OBJECTIVE

To determine the foveal avascular zone (FAZ) thickness and other FAZ measurements in eyes of healthy Filipino adults aged 20-49 years.

This single-center, cross-sectional, observational study evaluated 186 subjects (372 eyes) of Filipino adults 20 to 49 years of age. Using Angioplex®, the automated software of the optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) machine, the FAZ area, perimeter, circularity, vascular density, and perfusion in the superficial FAZ were recognized. Statistical analysis was done using SPSS version 23. The mean and standard deviation of the values of superficial capillary free zone measurements were calculated.

The mean FAZ area was 0.297 ± 0.112 mm2, the mean circularity was 0.667 ± 0.080, and the mean perimeter was 2.316 ± 0.80 mm. These parameters were all larger in the female population (p CONCLUSIONS

In eyes of healthy Filipino adults aged 20-49 years, females exhibited larger FAZ area, higher circularity, and lower CMT, compared to males. Additionally, females displayed lower central vessel density and perfusion. While FAZ area and perimeter remained stable with age, circularity decreased, and CMT increased.

Subtype classification of age-related macular degeneration (AMD) based on optical coherence tomography (OCT) images serves as an effective auxiliary tool for clinicians in diagnosing disease progression and formulating treatment plans. To improve the classification accuracy of AMD subtypes, this study proposes a keypoint-based, attention-enhanced residual network (KPA-ResNet). The proposed architecture adopts a 50-layer residual network (ResNet-50) as the backbone, preceded by a keypoint localization module based on heatmap regression to outline critical lesion regions. A two-dimensional relative self-attention mechanism is incorporated into convolutional layers to enhance the representation of key lesion areas. Furthermore, the network depth is appropriately increased and an improved residual module, ConvNeXt, is introduced to enable comprehensive extraction of high-dimensional features and enrich the detail of lesion boundary contours, ultimately achieving higher classification accuracy of AMD subtypes. Experimental results demonstrate that KPA-ResNet achieves significant improvements in overall classification accuracy compared with conventional convolutional neural networks. Specifically, for the wet AMD subtypes, the classification accuracies for inactive choroidal neovascularization (CNV) and active CNV reach 92.8% and 95.2%, respectively, representing substantial improvement over ResNet-50. These findings validate the superior performance of KPA-ResNet in AMD subtype classification tasks. This work provides a high-accuracy, generalizable network architecture for OCT-based AMD subtype classification and offers new insights into integrating attention mechanisms with convolutional neural networks in ophthalmic image analysis.
Tomography, Optical Coherence/methods* ; Humans ; Macular Degeneration/diagnostic imaging* ; Neural Networks, Computer

OBJECTIVE: To observe the dynamic changes of microvascular injury and repair in the penumbra of traumatic brain injury (TBI) rats with effective cerebral perfusion microvascular imaging using optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA). METHODS: Transparent closed cranial windows were placed in craniotomy rats after TBI caused by weight drop. All the rats in TBI group and control group underwent head MRI examination on the first postoperative day, and the changes of cerebral cortical microvessel density were measured by OCTA through cranial windows on d0, d2, d4, d6, and d8. On the second day after the operation, the same number of rats in the two groups were selected to complete the immunohistochemical staining of brain tissue with pimonidazole, an indicator of hypoxia. RESULTS: MRI T2W1 and immunohistochemical staining demonstrated that edema and hypoxia in the traumatic brain tissue extended deeply throughout the entire cortex. OCTA showed that the cortical surface veins of the rats in both groups were significantly dilated and tortuous after operation, and recovered to the postoperative day level on d8. The effective perfusion microvessel density of the rats in both groups gradually recovered after a temporary decrease, and the TBI group decreased from 39.38%±4.48% on d0 to 27.84%±6.01% on d2, which was significantly lower than that on d0, d6, and d8 (P < 0.05). The highest value was 61.71%±7.69% on d8, which was significantly higher than that on d0, d2, and d4 (P < 0.05). The control group decreased from 44.59%±7.78% on d0 to 36.69%±5.49% on d2, which was significantly lower than that on d0, d6, and d8 (P < 0.05). The highest value was 51.92%±5.96% on d8, which was significantly higher than that on d2, and d4 (P < 0.05). Comparing the two groups, the effective perfusion microvessel density in the TBI group was significantly lower than that in the control group on d2 (P=0.021), and significantly higher than that in the control group on d8 (P=0.030). CONCLUSION OCTA can be used as a method of imaging and measurement of effective perfusion microvessels in the injured cerebral cortex of TBI rats. After TBI, the effective perfusion microvessel density in the wound penumbra gradually recovered after decreasing, and increased significantly on d8.
Animals ; Brain Injuries, Traumatic/physiopathology* ; Rats ; Tomography, Optical Coherence/methods* ; Male ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Microvessels/pathology* ; Microvascular Density ; Cerebral Cortex/blood supply* ; Cerebrovascular Circulation

Prostate cancer is the second most common cancer in men, accounting for 14.1% of new cancer cases in 2020. The aggressiveness of prostate cancer is highly variable, depending on its grade and stage at the time of diagnosis. Despite recent advances in prostate cancer treatment, some patients still experience recurrence or even progression after undergoing radical treatment. Accurate initial staging and monitoring for recurrence determine patient management, which in turn affect patient prognosis and survival. Classical imaging has limitations in the diagnosis and treatment of prostate cancer, but the use of novel molecular probes has improved the detection rate, specificity, and accuracy of prostate cancer detection. Molecular probe-based imaging modalities allow the visualization and quantitative measurement of biological processes at the molecular and cellular levels in living systems. An increased understanding of tumor biology of prostate cancer and the discovery of new tumor biomarkers have allowed the exploration of additional molecular probe targets. The development of novel ligands and advances in nano-based delivery technologies have accelerated the research and development of molecular probes. Here, we summarize the use of molecular probes in positron emission tomography (PET), single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), optical imaging, and ultrasound imaging, and provide a brief overview of important target molecules in prostate cancer.
Humans ; Male ; Prostatic Neoplasms/diagnosis* ; Molecular Probes ; Molecular Imaging/methods* ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Positron-Emission Tomography ; Tomography, Emission-Computed, Single-Photon ; Ultrasonography ; Optical Imaging ; Biomarkers, Tumor ; Precision Medicine/methods*

OBJECTIVE

This study compared the choroidal vascularity indices (CVI) among eyes with neovascular, nonneovascular age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and healthy controls.

Spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (OCT) with enhanced depth imaging (EDI) from 52 eyes of 33 subjects were analyzed and designated into 3 groups: control, non-neovascular AMD, and neovascular AMD. Using Image J software, a 1.5 mm subfoveal choroidal area was segmented and binarized to measure total and luminal choroidal areas. The CVI was calculated as the ratio of luminal to total choroidal area. Correlation studies were done to assess relationship of CVI with best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) and disease severity.

The overall median CVI was 0.66 (IQR = 0.62 – 0.69), with overall median total choroidal area of 696,707.60 (IQR = 530,776.80 – 806,348.00), overall median luminal choroidal area of 442,884.60 (IQR = 351,612.80 – 549,540.30), and an overall median choroidal thickness of 237.10 (IQR = 178.43 – 270.25). The overall median LogMAR BCVA was 0.30 (IQR = 0.10 – 0.54). Statistical comparisons showed no significant differences in the median CVI, median total choroidal area, median luminal choroidal area, and median choroidal thickness among the three groups (p > 0.05). However, median BCVA was significantly different among the groups (χ2=35.98, p=0.001). Specifically, those with non-neovascular AMD and neovascular AMD had significantly worse visual acuity compared to the control group (p < 0.05).

The study found that CVI, as measured by binarization of EDI-OCT images, was not significantly different among AMD and control groups. BCVA, however, was significantly affected by AMD. These findings suggest that while CVI may not vary with AMD severity, BCVA remains a crucial diagnostic factor. Further research is needed to explore the relationship between choroidal vascularity and AMD using advanced imaging techniques.

Knowledge about the neuronal dynamics and the projectome are both essential for understanding how the neuronal network functions in concert. However, it remains challenging to obtain the neural activity and the brain-wide projectome for the same neurons, especially for neurons in subcortical brain regions. Here, by combining in vivo microscopy and high-definition fluorescence micro-optical sectioning tomography, we have developed strategies for mapping the brain-wide projectome of functionally relevant neurons in the somatosensory cortex, the dorsal hippocampus, and the substantia nigra pars compacta. More importantly, we also developed a strategy to achieve acquiring the neural dynamic and brain-wide projectome of the molecularly defined neuronal subtype. The strategies developed in this study solved the essential problem of linking brain-wide projectome to neuronal dynamics for neurons in subcortical structures and provided valuable approaches for understanding how the brain is functionally organized via intricate connectivity patterns.
Animals ; Neurons/physiology* ; Mice ; Brain/physiology* ; Mice, Inbred C57BL ; Somatosensory Cortex/physiology* ; Neural Pathways/physiology* ; Hippocampus/physiology* ; Mice, Transgenic ; Male ; Brain Mapping ; Nerve Net/physiology* ; Substantia Nigra/physiology* ; Tomography, Optical/methods*

Objective To compare the macular structure and microcirculation in both eyes of the patients with myopic anisometropia.Methods Optical coherence tomography angiography(OCTA)was employed to scan the macular areas in both eyes of 44 patients with myopic anisometropia.The patients were assigned into high and low groups based on the refractive diopter,and the parameters such as retinal thickness,choroidal thickness,vascular density,and perfusion density in the macular areas of both eyes were compared between the two groups.Results Other macular areas except the central and external nasal areas and the choroid of the fovea in the high group were thinner than those in the low group(all P<0.05).There was no statistically significant difference in retinal vascular density or perfusion density in different areas between the two groups(all P>0.05).Conclusion In the patients with myopic anisometropia,most areas of the retina in the case of high myopia is thinner than that in the case of low myopia,while there is no difference in retinal vascular density or perfusion density in both eyes.
Humans ; Anisometropia ; Choroid/blood supply* ; Microcirculation ; Myopia ; Retina ; Tomography, Optical Coherence/methods*

Humans ; Coronary Artery Disease/therapy* ; Consensus ; Tomography, Optical Coherence/methods* ; East Asian People ; Coronary Angiography ; Coronary Vessels/diagnostic imaging* ; Ultrasonography, Interventional/methods*

Objective: To evaluate the protective effect of jailed balloon technique on side branch (SB) ostium using three-dimensional optical coherence tomography(OCT). Methods: This is a retrospective study. Consecutive coronary disease patients with coronary artery bifurcation lesions who underwent percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) and completed pre-and post-procedural OCT examinations at the Chinese People's Liberation Army General Hospital from September 2019 to March 2022 were enrolled. Patients were divided into the jailed balloon technique group and the unprotected group according to the options applied for the SB. The SB ostium area difference was calculated from OCT images (SB ostium area difference=post-PCI SB ostium area-pre-PCI SB ostium area). The SB ostium area differences were compared between the two groups and compared further in the subgroup of true bifurcation lesions and non-true bifurcation lesions. In the jailed balloon group, the SB ostium area difference was compared between the active jailed balloon technique and the conventional jailed balloon technique, between the jailed balloon>2.0 mm diameter and the jailed balloon≤2.0 mm diameter, and between the higher balloon pressure (>4 atm, 1 atm=101.325 kPa) and the lower balloon pressure (≤4 atm). Multivariate linear regression analysis was used to explore the correlation between the technical parameters of the jailed balloon technique and the SB protection effect. Results: A total of 176 patients with 236 bifurcation lesions were enrolled, aged (60.7±9.3) years, and there were 128 male patients (72.7%). There were 67 patients in the jailed balloon technique group with 71 bifurcation lesions and 123 patients in the unprotected group with 165 bifurcation lesions. Fourteen patients had 2 to 3 lesions, which were treated in different ways, so they appeared in the unprotected group and the jailed balloon technique group at the same time. The area difference in SB ostium was greater in the jailed balloon group than in the unprotected group (0.07 (-0.43, 1.05)mm² vs.-0.33 (-0.83, 0.26)mm², P<0.001), and the results were consistent in the true bifurcation lesion subgroup (0.29 (-0.35, 0.96)mm² vs.-0.26 (-0.64, 0.29)mm², P=0.004), while the difference between the two groups in the non-true bifurcation lesion subgroup was not statistically significant (P=0.136). In the jailed balloon technique group, the SB ostium area difference was greater in patients treated with the active jailed balloon technique than in those treated with the conventional jailed balloon technique ((0.43±1.36)mm² vs. (-0.22±0.52)mm², P=0.013). The difference in SB ostium area was greater in those using>2.0 mm diameter jailed balloons than in those using≤2.0 mm diameter jailed balloons (0.25 (-0.51, 1.31) mm² vs.-0.01 (-0.45, 0.63) mm², P=0.020), while SB ostium area difference was similar between those endowed with higher balloon pressure (>4 atm) compared to those with lower balloon pressure (≤4 atm) (P=0.731). Multivariate linear regression analysis showed that there was a positive correlation between jailed balloon diameter and SB ostium area difference (r=0.344, P=0.019). Conclusions: The jailed balloon technique significantly protects SB ostium, especially in patients with true bifurcation lesions. The active jailed balloon technique and larger diameter balloons may provide more protection to the SB.
Humans ; Male ; Angioplasty, Balloon, Coronary/methods* ; Percutaneous Coronary Intervention ; Tomography, Optical Coherence/methods* ; Retrospective Studies ; Treatment Outcome ; Stents ; Coronary Artery Disease/therapy* ; Coronary Vessels/pathology* ; Coronary Angiography

Humans ; Epiretinal Membrane/surgery* ; Retinal Perforations/surgery* ; Vitrectomy ; Tomography, Optical Coherence ; Retrospective Studies