Oxford Optronix

The development of a cylindrical-core fiber optic oxygen sensor for fast measurement of oxygen partial pressure (pO2) is described. The fibre sensing element is based on a cylindrical-core waveguide structure formed by a polymer sensing film that contains immobilized Pt (II) complexes. The performance of the fibre optic oxygen sensor was evaluated using luminescence intensity measurement. To determine accurately the response time of the oxygen sensor, a test chamber was used to provide rapid changes in the partial pressure of oxygen. The result showed that the time response of this cylindrical-core fibre based optic oxygen sensor can be less than 0.2 second. The details of the sensor chemistry, experimental system and the results are reported.

Oxygen plays a pivotal role as a nutrient to the brain. Monitoring partial pressure of oxygen (ptO2) has been shown to correlate with outcome after brain injury if certain tissue-ptO2-goals can be achieved. Oxford Optronix has recently developed a new fiber-optic based sensor (MPBS) with a large tissue sampling volume and long-term stability up to 10 days. Direct comparison of the MPBS sensor with the Licox system was performed using an in-vitro and in-vivo model. No statistically significant differences between the MPBS and the Licox sensor in different settings were found. The response times to a sudden drop in ptO2 was faster for the MPBS than for the Licox probes (time of 80% signal change; 65 +/- 11 vs 110 +/- 14 s; p<0.05).