One of the earliest warning signs of cardiovascular disease happens deep within the smallest blood vessels: tiny changes in their ability to expand and contract, known as microvascular endothelial dysfunction (MiVED). Until now, doctors had no precise and noninvasive way to see or measure these early changes in humans.

“With fast-RSOM, we can, for the first time, noninvasively assess endothelial dysfunction at single-capillary and skin-layer resolution in humans,” says Dr. Hailong He, researcher at the Institute of Biological and Medical Imaging at Helmholtz Munich and TUM and first author of the study published in Light: Science & Applications.

Dr. Angelos Karlas, co-first author, vascular surgeon and senior research scientist at TUM University Hospital, adds, “Our novel approach offers an unprecedented view of how cardiovascular disease manifests at the microvascular level.”