The word “thermography” comes from the Greek “therm”-heat and “graho” –to write.
“Write the heat”. Thermography is a technique of detecting, measuring and visualizing heat produced by the living organism or various subjects. As the result a color image of the object is seen on the screen. Different temperatures produce different colors.
Thermography used in the medical field is called Medical Thermography. Medical Thermographic Image detects heat originated by parts of the human body or the whole body. The multicolor digital infrared images are reviewed and described by a trained physician.
Modern cameras are capable to detect temperature difference as low as 0.05 degree Celsius. So, the technique is able to detect the very minimal temperature difference on the human body surface. Heat emitted by distinct areas depends on the blood flow and intensity of energy metabolism.
The temperature difference comes from the amount and intensity of blood circulation in different tissues. Low temperature could mean a variety of circulatory disorders; fever and higher temperature may be a symptom of inflammation or any other disease.
Normally, each area of the human body surface has a typical thermographic picture. For example, in the head and neck in a healthy person produces a higher temperature zone of the large blood vessels (eg, in the supraclavicular area), in the perioral area, in the forehead and eye sockets; the temperature on the surface of the eyelids, the tip of the nose, the ear, the eyeballs, above the eyebrows and scalp below; the temperature of the upper sections of the breast in women is higher than the lower; Temperature areola (areola) and lower sections of the mammary glands more constant than the upper. Changes in temperature distribution is an expected sign of the pathological process. Increasing the intensity of infrared radiation of pathological lesions associated with increased blood supply to them and metabolic processes, decreasing the intensity observed in the regional blood flow decreased to and concomitant changes in tissues and organs.