Method and Applications of Optical Coherence Tomography in Chronic Wound Healing

Chronic wounds represent a significant burden on global healthcare systems due to their prolonged healing duration, high rate of complications, and considerable economic cost. Accurately assessing the spatiotemporal changes in tissue structure, microcirculation, and collagen remodeling during the wound healing process is critical for guiding effective clinical interventions. Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT), an imaging technique based on low-coherence interferometry, enables high-resolution, non-invasive evaluation of structural and functional changes in soft tissue, thereby providing a precise method for daily monitoring of chronic wounds. OCT technology has evolved from early time-domain OCT (TD-OCT) to more advanced frequency-domain OCT (FD-OCT). Specialized implementations such as ultrahigh-resolution OCT (UHR-OCT), OCT angiography (OCTA), dynamic OCT (D-OCT), and polarization-sensitive OCT (PS-OCT) have further broadened its functional applications. Although OCT has been applied in wound assessment, the relative advantages and specific applicability of different OCT variants across various wound healing phases have not been systematically summarized. Therefore, this review presents a comprehensive overview of OCT technology and its applications in chronic wound healing, detailing the technical characteristics of various OCT variants, offering guidance for researchers in applying OCT technology. Future research should focus on optimizing the trade-off between imaging resolution and penetration depth. Integration with complementary imaging technologies and deep learning algorithms is expected to enable more comprehensive, automated wound evaluation and accurate healing trajectory prediction.