Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is a powerful imaging modality that has recently been adapted to the infant population and provides noninvasive, high-resolution, cross-sectional imaging of the infant eye at the bedside with low stress relative to conventional examination. In a review published in Frontiers in Pediatrics, first author, Shwetha Mangalesh, MBBS, delves into discussing the associations between preterm systemic health factors and OCT-based retinal findings and their potential contribution to the development of non-invasive biomarkers for infant health and for retinopathy of prematurity (ROP).
We report the retinal findings from investigational optical coherence tomography (OCT) in preterm infants. We explain how these are relevant to infant health in the intensive care nursery and for future use in study of and care for retinopathy of prematurity (ROP). We have begun the process of measuring retinal layers and identifying OCT findings and their associations with ocular and systemic disease. Thus far, the developmental data across this population has provided a reference framework for future clinical investigations into the early onset and pathways of abnormal development and for therapeutic interventions for diseases or injury affecting visual outcomes.
Shwetha Mangalesh, MBBS is a postdoctoral fellow, laboratory member of and mentored by Cynthia A. Toth, MD, Joseph A.C. Wadsworth Distinguished Professor of Ophthalmology and professor biomedical engineering.
Front Pediatr. 2023; 11: 1238193.