ELECTRICAL IMPEDANCE TOMOGRAPHY

INTRODUCTION:
Electrical impedance tomography (EIT) is a medical imaging technique in which an image of the conductivity or permittivity of part of the body is inferred from surface electrical measurements. The word tomography can be explained with reference to 'tomo' and 'graphy'; 'tomo' originates from the Greek word 'tomos' which means section or slice, and 'graphy' refers to representation. Hence tomography refers to any method which involves reconstruction of the internal structural information within an object mathematically from a series of projections. The projection here is the visual information probed using an emanation which is a physical process. The processes include physical processes such as radiation, wave motion, static field, electric current etc. which are used to study an object from outside. Typically, conducting electrodes are attached to the skin of the subject and small alternating currents are applied to some or all of the electrodes. The resulting electrical potentials are measured, and the process may be repeated for numerous different configurations of applied current. The credit for the invention of EIT as a medical imaging technique is usually attributed to John G. Webster in around 1978, although the first practical realization of a medical EIT system was due to David C. Barber and Brian H. Brown.

BASIC PRINCIPLE:
When electric current is consecutively fed through different available electrode pairs and the corresponding voltage, measured consecutively by all remaining electrode pairs, it is possible to create an image of the impedance of different regions of the volume conductor by using certain reconstruction algorithms. This imaging method is called impedance imaging. As the image is usually constructed in two dimensions from a slice of the volume conductor as mentioned before, the method is also called impedance tomography and ECCT (electric current computed tomography), or simply, electrical impedance tomography or EIT.

CLINICAL APPLICATIONS OF EIT:

Proposed applications include, Monitoring of pulmonary or lung function. Thoracic blood volume. Detection of cancer in the skin and breast. Hyperthermia (temperature treatment) Gastrointestinal function. Brain imaging. Location of epileptic foci.

VARIATIONS OF EIT:
Magnetic Induction Tomography Magnetic Resonance Electrical Impedance Tomography

ADVANTAGES OF EIT:
Ability to produce images at reduced biological hazard. Relatively inexpensive instrumentation requirements. Physical ease of operation. Non-invasive. The technique has extremely high potential in medical, industrial and environmental applications. For medical applications, EIT is being considered as a screening and diagnostic tool. Despite the severe limitation of spatial resolution, ongoing hardware and software developments are broadening EITs potential to applications where resolution is of the utmost importance.

CONCLUSION:
A sufficient level of investment is required to be devoted to the improvement of both hardware and reconstruction algorithms in order to enhance the practicality of EIT to achieve, Long term monitoring in ICU. Inhomogeneous ventilation on smaller scale. SNEHA T.M (1GA08EE033)