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Updated: Feb 2, 2026

Doppler Optical Coherence Tomography of Retinal Circulation
Published on: September 18, 2012
Rodent retinal circulation organization and oxygen metabolism revealed by visible-light optical coherence tomography
Shaohua Pi1, Acner Camino1, Xiang Wei1
1Casey Eye Institute, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR, USA.
Abstract:
Visible light optical coherence tomography (vis-OCT) is an emerging label-free and high-resolution 3-dimensional imaging technique that can provide retinal oximetry, angiography, and flowmetry in one modality. In this paper, we studied the organization of the arterial and venous retinal circulation in rats using vis-OCT. Arterioles were found predominantly in the superficial vascular plexus whereas veins tended to drain capillaries from the deep capillary plexus. After that, we determined the oxygen metabolic rate supported by retinal microcirculation by combining retinal vessel oxygen saturation and blood flow measurements. The ability to visualize and monitor retinal circulation organization and oxygen metabolism by vis-OCT may provide new opportunities for understanding the pathology of ocular diseases.
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