The principle of surface wave, classification of measurement technology and key technology are discussed. The historical developments of refractive index sensing based on total internal reflection, surface plasmon resonance, graphene and other optical surface waves is summarized. The technical advantages of surface wave refractive index sensing imaging are further discussed. The research results show that surface wave sensing imaging, as a high-precision quantitative label-free microscopic imaging technology, has important values in the accurate diagnosis and treatment of medical optics.