It is well known that near-infrared (NIR) spectrum have high transparency to living organisms than visible light and ultraviolet light, because there is less absorption and light scattering. In particular, the over 1000 nm wavelength is a weak absorption region of overtone and combination tone of molecular vibrations, thus, spectrum information of the deep tissue composition can be obtained. Hyperspectral imaging (HSI) is the modality that can provide spectroscopic information with high spatial resolution. Therefore, these technologies are focused on medical field. Recently, it is reported that visual assistance such as diagnosis of deep lesion and surgical navigation, which are difficult to recognize by visible light, can be performed using these combined NIR-HSI. In this paper, the medical applications of NIR-HSI and development for endoscope are introduced.
