Miniature optical fiber pressure microsensors for in vivo measurement of intramuscular pressure

An innovative fiber optic pressure microsensor has been developed that is based upon on Luna Innovations' patented extrinsic Fabry-Perot interferometric (EFPI) technique. The basic physics governing the operation of these sensors makes them relatively tolerant or immune to the effects of high-temperature, high-EMI, and highly-corrosive environments. Luna's pressure microsensor is extremely small, with an outer diameter of only 200 microns and a length of less than 1mm. The pressure microsensor has a high sensitivity that allows for sub-mmHg resolution over a dynamic range of 0-300 mmHg. The combination of these features makes this pressure microsensor ideal for medical applications where small size, high sensitivity and accuracy, EMI immunity, biocompatibility, and survivability (e.g. sterilizable steam, ethylene oxide) are important. One example medical application of the pressure microsensor has been to adapt the microsensor for measurement of intramuscular pressure in vivo during active and passive muscle activation. Clinically it is difficult to study the in vivo mechanical properties of individual skeletal muscles for a variety of reasons. Initial experiments have demonstrated a correlation between intramuscular pressure and force. Such measurements can be a useful diagnostic tool for clinicians assessing muscular deficits in patients.