Optical fiber probe monitor for neonatal bilirubinemia

Computer simulations of light propagation in a multilayered skin model (Monte Carlo) and experimental measurements with scaled phantom models of layered skin are reported. The goal is an algorithm for reliable quantification bilirubin despite variations in skin optics, using spectra from an optical fiber probe taped onto the skin. In the model the level of pigmentation in each of the four principle layers of the skin, the pigmented epidermis, the superficial papillary dermis, the venous plexus, and the reticular dermis, is varied by varying absorption coefficient. The Monte Carlo simulation gives the reflectance value for the skin and a map of the light distribution within the skin