Cited by 75Photoacoustic and Ultrasonic ImagingOptical Imaging and Spectroscopy TechniquesNon-Invasive Vital Sign Monitoring

Impact of skin tone on photoacoustic oximetry and tools to minimize bias

Open access
Mantri, Yash, Jokerst, Jesse V.·2022·Biomedical Optics Express

Abstract

The major optical absorbers in tissue are melanin and oxy/deoxy-hemoglobin, but the impact of skin tone and pigmentation on biomedical optics is still not completely understood or adequately addressed. Melanin largely governs skin tone with higher melanin concentration in subjects with darker skin tones. Recently, there has been extensive debate on the bias of pulse oximeters when used with darker subjects. Photoacoustic (PA) imaging can measure oxygen saturation similarly as pulse oximeters and could have value in studying this bias. More importantly, it can deconvolute the signal from the skin and underlying tissue. Here, we studied the impact of skin tone on PA signal generation, depth penetration, and oximetry. Our results show that subjects with darker skin tones exhibit significantly higher PA signal at the skin surface, reduced penetration depth, and lower oxygen saturation compared to subjects with lighter skin tones. We then suggest a simple way to compensate for these signal differences.

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Registry

Crossref · 10.1364/boe.450224

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58 of 58 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

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Authors
Mantri, Y., & Jokerst, J. V.
Affiliations
University of California San Diego (US)
Venue
Biomedical Optics Express
Published
2022-01-20
Volume
13
Issue
2
Pages
875
ISSN
2156-7085 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W4205674836
Cited by
75
References
59
Citations by year
2026: 12 · 2025: 13 · 2024: 21 · 2023: 21 · 2022: 7
FWCI
4.50
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Biomedical Optics Express (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, other-oa)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Funders
  • University of California, San Diego (Galvanizing Engineering in Medicine program)
  • National Institutes of Health (S10 OD021821)
  • National Institute on Aging (R21 AG065776)
Topics
  • Physical Sciences › Engineering › Biomedical Engineering › Photoacoustic and Ultrasonic Imaging
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Radiology, Nuclear Medicine and Imaging › Optical Imaging and Spectroscopy Techniques
  • Physical Sciences › Engineering › Biomedical Engineering › Non-Invasive Vital Sign Monitoring
Keywords
skin tone, melanin, photoacoustic imaging, oxygen saturation, skin pigmentation, penetration depth, signal compensation, hemoglobin

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