Abstract:

Nailfold Capillaroscopy (NFC) is a non-invasive, portable device used to acquire the image of capillaries at the nailfold region. The capillaries which play a vital role in microcirculation helps to diagnose various microvascular disorders such as systemic sclerosis, myositis, rheumatoid arthritis, diabetes, glaucoma, systemic erythematosus etc., as the physiology of internal organs is highly correlated with these microcirculation. The changes in microcirculation can also influence the cardiovascular and renal functions, which may lead to pulmonary pathologies, cardiac dysfunction and renal abnormalities. The qualitative parameter such as capillary morphology (tortuous capillaries, giant capillaries, ramified capillaries, bushy capillaries etc.) and quantitative parameter such as capillary height, capillary diameter, arterial and venous limb diameter, intercapillary distance etc. are measured to analyze the capillaries for diagnosing various diseases. The Study of capillary pattern can aid in diagnosis as well as treatment of various vascular abnormalities. This survey discusses the method to acquire the NFC images, studies involved in analyzing the morphology of capillaries and their pattern in various vascular disorders from NFC images.