Related Experiment Video
Updated: Oct 18, 2025
Evaluation of Capillary and Other Vessel Contribution to Macular Perfusion Density Measured with Optical Coherence Tomography Angiography
Published on: February 18, 2022
Analysis of the Peripapillary and Macular Regions Using OCT Angiography in Patients with Schizophrenia and Bipolar
Edyta Koman-Wierdak1, Joanna Róg2, Agnieszka Brzozowska3
1Department of General Ophthalmology, Medical University of Lublin, 20-079 Lublin, Poland.
Purpose:
To measure RNFL and vasculature around the optic disc and in the macula in patients with schizophrenia (SZ) and bipolar disorder (BD) using optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA).
Methods:
24 eyes of patients with SZ and 16 eyes of patients with BD as well as 30 eyes of healthy subjects were examined with OCTA. The radiant peripapillary capillary (RPC) density and RNFL thickness were measured in the peripapillary area. Moreover, macular thickness and vessel density were measured in both superficial and deep layers.
Results:
Significantly decreased values of vessel density in the macular deep vascular complex were found in the eyes of patients with SZ, compared to BD and the control group. The macular thickness in the whole vascular complex and in the fovea was significantly lower in SZ and BD group than in the control group. The radiant peripapillary vascular density and RNFL thickness were similar across groups.
Conclusions:
The retinal microvascular dysfunction occurs in the macula in patients with SZ and BD, but not around optic disc. OCTA can become an essential additional diagnostic tool in detection of psychiatric disorders.
