Biocompatible optical fiber for photomedical application

Abstract

With the gradual development of photomedicine, biocompatible optical fiber (BOF) has become more and more important for delivering light energy into deep-tissue in recent years. By this, it can realize light induced medical treatments, such as optogenetics, photothermal cancer treatment, photodynamic therapy, physiological information sensing transmission, etc. In this review, we discuss (i) the characteristics of BOF, (ii) the fabricating methods of BOF, (iii) the application fields of BOF, and (iv) the recent progress and perspectives on the future of BOF. We envision that this review will provide readers with some meaningful guidance on the preparation of BOFs and inspire them to explore more potential applications.