Optical coherence tomography angiography in herpetic leucoma

Area of Science:

• Ophthalmology
• Medical Imaging
• Corneal Diseases

Background:

• Herpes simplex virus (HSV) keratitis is a major cause of infectious blindness.
• Stromal keratitis, a form of HSV keratitis, frequently leads to corneal complications like scarring and neovascularization.
• Optical Coherence Tomography Angiography (OCTA) shows promise in visualizing anterior segment vascular abnormalities.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the capability of OCTA in imaging and quantitatively analyzing corneal vascularization in herpetic leucoma.
• To review the utility of OCTA in managing herpetic keratitis-related corneal neovascularization.

Main Methods:

• A cross-sectional study involving 17 eyes of 15 patients with herpetic leucoma.
• Anterior segment imaging using Slit-Lamp Photography (SLP) and OCTA (en-face, b-scans, c-scans).
• Quantitative analysis of vessel density (VD) in corneal quadrants and central areas using ImageJ software.

Main Results:

• OCTA identified abnormal corneal vessels not visible with SLP.
• The technique distinguished between vessel sizes, even in the central cornea.
• OCTA facilitated the examination of multiple corneal planes and their correlation with clinical findings.

Conclusions:

• OCTA offers a valuable non-invasive method for qualitative and quantitative assessment of corneal vascularization in herpetic infections.
• OCTA may serve as an objective tool for monitoring treatment efficacy in patients with herpetic keratitis.