DETAILED DESCRIPTION S OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An imaging system constructed in accordance with the principles of the present invention is shown in FIG.
1, and includes a light source 2 radiating a beam of incident light 4 upon a biological tissue 6, such that the beam is partially transmitted through the biological tissue until being absorbed by the target anatomical structure 8.
An image detector 12, (e.
g.
Model CCD-72 camera available from Dage-MTI, Inc.
) detects reflected light 16, predominantly reflected from tissue surrounding the target anatomical structure with a different absorptive wavelength than the anatomical structure.
The image detector 16 is connected by a video signal 18 to a monitor 14 so that the intensity information of incident light reflected from the tissue is displayed onto the monitor in the form of an image.
If a polychromatic light source is used, wavelengths outside the useful range for imaging the target structure should be filtered out by one or more bandpass filters 10.
Alternatively, the imaging detector can detect only wavelengths within the useful range, such as occurs with a charge-coupled device infrared camera (CCD) (e.
g.
CCD1350-1 infrared CCD camera and 9300-00 image intensifier available from Electrophysics Corp.
Fairfield N.
J.
).
Alternatively, a real-time digital image processor, such as described in FIG.
2, (e.
g.
CSP-2000 Processor available from Dage-MTI Inc.
) can be used to filter out information poor wavelengths generated by the polychromatic light source.
In an alternative embodiment of the invention, a polarizing optical element 22a such as a polarizing filter (e.
g.
available from Ealing Electro-Optics Ind.
, Holliston, Mass.
or Oriel Corp.
, Stratford, Conn.
) is used in combination with a laser or other monochromatic light source.
Monochromatic sources include, by way of example, the Model 6124 laser diode available from New Focus, Inc.
Sunnyvale Calif.
, the Model Micralase available from Micracor, Inc.
, Acton Mass.
, and the MDL-DLAW10 available from McDonnell Douglas Aerospace, St
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Image Analysis 
