A Novel Method of Vein Detection with the Use of Digital Image Correlation

Abstract

Digital image correlation may be useful in many different fields of science, one of which is medicine. In this paper, the authors present the results of research aimed at detecting skin micro-shifts caused by pulsation of the veins. A novel technique using digital image correlation (DIC) and filtering the resulting shifts map to detect pulsating veins was proposed. After applying the proposed method, the veins in the forearm were visualized. The proposed technique may be used in the diagnosis of venous stenosis and may also contribute to reducing the number of adverse events during blood collection. The great advantage of the proposed method is the lack of the need to have specialized equipment, only a typical mobile phone camera is needed to perform the test.