[Imaging Blood Flow and Pulsation of Retinal Vessels with Full-Field Swept-Source OCT].

[Imaging Blood Flow and Pulsation of Retinal Vessels with Full-Field Swept-Source OCT]. Klin Monbl Augenheilkd. 2016 Dec;233(12):1324-1330 Authors: Spahr H, Hillmann D, Hain C, Pfäffle C, Sudkamp H, Franke G, Koch P, Hüttmann G Abstract Optical coherence tomography (OCT) uses interference to image the retina with high axial resolution. In the last 25 years, new technologies have permitted a steady increase in imaging speed, which made it possible to enlarge the imaged field and to avoid motion artefacts. The speed and precision of retinal imaging is now limited by photodamage of the retina caused by the focused OCT beam and by the speed of the scanning mechanics. Full-field swept-source (FF-SS)-OCT decreases irradiance on the retina and dispenses moving parts by using a camera to acquire the full volume of the retina in parallel. Here we show that FF-SS-OCT is rapid and precise enough to image pulsation in the retina induced by the heart beat. Series of OCT volumes 1.8 × 0.7 mm wide and 1.8 mm deep were recorded in young volunteers over a few cycles of the heart beat. Morphology of the retinal vessels, blood flow and tissue motion as caused by vessel pulsation were calculated from the OCT data. FF-SS-OCT was able to visualise the main structures of the neuronal retina, including vessels and small capillaries and without any motion artefacts. Information on three different dynamic processes was obtained from only one record...
Source: Klinische Monatsblatter fur Augenheilkunde - Category: Opthalmology Tags: Klin Monbl Augenheilkd Source Type: research