Dielectric Permittivity Analysis of Healthy and Fatty Liver in Microwave Range

Hepatic steatosis (or diseased liver) is a dysfunction of the liver defined by accumulation of triglycerides. Imaging techniques of this liver disease are limited and often expensive, biopsy stays the most used tool for diagnostics. Interaction of a microwave with hepatic tissue is a promising way to build a non-invasive diagnostic technique for the hepatic steatosis. The present work is devoted to the ex-vivo characterization of dielectric permittivity in microwave range of the healthy and diseased liver. The coaxial transmission line permittivity measurement technique has been preferred to the open-ended coaxial probe. Mice and rats model are commonly used for metabolism study. There are two groups in rats and mice, a healthy group named control and a disease group. The measurements are performed ex-vivo in a few minutes after excision. The dielectric permittivity has been found to be a sensitive tool to distinguish between the healthy and diseased liver. This result shows a possible opening for the realization of a microwave antenna device capable of indicating the health status of the liver in a non-invasive way.