RR. In vivo confocal scanning laser microscopy of human skin: melanin provides strong contrast

In 1995, we reported the construction of a video-rate scanning laser confocal microscope for imaging human skin in vivo. Since then, we have improved the resolu-tion, contrast, depth of imaging, and field of view. Confocal images of human skin are shown with experi-mentally measured lateral resolution 0.5–1.0 mm and axial resolution (section thickness) 3–5 mm at near-infrared wavelengths of 830 nm and 1064 nm; this resolution compares well to that of histology which is based on typically 5 mm thin sections. Imaging is possible to maximum depth of 350 mm over field of view of 160–800 mm. A mechanical skin-contact device Confocal microscopy is a technique that allows opticalsectioning of turbid objects (Wilson 1990; Pawley1995; Webb, 1996). A thin plane or section can beoptically or noninvasively imaged within a scatteringmedium with high resolution and contrast. We have shown that thin sections of human skin can be imaged in vivo, and nuclear and cellular detail can be visualized without biopsy an