Optical coherence tomography angiography of retinal vascular occlusions produced by imaging-guided laser photocoagulation

Abstract

Abstract:Retinal vascular occlusive diseases represent a major form of vision loss worldwide. Rodent models of these diseases have traditionally relied upon a slit-lamp biomicroscope to help visualize the fundus and subsequently aid delivery of high-power laser shots to a target vessel. Here we describe a multimodal imaging system that can produce, image, and monitor retinal vascular occlusions in rodents. The system combines a spectraldomain optical coherence tomography system for cross-sectional structural imaging and three-dimensional angiography, and a fluorescence scanning laser ophthalmoscope for Rose Bengal monitoring and high-power laser delivery to a target vessel. This multimodal system facilitates the precise production of occlusions in the branched retinal veins, central retinal vein, and branched retinal arteries. Additionally, changes in the retinal morphology and retinal vasculature can be longitudinally documented. With our device, retinal vascular occlusions can be easily and consistently created, which paves the way for futures studies on their pathophysiology and therapeutic targets.

In Vivo Characterization of Spontaneous Retinal Neovascularization in the Mouse Eye by Multifunctional Optical Coherence Tomography

“…4 Especially SD-OCT pushed diagnosis and has recently been combined with OCT angiography (OCTA) 18,19 in order to enable a better understanding of vascular patterns associated with neovascularizations on a capillary level in the human eye 20,21 but also in the rodent retina. [22][23][24][25] Polarization-sensitive (PS)-OCT [26][27][28] is another functional extension that has recently been used in clinical studies to advance tissue differentiation of macular diseases, for example, by contrasting migrated RPE or by visualizing subretinal fibrosis. [29][30][31][32][33][34][35] Combining OCTA and PS-OCT into a multifunctional OCT imaging approach was in the past demonstrated for skin tissue but also for the human eye.…”

Comparative Optical Coherence Tomography Angiography of Wild-Type and rd10 Mouse Retinas

“…As a new OCT imaging modality, OCT angiography (OCTA) can provide noninvasive visualization of retinal and choroidal vasculatures. 23 Previous OCTA studies have successfully demonstrated stimulus evoked hemodynamic responses in individual retinal layers, 24 laser-induced choroidal neovascularization, 25,26 retinal vascular occlusions produced by laser photocoagulation, 27 and assessments of retinal and choroidal vasculatures in an oxygen-induced retinopathy model. 28…”

Oxygen-Induced Retinopathy and Choroidopathy: In Vivo Longitudinal Observation of Vascular Changes Using OCTA

“…Previous studies have also demonstrated the utility of OCTA in preclinical models, including laser-induced choroidal neovascularization, elevated intraocular pressure, and targeted retinal vessel occlusion. [19][20][21][22] In this study, we present longitudinal observation of vascular changes in the OIR rat model using a prototype swept-source OCTA system. In the OIR eyes, the neovascular tufts were readily distinguished from the retinal vasculature, and the tuft areas were measured longitudinally.…”