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Updated: Jul 14, 2026
Doppler Optical Coherence Tomography of Retinal Circulation
Published on: September 18, 2012
Optical coherence tomography angiography in preterm-born children with retinopathy of prematurity
Anand Vinekar1, Shivani Sinha2,3, Shwetha Mangalesh2,4
1Department of Pediatric Retina, Narayana Nethralaya Eye Institute, Bangalore, Karnataka, India. anandvinekar@yahoo.com.
Purpose:
To describe the foveal avascular zone (FAZ) and vessel density (VD) in the superficial and deep capillary plexus in children with a history of prematurity on optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) and their correlation with gestational age (GA) and birth weight (BW).
Methods:
We enrolled 81 preterm- and eight term-born children in this prospective observational study. The Optovue RTVue AVANTI (Optovue Inc., Fremont, CA) was used to procure the OCTA images. The 3 × 3 mm scan protocol centered on the fovea and the central 1 mm of the grid along with the FAZ of the superficial capillary plexus (SCP) and deep capillary plexus (DCP) was acquired.
Results:
The mean SCP-VD was comparable between the preterms and term controls (p = 0.315) in the central fovea (1-mm grid). However, the SCP-VD of the 3-mm grid was lower in the preterms born without ROP, with type 1 ROP, and with type 2 ROP (47.61, 47.90, and 48.82 respectively) compared to that in the term group (51.38; p = 0.031). The FAZ in the SCP (p = 0.003) and DCP (p = 0.003) was significantly smaller in the preterms compared to that in the controls. Based on the GA sub-analysis, the FAZ was significantly smaller in the SCP and DCP of preterms born < 31 weeks and > 31 weeks GA (p < 0.000, p < 0.035, respectively). Based on the BW, the difference between the FAZ in the SCP (p = 0.002) and DCP (p = 0.003) was significant. There was no association between the visual acuity and FAZ.
Conclusion:
Optical coherence tomography angiography findings in this study show an altered foveal morphology and vascularity in preterms with and without ROP.
