Patterns of periodic infrared light emission from the human body: A new diagnostic tool

The human body emits infrared light with the periodicity of the heartbeat. The infrared thermal emission occurs in characteristic patterns which, afte r the heartbeat, migrate over the body. The images are obtained by using th e electrocardiographic signal as a trigger to produce a thermal image which is subtracted from another one taken a well defined time later, before the next heart impulse. When these difference images are frequently repeated a nd averaged a heart pulse induced heat turnover is determined which has no relation to conventional heat images of the human body. Preliminary studies suggest that basically the heat turnover is seen in tissues where oxygen c onsumption leads to the turnover of chemical energy. When further developed , the proposed technique may provide a novel noninterfering and economicall y well affordable diagnostic tool for the examination of the external surfa ce of the human body. (C) 2001 American Association of Physicists in Medici ne.