Abstract
Purpose:
Optical coherence tomography (OCT) has had a tremendous impact upon the ability to diagnose, manage, and monitor retinal diseases. Intraoperative OCT has significant potential in improving results of vitreoretinal surgery. We demonstrate the functionality of an intraocular OCT endoprobe through various ocular media used during vitreoretinal surgery.
Methods:
A miniature 25-gauge forward-imaging endoprobe was designed, developed and optimized to use with an 850 nm spectral domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) system (Bioptigen, Inc.) Its capability to produce retinal images through vitreous and various vitreous substitutes was determined. After excising the cornea-lens cap, the vitreous was removed from fresh cadaver porcine eyes and replaced with air, balanced salt solution (BSS), viscoelastic material, perfluorocarbon, or silicone oil. The retina was then imaged in real time by the 25-gauge SD-OCT probe in eyes with intact vitreous and in eyes containing vitreous substitutes.
Results:
The 25-gauge SD-OCT probe housing the scanning driver within its handpiece transmitted approximately 700 μW of power. The axial resolution was 6 μm and the lateral resolution was 20-30 μm. The 25-gauge forward-imaging probe was able to clearly resolve the retinal layers and the retinal blood vessels in real-time when held 3 to 5 mm from the retina through vitreous as well as through all the vitreous substitutes. The image quality was best through perfluorocarbon in this open-sky model.
Conclusions:
A miniature intraoperative forward-imaging SD-OCT endoprobe was developed that is capable of imaging the retina through various vitreous substitutes. It has a tremendous potential to guide real-time intraocular surgery.
Keywords: 552 imaging methods (CT, FA, ICG, MRI, OCT, RTA, SLO, ultrasound) •
688 retina •
764 vitreous substitutes