En face OCT: Breakthroughs in understanding the pathoanatomy of retinal disease and clinical applications.

Andrea Govetto, Richard F Spaide, Philip J Rosenfeld, SriniVas Sadda, Mario R Romano, K Bailey Freund, Riccardo Sacconi, Giulia Corradetti, Prithvi Ramtohul, Giuseppe Querques, David Sarraf, Enrico Borrelli, Alessandro Feo

Journal: Progress in retinal and eye research 2025;106():101351

PMID: 40054600

Full Text on Elsevier Science View on PubMed

Abstract

En face optical coherence tomography (OCT) is a practical and informative imaging modality to noninvasively visualize distinct retinal and choroidal layers by providing coronal images using boundary-specific segmentation. Ongoing research with this method is generating breakthroughs in the illustration of new perspectives of retinal disease. The clinical value of en face OCT as an advanced retinal imaging tool is growing steadily and it has unveiled many new insights into the pathoanatomy of retinal disorders. Moreover, this modality can capture various en face OCT biomarkers that correspond to different cell or tissue subtypes, which were previously only identified through histological or electron microscopy methods, underscoring the significance of this technique in providing valuable pathoanatomical information. In this comprehensive review, we will systematically summarize the en face OCT findings across a broad spectrum of retinal diseases, including disorders of the vitreoretinal interface and retinal vascular system (e.g. paracentral acute middle maculopathy or PAMM and diabetic retinopathy), in addition to the en face OCT features of other conditions such as age-related macular degeneration, pachychoroid disease spectrum, myopic degeneration, uveitis and inflammatory disorders, inherited retinal dystrophies, and drug toxicity. We will discuss and highlight the unique clinical and pathoanatomical findings uncovered with en face OCT of each these diseases mentioned above.

Address: Retinal Disorders and Ophthalmic Genetics Division, Stein Eye Institute, University of California of Los Angeles, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA, United States; Department of Biomedical Sciences, Humanitas University, Via Rita Levi Montalcini 4, Pieve Emanuele-Milan, 20072, Italy.; Ophthalmology Department, Hopital Nord, Aix-Marseille University, Marseille, France; Vitreous Retina Macula Consultants of New York, New York, NY, United States.; Department of Biomedical Sciences, Humanitas University, Via Rita Levi Montalcini 4, Pieve Emanuele-Milan, 20072, Italy; Department of Ophthalmology, Eye Unit Humanitas Gavazzeni-Castelli, Via Mazzini 11, Bergamo, Italy.; Department of Surgical Sciences, University of Turin, Turin, Italy; Department of Ophthalmology, "City of Health and Science" Hospital, Turin, Italy.; School of Medicine, Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, Milan, Italy; Division of Head and Neck, Ophthalmology Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy.; Department of Ophthalmology, Doheny Eye Institute, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, United States.; Department of Ophthalmology, Bascom Palmer Eye Institute, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, Miami, FL, United States.; Vitreous Retina Macula Consultants of New York, New York, NY, United States.; Vitreous Retina Macula Consultants of New York, New York, NY, United States; Department of Ophthalmology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, United States.; Retinal Disorders and Ophthalmic Genetics Division, Stein Eye Institute, University of California of Los Angeles, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA, United States; Greater Los Angeles VA Healthcare Center, Los Angeles, CA, United States. Electronic address: [email protected].

DOI: 10.1016/j.preteyeres.2025.101351

Link outs

Free resources

Medical:

https://medlineplus.gov/retinaldisorders.html

Research Materials:

https://antibodies.cancer.gov/detail/CPTC-NT5E-1

Subscription / membership required

Full Text Sources:

MeSH Terms: Humans, Tomography, Optical Coherence, Retinal Diseases, Retina