization Criteria for Television-Based Image Digitizers.- Digital Image Analysis of Complex Periodical Viral Structures.- Molecular Order of Ceramide Trihexoside (CTH) Inclusions of Fabry's Disease: Study Through Digital Image Processing and Optical Fourier Transformation.- Hierarchical Description of Image Structure.- On the Optimization of Scintillation Camera Collimators with Parallel Holes.- Computer Analysis of Compton Scattering Images: Acquisition, Restoration and Application in Patients with Pulmonary Oedema.- 3-D Time Gated Transaxial Tomography in Nuclear Medicine.- Image Processing of Cancer Radiographs.- Assessment of Radiographic Image Quality by a Single Number in Terms of Entropy.- Reciprocity-Law Failure in Medical Screen-Film Systems and its Effects on Patient Exposure and Image Quality.- Transmission Imaging with Incoherent Ultrasound.- III. Interferometry and Holography.- Laser Interferometric Measurement of Basilar Membrane Vibrations in Cats Using a Round Window Approach.- Displacement Measurement of the Basilar Membrane in Guinea Pigs by Means of an Optical-Fiber Interferometer.- On Easy-to-Handle Holocameras for Endoscopic Applications.- Holographic Measurement of Deformation in Complete Upper Dentures - Clinical Application.- Holographic Investigation of Tooth Deformations.- Otoscopic Investigations by Holographic Interferometry: A Fiber Endoscopic Approach Using a Pulsed Ruby Laser System.- Vibration Analysis of Tympanic Membranes: Measurement of Vibration Waveforms Using Sampling Series of Double-Pulse Interferograms.- Application of Rainbow Holography for Speckle Reduction in Tympanic Membrane Interferometry.- Suppression of Disturbing Light Reflexes in Holography, Applied to Practical Recording Problems in Medicine and Technology.- Holographic Vibration Analysis of the Frontal Part of the Human Neck During Singing.- Holographic Measurement of Rabbit-Eyeball Deformations Caused by Intraocular Pressure Change.- Holographic Investigations of the Human Pelvis.- IV. Speckle-Techniques and Spectroscopy.- Speckle Techniques for Use in Biology and Medicine.- Bio-Medical Applications of ESPI.- Retinal Blood Flow Visualization by Means of Laser Speckle.- Measurement of Interior Displacement of the Human Crystalline Lens by Using Speckle Pattern.- Categorization of Microparticles and Biological Cells by Laser Diffractometry.- Biomedical Applications of Molecular Luminescence.- A Measurement System for Otoscopic Spectroscopy in vivo.- Noninvasive Method for Evaluation of the Ratschow Test.- V. Optometry.- Optical Techniques for Detecting and Improving Deficient Vision.- Computer-Assisted Objective Optometer.- Fundus Imaging by a Microprocessor Controlled Laser Scanning Device.- Examination of Low-Luminance Myopia with a Laser Optometer.- Measuring the Shape of Soft Corneal Lenses.- Topographical and Tear Film Thickness Measurements of the Cornea of the Human Eye.- In situ Measurements of the Geometrical and Optical Properties of the Anterior Segment of the Eye.- Analytic Reconstruction of the Human Cornea by Means of a Slit Lamp and Digital Picture Processing.- A New Noninvasive Optical Method for Studying Binocular Vision by Infrared Image Processing.- Applications of the Nonlinear, Visual Operator "Lateral Inhibition" in Image Processing.- Visual Resolution of Colours in Overlapped Patterns of Two Colours with Sinusoidal Intensity Distribution.- Speckle Pattern Stimulator for Visual Evoked Potentials.- VI. Moiré Methods.- Survey on Applications of Moiré-Techniques in Medicine and Biology.- Moiré Topography in Scoliosis Research.- High-Precision Moiré Topography Based on Scanning Techniques.- Some Problems in Analytical Reconstruction of Biological Shapes from Moiré Topograms.- Automatic Measurement of Body Surfaces Using Rasterstereography.- Quantification of the Symmetry of the Nose Using an Analysis of Moiré Photographs of the Face.- VII. Closing Remarks.- Closing Remarks.- Index of Contributors.