Quantitative confocal optical coherence elastography for evaluating biomechanics of optic nerve head using Lamb wave...

Area of Science:

• Ophthalmology
• Biomedical Engineering
• Biophysics

Background:

• Optic nerve head (ONH) mechanosensitivity is crucial in glaucoma pathogenesis.
• Understanding ONH elasticity under varying intraocular pressure (IOP) is key to glaucoma research.
• Traditional elastography methods lack the resolution needed for ONH biomechanics.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate a confocal optical coherence elastography (OCE) system for noninvasive ONH elasticity measurement.
• To quantify the Young's modulus of the ONH in vitro under controlled IOP.
• To establish a novel method for assessing ONH biomechanical changes relevant to glaucoma.

Main Methods:

• Developed a confocal OCE system integrated with a pressure inflation setup for precise IOP control.
• Employed the Lamb wave model for phase dispersion curve fitting during data postprocessing.
• Combined OCE measurements with the Lamb wave model to reconstruct ONH Young's modulus.

Main Results:

• Successfully measured ONH elasticity in vitro using the novel OCE system.
• Reconstructed Young's modulus of the ONH by integrating OCE with the Lamb wave model.
• Demonstrated that ONH Young's modulus can be quantified and fitted to IOP using piecewise polynomial functions.

Conclusions:

• The developed confocal OCE system provides a new, noninvasive method for quantifying ONH biomechanics.
• This approach allows for the characterization of ONH elasticity changes in response to IOP variations.
• Findings offer a deeper understanding of ONH mechanical behavior in glaucoma pathogenesis.