Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is increasingly used to image tissue microstructure for diagnostic purposes. OCT imaging is currently being researched to diagnose, survey, and monitor Barrett’s esophagus. However due to the many differences between OCT systems, a method to calibrate or provide a standard is needed.

This research developed esophagus phantoms that represent normal and Barrett’s esophagus tissue. When imaged by OCT systems the phantoms mimicked the visual aspects of the normal esophagus tissue and Barrett’s esophagus tissue. The images produced with the phantom were then evaluated with three different texture analysis methods to quantify the phantoms. Finally, the images from the phantoms were compared to clinical images for visual alignment and texture accuracy. The results demonstrated that these esophagus phantoms can be distinguished both visually and through quantifying the images in the texture.