Chorioretinal microvascular changes in slow flow coronary phenomenon: a multi-center study.

Area of Science:

• Ophthalmology
• Cardiology
• Medical Imaging

Background:

• Slow Coronary Flow Phenomenon (SCFP) is a condition affecting coronary arteries.
• The microvascular characteristics of the retina and choroid in SCFP patients are not well understood.
• Optical Coherence Tomography Angiography (OCTA) allows for detailed imaging of retinal and choroidal vasculature.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare the chorioretinal microvasculature of patients with Slow Coronary Flow Phenomenon (SCFP) to healthy controls using OCTA.
• To identify potential OCTA-based biomarkers for the diagnosis of SCFP.

Main Methods:

• A comparative study involving 21 SCFP patients and 21 age-sex-matched healthy controls.
• Optical Coherence Tomography Angiography (OCTA) and Enhanced Depth Imaging (EDI) OCT were used to assess retinal and choroidal structures.
• Measurements included whole image, perifoveal, and parafoveal vascular density (VD) of superficial and deep capillary plexuses, and sub-foveal choroidal thickness (SFCT).

Main Results:

• SCFP patients exhibited significantly reduced whole image and perifoveal vascular density in both superficial and deep capillary plexuses compared to controls (p < 0.05).
• Parafoveal superficial vascular density was also diminished in SCFP patients.
• Sub-foveal choroidal thickness (SFCT) was significantly thinner in SCFP patients (p < 0.05).
• Parafoveal superficial VD and SFCT demonstrated strong discriminatory power between SCFP patients and controls (AUC: 0.80, 0.79, respectively).

Conclusions:

• Decreased retinal microvascular density and thinner choroids may serve as potential diagnostic biomarkers for SCFP.
• Parafoveal superficial VD and SFCT are promising indicators for distinguishing SCFP patients from healthy individuals.
• SCFP may be associated with anomalies in the retinal and choroidal microvasculature, warranting further investigation.