A device reminiscent of the medical tricorder of Star Trek fame could allow doctors to conduct a battery of health checks with a beam of light. The instrument, designed at Aston University, UK, uses three separate lasers to perform non-invasive checks on health metrics such as cardiovascular performance and key metabolic 
The device could allow doctors to conduct a battery of health checks with a beam of light. Source: Aston Universityparameters.
Tests using the device take minutes and involve lasers being directed painlessly onto a patient’s skin. Results are processed by a computer and are then graphically displayed.
Laser doppler flowmetry is applied to monitor variables such as how effectively a subject’s blood is being delivered to their tissue, while tissue oximetry measures levels of oxygen in blood vessels and tissue. Tissue fluorescence is the third laser component, used to assess cell metabolism, which is of value in obesity prognosis and cancer diagnosis.
The device has been trialed for the diagnosis of strokes and skin cancers, and has been demonstrated to provide a precise means of identifying boundaries of head and neck skin cancers. A prototype of a wearable monitor is also under development that athletes can wear on their wrists, like other fitness monitoring devices.
