Insights Into Choroidal Vascular Changes in Pachychoroid Spectrum Diseases Using UWF SS-OCTA

Research recently published in “scientific reports” analyzed choroidal blood flow and anatomical changes in eyes affected by pachychoroid spectrum diseases (PSD) by using ultra-widefield (UWF) full-range SS-OCTA.

The results indicated that the vortex vein drainage system played a key role in the pathogenesis of PSD. Central serous chorioretinopathy (CSC) groups exhibited significantly higher choroidal vessel volume per unit area (mCVV/a), choroidal vascularity index (CVI), and choroidal thickness (CT) compared to the pachychoroid neovasculopathy (PNV) and uncomplicated pachychoroid (UCP) groups. While the PNV and UCP groups shared similar choroidal vascular characteristics, the PNV group exhibited slightly higher choroidal vessel volume and notably the lowest foveal choriocapillaris density. Further analysis indicated that CNV in PNV could be attributed to choriocapillaris occlusion and ischemia resulting from mechanical compression by hypertrophic choroidal vessels. These findings suggested that choroidal structural and hemodynamic changes could serve as biomarkers for clinical diagnosis and treatment.
A 400kHz speed swept-source OCTA (BMizar, TowardPi Medical) was used in this study for high-resolution UWF OCTA imaging of choriocapillaris and the large and medium choroidal vessel layer with an inbuilt algorithm. Numerous choroidal quantifications can be analyzed on the device, providing solid foundation for further longitudinal studies and enhancing our understanding of choroidal pathology mechanisms.

This research is authored by Dr. Bei Xiao, etc. team of Prof. Yanping Song from the Department of Ophthalmology, General Hospital of Central Theater Command.

Link to original text: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-024-82745-5