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Studies show future clinical applications of Doppler OCT
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 SriniVas R. Sadda |
WAILEA, Hawaii — Studies are showing Doppler optical coherence tomography may have clinical use in glaucoma detection and monitoring, as well as in retinal vascular disease, according to a speaker here.
SriniVas R. Sadda, MD, discussed the importance of spectral domain or Doppler OCT in its ability to measure blood flow in a presentation at Retina 2012.
"For blood flow measurement to be clinically relevant, the technology should be rapid, reliable and broadly available," Dr. Sadda said. "Spectral domain OCT [Doppler] appears to fit the bill."
While angiographic techniques are useful for detecting leakage or giving a good visualization of retinal vasculature, they provide limited information on blood flow velocity or total blood flow, he said. Being able to detect abnormalities in blood flow may be relevant to causes of blindness such as diabetic retinopathy, retinal vein occlusion, age-related macular degeneration and glaucoma, he said.
Using Doppler OCT, researchers have been able to develop an algorithm to measure total retinal blood flow, and they have developed a "semi-automatic" grading software to measure total blood flow, he said. Studies have shown a number of potential applications for measuring total blood flow. For instance, "Visual field pattern standard deviation was highly correlated with retinal blood flow," Dr. Sadda said.
A pilot study has shown glaucoma, pediatric diabetic retinopathy and anterior ischemic optic neuropathy all have decreased blood flow. Additionally, another study has shown blood flow was more strongly correlated with glaucoma than retinal nerve fiber thickness, Dr. Sadda said.
"Clearly larger, prospective trials are still required to elucidate and validate the role of this technology in patient care," he said. But, he concluded, "Doppler OCT provides a potential robust, rapid and broadly available method for quantifying retinal blood flow."
- Disclosure: Dr. Sadda performs contract research for Optos and Optovue.
Hawaiian Eye and Retina 2013 will be held January 20-25, 2013, at the Hilton Waikoloa Village on Hawaii's Big Island. Learn more at OSNHawaiianEye.com or RetinaMeeting.com.