VASCULAR PERFUSION DENSITY MAPPING USING OPTICAL COHERENCE TOMOGRAPHY ANGIOGRAPHY COMPARING NORMAL AND OPTIC DISK PIT
Shangjun Jiang1, Bryen Turco2, Netan Choudhry3,4
1Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Retinal Cases & Brief Reports
|November 6, 2019
Summary
Optic disk pits (ODPs) are linked to reduced vascular density in specific optic nerve regions and decreased visual acuity. This study used optical coherence tomography angiography to analyze these changes.
Area of Science:
- Ophthalmology
- Vascular Biology
- Optic Nerve Imaging
Background:
- Optic disk pits (ODPs) are congenital anomalies often found incidentally during eye exams.
- Understanding the vascular changes associated with ODPs is crucial for patient management.
- Optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) offers high-resolution imaging of optic nerve vasculature.
Observation:
- This study analyzed OCTA findings in eight eyes with unilateral ODPs and their healthy fellow eyes.
- Vascularization of the radial peripapillary capillaries, nerve head capillaries, and choriocapillaris was mapped.
- Capillary perfusion density (CPD) was quantified for each vascular layer.
Findings:
- Eyes with ODPs showed significantly lower capillary perfusion density in the radial peripapillary and nerve head capillary layers.
- Specific regions of the radial peripapillary capillary layer and nerve head vessel layer exhibited reduced perfusion.
- Conversely, the choriocapillaris layer showed significantly higher perfusion in certain areas of ODP eyes.
- Visual acuity was reduced in eyes with ODPs compared to normal eyes.
Implications:
- ODPs are associated with altered vascular perfusion within the optic nerve.
- These vascular changes may contribute to the observed reduction in visual acuity in ODP patients.
- OCTA is a valuable tool for characterizing the microvascular environment in ODPs.
