In Vivo Cellular-Resolution Retinal Imaging in Infants and Children
By Marianne Doran and edited by Deepak P. Edward, MD
Journal Highlights
Nature Photonics
2016;10:580-584
Download PDF
Adaptive optics has made possible the viewing of retinal photoreceptor cells in vivo and has led to a better understanding of retinal structure and function. But until now, the necessary equipment has been bulky and required the patient to sit upright and fixate for a considerable time; thus, its use was limited to cooperative adult patients. LaRocca et al. describe a handheld probe they designed that performs both scanning laser ophthalmoscopy (SLO) and optical coherence tomography (OCT) of the parafoveal photoreceptor structure in infants and children without the need for adaptive optics.
The new probe, tested in children aged 14 months through 12 years, weighs only 94 g, which is substantially lighter than previous handheld SLO and/or OCT probes. Three innovations made possible the significant reduction in size: 1) a novel telescope design that employs converging rather than collimated light on a scanner to decrease the length; 2) a single high-speed micro-electromechanical scanner system that can be used for both SLO and OCT imaging, rather than 2 sets of larger galvanometer-based optical scanners; and 3) custom lens designs to correct for monochromatic and chromatic aberrations in the optical system, while minimizing device size.
The researchers demonstrated that their ultracompact SLO/OCT handheld probe is capable of imaging the parafoveal cone mosaic in infants, toddlers, and older children. It quantifies packing densities of parafoveal cone photoreceptors and allows the user to visualize cross-sectional photoreceptor substructure. They concluded that, with further clinical development and research, this novel device will benefit pediatric research by increasing our understanding of retinal development and pathogenesis.
The original article can be found here.