During percutaneous medical interventions, accurate needle placement and advancing to the target of interest isrequired to avoid complications and to improve clinical outcomes. Therefore, we present a novel photoacoustic(PA) imaging-based approach as a complement to conventional ultrasound (US) imaging for visualization andguidance of interventional needles. To overcome the limitations associated with light penetration with theconventional extracorporeal illumination, we propose an interstitial light delivery to the target of interest byuse of a custom-made annular illumination probe (AIP). This probe accommodates an interventional needle (14gauge) within its lumen, allowing to advance both tools and acquire real-time PAUS images simultaneously. Thelight is delivered utilizing 72 multimode optical bers arranged around the circumference of the hollow centerof the AIP. Preliminary results show that PA images obtained with the AIP provide with good complementarycontrast to the US imaging for visualization of the interventional needles and its guidance to an absorbing targetwithin chicken breast tissue.
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