Panoramic imaging allows early detection of retinal disease

CHICAGO – The RHA from Annidas Corp. uses multispectral imaging to look at the retina in an en face manner, according to consultant Dorothy Hitchmoth, OD, here at a press conference sponsored by the American Academy of Optometry.

“This is a new way to look at the retina, very different from optical coherence tomography,” Hitchmoth said. “It looks like a traditional fundus camera and gives you an ‘optical dissection.’”

Traditional fundus photography provides several images, she said, while the RHA produces 15.

“It provides the ability to actually directly image the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE),” Hitchmoth said. “By using slightly longer wavelengths, you get a direct view of the RPE.”

She said this brings a “tremendous opportunity to change the course of disease. You get an enhanced view of what’s going on with the vasculature. It’s widefield capability through multiple layers of the retina.”

Hitchmoth discussed the technology’s oxy-deoxy hemoglobin mapping.

“You can detect oxygen just by using light to look at the vasculature,” she explained.

The RHA has fundus autofluorescence capability as well as ocular perfusion mapping, she added.

The company reported in a press release that the technology is being used in North America and China as well as by the National Space Biomedical Research Institute to assess the health of astronauts on extended missions. – by Nancy Hemphill, ELS, FAAO

Disclosure: Hitchmoth is a consultant for Annidas Corp.