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June 2015

A Promising Future for Optical Coherence Tomography Angiography

Author Affiliations
  • 1Retinal Disorders and Ophthalmic Genetics Division, Stein Eye Institute, David Geffen School of Medicine at University of California, Los Angeles
  • 2Doheny Eye Institute, David Geffen School of Medicine at University of California, Los Angeles
  • 3VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System, Los Angeles, California
JAMA Ophthalmol. 2015;133(6):629-630. doi:10.1001/jamaophthalmol.2015.0668

Fluorescein angiography has been the gold standard imaging modality for the retinal vasculature since its groundbreaking introduction in 1961 by Alvis and Novotny and has revolutionized our ability to diagnose diseases of the retinal vasculature and to identify retinal and choroidal neovascularization.1 Its greatest advantage may lie in its ability to detect dynamic patterns of dye transit and leakage. Various innovations have broadened the use of angiography, including the application of indocyanine green, wide-field image acquisition, confocal scanning laser ophthalmoscopy, and adaptive optics. However, a major limitation of traditional angiography resides in its inability to image the entire retinal capillary system or to directly visualize nascent vessels, leaving the practitioner to deduce the presence of neovascularization on the basis of other indicators such as fluid, leakage, or edema.

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