Optical coherence tomography angiography of the peripapillary retina and optic nerve head in dominant optic atrophy

Abstract

Peripapillar and nerve head vessel density (VD) was measured in 10 patients affected by Dominant optic atrophy (DOA) using optical coherence tomography angiography (OCT-A) and compared to the measurements of 15 age- and gender-matched controls. DOA patients showed VD reduction, mostly in the temporal and inferotemporal peripapillary sectors, according to the preferential involvement of the papillomacular bundle. Despite poor best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), OCT-A revealed good repeatability. VD correlated with functional (mean deviation of visual field and BCVA) and structural (retinal nerve fiber layer thickness) parameters and could be a non-invasive, quantitative tool for the monitoring of the disease and of the therapeutic approaches.

Keywords: DOA; Dominant optic atrophy; Inherited mitochondrial optic neuropathies; Optical coherence tomography angiography; Vessel density.