Image analysis of optic nerve disease

Existing methodologies for imaging the optic nerve head surface topography and measuring the retinal nerve fibre layer thickness include confocal scanning laser ophthalmoscopy (Heidelberg retinal tomograph), optical coherence tomography, and scanning laser polarimetry. For cross-sectional screening of patient populations, all three approaches have achieved sensitivities and specificities within the 60-80th percentile in various studies, with occasional specificities greater than 90% in select populations. Nevertheless, these methods are not likely to provide useful assistance for the experienced examiner at their present level of performance. For longitudinal change detection in individual patients, strategies for clinically specific change detection have been rigorously evaluated for confocal scanning laser tomography only. While these initial studies are encouraging, applying these algorithms in larger numbers of patients is now necessary. Future directions for these technologies are likely to include ultra-high resolution optical coherence tomography, the use of neural network/machine learning classifiers to improve clinical decision-making, and the ability to evaluate the susceptibility of individual optic nerve heads to potential damage from a given level of intraocular pressure or systemic blood pressure.