Fluorescence lifetime techniques in cardiovascular disease diagnostics

Cardiovascular disease has long been the number one cause of death and morbidity for adults in developed countries (Roger et al. 2010). Coronary artery disease is the most common type of cardiovascular disease and is caused by the development of atherosclerotic plaques in the coronary arteries of the heart; plaque is composed of lipids, cholesterol, calcium, and other types of cells found circulating in the blood stream (Ross 1993). Heart attack and other acute coronary syndromes are caused by plaque rupture, and although there are oftentimes no precluding physical symptoms to this phenomenon, plaques with a higher risk of rupture are morphologically different than their more stable counterparts and are deemed high-risk or “vulnerable plaques” (Libby 2002; Virmani et al. 2000). There is currently no method clinically available for assessing risk of plaque rupture; thus, many research efforts are being expended to develop imaging techniques for this purpose. This chapter presents a review of the time-resolved fluorescence techniques applied to characterization and diagnosis of atherosclerosis.