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SD-OCT imaging reveals new understanding of photoreceptor cell loss in dry AMD

Ophthalmology. 2009;116(9):1762-1769.

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Spectral domain optical coherence tomography is capable of detecting photoreceptor loss in and around the margins of geographic atrophy in patients with dry age-related macular degeneration.

Determining the loss of photoreceptor cells relative to the margin of geographic atrophy may unveil answers about whether photoreceptor cell loss is the inciting factor in or is caused by geographic atrophy. For instance, researchers noted in a recent study, if photoreceptor loss is the inciting factor in geographic atrophy, then SD-OCT imaging should show photoreceptor cell loss outside the margin of geographic atrophy, indicating that it precedes death of the retinal pigment epithelium.

In this study of 500 unique scans, photoreceptor cell loss occurred most frequently bridging the margin of geographic atrophy (65% of scans) or entirely inside the margin (29% of scans). Photoreceptor cell loss was noted to be entirely outside the margin in 6% of scans.

"This model would support past histopathologic studies, which suggest that [retinal pigment epithelium] cell loss is the initiating event, with ensuing [photoreceptor] cell death and choriocapillaris atrophy," according to the study.