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Published on: December 26, 2013
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Retinal microcirculation imaging in sickle cell disease patients.
W Birkhoff1, J de Vries1, G Dent2
1Centre for Human Drug Research, Leiden, The Netherlands.
Microvascular Research
|September 26, 2017
Summary
Non-invasive retinal function imaging (RFI) is a feasible method for assessing microvascular function in sickle cell disease (SCD). RFI demonstrated low variability and significant differences between SCD patients and healthy controls.
Area of Science:
- Ophthalmology
- Vascular Biology
- Medical Imaging
Background:
- Sickle cell disease (SCD) affects microvascular function.
- Quantitative assessment of microvascular function is crucial for SCD management.
- Non-invasive methods are needed for reliable microvascular assessment.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the feasibility of non-invasive retinal function imaging (RFI) for quantitative microvascular assessment.
- To compare RFI with Laser Speckle Contrast Imaging (LSCI) in sickle cell disease (SCD) patients and healthy controls.
- To determine the repeatability and discriminating power of RFI.
Main Methods:
- Assessed microvascular measurement variability in 8 SCD patients and 8 healthy controls.
- Performed RFI for retinal arterial and venous blood flow.
- Utilized LSCI for post-occlusive reactive hyperemia and IBH challenges.
Main Results:
- RFI and LSCI showed excellent intra-subject repeatability.
- Significant differences in RFI arterial and venous flow were observed between SCD patients and controls.
- LSCI also demonstrated significant differences during IBH challenges.
Conclusions:
- RFI exhibits low variability, comparable to LSCI.
- RFI effectively differentiates microvascular function between SCD patients and controls.
- RFI is a feasible tool for quantitative microcirculation assessment in clinical research.
