WRAL News aired a story on September 28, 2017 featuring a clinical research study using multimodal imaging that Dr. Sharon Fekrat and Dr. Dilraj Grewal launched to determine whether early signs of cognitive impairment/Alzheimer's Disease may be detected by evaluating the density of blood vessels in the superficial and deep retinal vascular plexus using the Zeiss Cirrus optical coherence tomography angiography.
The interview features one of her patients, Ms. Scottie Hughes, whose blood vessel density and foveal avascular zone has remained robust when compared to that of her identical twin with late onset Alzheimer's who has marked FAZ enlargement and loss of retinal vascular density. The twins are 96 years old and Dr. Fekrat has been following them for over 10 years.
Duke University undergraduate Bryce Polascik, Duke medical student Stephen Yoon, Clinical Research Coordinator Latoya Greene as well as Dr James Burke and Ms Cynthia Dunn in the Memory Disorders Clinic of the Department of Neurology and their team are also actively involved.