Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science Cover Image for Volume 61, Issue 9
July 2020
Volume 61, Issue 9
Free
ARVO Imaging in the Eye Conference Abstract  |   July 2020
Ultrahigh-Resolution Optical Coherence Tomography Investigation of Age-Related Changes in the Photoreceptors, Retinal Pigment Epithelium and Bruch’s Membrane
Author Affiliations & Notes
  • Siyu Chen
    Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science and Research Laboratory of Electronics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States
  • Omar Abu-Qamar
    Department of Ophthalmology, New England Eye Center / Tufts University, Boston, Massachusetts, United States
  • Eric Moult
    Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science and Research Laboratory of Electronics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States
  • Stefan Ploner
    Pattern Recognition Lab, Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nürnberg, Germany
  • Byungkun Lee
    Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science and Research Laboratory of Electronics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States
  • Andreas Maier
    Pattern Recognition Lab, Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nürnberg, Germany
  • Nadia Waheed
    Department of Ophthalmology, New England Eye Center / Tufts University, Boston, Massachusetts, United States
  • James Fujimoto
    Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science and Research Laboratory of Electronics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States
  • Footnotes
    Commercial Relationships   Siyu Chen, None; Omar Abu-Qamar, None; Eric Moult, None; Stefan Ploner, Optovue (C); Byungkun Lee, None; Andreas Maier, None; Nadia Waheed, None; James Fujimoto, Optovue (I), Optovue (C), Optovue (P)
  • Footnotes
    Support  NIH Grant R01-EY011289, Beckman-Argyros Award in Vision Research, Champalimaud Vision Award, Massachusetts Lions Clubs, and DFG MA 4898/12-1
Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science July 2020, Vol.61, PP0027. doi:
  • Views
  • Share
  • Tools
    • Alerts
      ×
      This feature is available to authenticated users only.
      Sign In or Create an Account ×
    • Get Citation

      Siyu Chen, Omar Abu-Qamar, Eric Moult, Stefan Ploner, Byungkun Lee, Andreas Maier, Nadia Waheed, James Fujimoto; Ultrahigh-Resolution Optical Coherence Tomography Investigation of Age-Related Changes in the Photoreceptors, Retinal Pigment Epithelium and Bruch’s Membrane. Invest. Ophthalmol. Vis. Sci. 2020;61(9):PP0027.

      Download citation file:


      © ARVO (1962-2015); The Authors (2016-present)

      ×
  • Supplements
Abstract

Purpose : Aging is the biggest risk factor for age-related macular degeneration (AMD). Previous histological and ultrastructural studies have suggested that photoreceptors (PR), retinal pigment epithelium (RPE), and Bruch’s membrane (BM) undergo changes with aging and in AMD. A new high-speed, ultrahigh-resolution optical coherence tomography (UHR OCT) prototype instrument with depth tracking and software motion correction was used to investigate PR/RPE/BM alterations in normal aging and early AMD.

Methods : We developed a high-speed UHR OCT instrument with 2.7 µm axial resolution and 128 kHz A-scan rate. A galvanometer scanner actuates the OCT reference arm to match the retinal contour between B-scans, extending the effective imaging range. We developed examination protocols using multi-volume scan covering 6×6 mm2 (500×500 A-scans) for software motion correction, and high-definition (HD) scan covering 9×6 mm2 (1800×241 A-scans). Because the transverse resolution is ~20 µm, the HD scanning allows ensemble sampling of fine, sub-resolution features. We compared UHR OCT from healthy eyes in different age groups and early AMD eyes.

Results : To date 45 normal eyes from 25 subjects were imaged (mean age: 50±16.7 y.o.; range 25 – 72 y.o.). We also imaged a cohort of patients with different stages of AMD. UHR OCT revealed alterations in bands corresponding to the external limiting membrane (ELM), inner segment/outer segment junction or ellipsoid zone (IS/OS, EZ), cone/rod interdigitation zone or cone/rod outer segment tips (CIZ/RIZ, COST/ROST), RPE, and BM. These bands are sharp and distinctive in young healthy eyes; RPE and BM can usually be separately resolved. With aging, the outer retinal OCT bands become less defined axially; RPE and BM appear blurred and merge together. In early AMD eyes, these structural bands become less distinct, accompanied by occasional disruption of layered structures. A hypo-reflective gap between the RPE and BM is often observed in early AMD eyes.

Conclusions : UHR OCT promises to be a useful tool to investigate outer retina alterations in both normal and diseased eyes. This may provide better understanding of both normal aging and pathophysiological alterations of PR/RPE/BM, potentially identifying new markers for detecting and monitoring diseases such as AMD.

This is a 2020 Imaging in the Eye Conference abstract.

 

Representative UHR OCT HD B-scans.

Representative UHR OCT HD B-scans.

×
×

This PDF is available to Subscribers Only

Sign in or purchase a subscription to access this content. ×

You must be signed into an individual account to use this feature.

×