Fluorescence Imaging Device Aids Wound Treatment

A novel wound imaging device digitally captures and documents fluorescence information from wounds and surrounding tissue using still images and videos in real-time.

The MolecuLight (Toronto, Canada) MolecuLight i:X is intended for point of care (POC) visualization and quantitative tracking of bacterial contamination, wound healing, and connective tissue remodeling of surgical sites and wounds, based on the detection of intrinsic fluorescence signals emitted by tissues and microbes when illuminated with specific wavelengths of light, without the need of contrast agents. Images can be captured and documented as either still images or videos of wounds, including in the surrounding areas where potentially harmful bacteria may be lurking.


MolecuLight i:X emits a precise wavelength of safe violet light, which interacts with the wound tissue and bacteria causing the wound and surrounding skin to emit a green fluorescence, while potentially harmful bacteria emit a red fluorescence. The device captures these red and green fluorescence signals in real time using specialized optical components to filter out the violet light, displaying the resultant image immediately on-screen. The MolecuLight i:X is precisely calibrated to detect fluorescent bacteria at levels higher than 104 CFU/g on a quantitative scale, or predominantly moderate to heavy growth on a semi-quantitative scale.

MolecuLight i:X illuminates the wound with a narrow band of violet light that causes endogenous fluorophores in the bacteria to fluoresce. Susceptible bacteria include Staphylocccus aureus and MRSA; Pseudomonas aeruginosa; Escherichia coli; Coagulase-negative staphylococci; multiple Enterococcus species; multiple Proteus species; Klebsiella pneumonia; Beta-hemolytic streptococci (Group B); and multiple Enterobacter species. It is recommended that imaging be performed after surface blood has been removed from the wound bed and peri-wound areas.

“The MolecuLight i:X platform is a significant advancement in the management of chronic wounds that is already revolutionizing wound care practice in Canada and Europe,” said Ralph DaCosta, PhD, founder, director, and chief scientific officer of MolecuLight. “Thousands of patients have already experienced a change in their assessment and treatment by clinicians who feel empowered by the wound fluorescence images they are seeing.”

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