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Diagnostics
Special Issues
OCT and OCTA Assessment of Retinal and Choroidal Diseases
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OCT and OCTA Assessment of Retinal and Choroidal Diseases

A special issue of Diagnostics (ISSN 2075-4418). This special issue belongs to the section "Biomedical Optics".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 January 2026 | Viewed by 3391

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Andrei Theodor Bǎlǎşoiu

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Guest Editor
Department of Ophthalmology, University of Medicine and Pharmacy of Craiova, 200349 Craiova, Romania
Interests: optical coherence tomography; retinal diseases; choroidal diseases
Dr. Ovidiu Zlatian

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Guest Editor
1. Medical Laboratory, County Clinical Emergency Hospital of Craiova, 200642 Craiova, Romania
2. Microbiology Department, University of Medicine and Pharmacy of Craiova, 200349 Craiova, Romania
Interests: ophthalmology; antibiotic resistance; bacterial and viral infections; testing of antimicrobial activity of various compounds
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In the field of medicine has taken significant steps in the recent decades due to technology development, and the ophthalmology sector is no exception.

In just a few years, optical coherence tomography (OCT) has become the “gold standard” of screening and diagnosis for ocular diseases as a non-invasive imaging method. Optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) is in its early days but it is believed that it will replace invasive imaging methods such as fluorescein fundus angiography in years to come. In addition to modern investigations, modern therapies have also emerged, so morbidity due to retinal and choroidal diseases has decreased significantly.

In spite of the recent improvements in diagnosis and treatment, these conditions still represent the leading causes of blindness worldwide.

We seem to know a lot and we seem to do a lot, but there is still a major burden of irreversible vision loss among patients affected by retinal and choroidal conditions. Therefore, sharing knowledge and analyzing pathologies from different angles represents the key to further improvement.

This Special Issue is centered around, but not exclusively, the following conditions:

- Vascular retinal diseases;

- Diabetic retinopathy;

- Inherited fundus diseases;

- Dry age-related macular degeneration and geographic atrophy;

- Wet age-related macular degeneration;

- Retinal/choroidal malignancies;

- Retinal/choroidal involvement in general diseases.

Dr. Andrei Theodor Bǎlǎşoiu
Dr. Ovidiu Zlatian
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Diagnostics is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • optical coherence tomography
  • optical coherence tomography angiography
  • diabetic retinopathy
  • age related macular degeneration
  • retinal vascular diseases.

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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18 pages, 2630 KiB  
Article
Multimodal Imaging of Diabetic Retinopathy: Insights from Optical Coherence Tomography Angiography and Adaptive Optics
by Andrada-Elena Mirescu, Dan George Deleanu, Sanda Jurja, Alina Popa-Cherecheanu, Florian Balta, Gerhard Garhofer, George Balta, Irina-Elena Cristescu and Ioana Teodora Tofolean
Diagnostics 2025, 15(14), 1732; https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics15141732 - 8 Jul 2025
Viewed by 418
Abstract
Background/Objectives: To investigate the role of multimodal imaging, specifically optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) and adaptive optics (AO), in the diagnosis and monitoring of diabetic retinopathy. Methods: Our study represents an observational, cross-sectional analysis including sixty-nine patients from four distinct groups: [...] Read more.
Background/Objectives: To investigate the role of multimodal imaging, specifically optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) and adaptive optics (AO), in the diagnosis and monitoring of diabetic retinopathy. Methods: Our study represents an observational, cross-sectional analysis including sixty-nine patients from four distinct groups: a control group (17 patients), diabetic patients without diabetic retinopathy (no DR) (14 patients), diabetic patients with non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy (NPDR) (18 patients), and diabetic patients with proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR patients). A comprehensive ophthalmological evaluation, along with high-resolution imaging using OCTA and AO, was performed. OCTA images of the superficial capillary plexus, acquired with the OCT Angio Topcon, were analyzed using a custom-developed MATLAB algorithm, while AO retinal vascular images were evaluated with the manufacturer’s software of the Adaptive Optics Retinal Camera rtx1™. Results: Our findings demonstrated statistically significant reductions in foveal avascular zone circularity, superficial capillary plexus density, vessel length density, and fractal dimension, correlating with the severity of diabetic retinopathy, particularly in the PDR. Additionally, mean wall thickness and wall-to-lumen ratio were significantly increased in patients with diabetic retinopathy, notably in PDR. Conclusions: In conclusion, our findings demonstrate that the combined use of OCTA and AO imaging offers complementary insights into the microvascular alterations associated with diabetic retinopathy progression and severity. These high-resolution modalities together reveal both perfusion deficits and structural vascular changes, underscoring their utility as essential tools for early detection, staging, monitoring, and informed management of DR. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue OCT and OCTA Assessment of Retinal and Choroidal Diseases)
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11 pages, 2276 KiB  
Article
OCT Angiography Assessment of Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus Patients Without Diabetic Retinopathy: A 3-Year Follow-Up Study
by Alexandra Oltea Dan, Carmen Luminița Mocanu, Alin Ștefan Ștefănescu-Dima, Andreea Cornelia Tănasie, Veronica Elena Maria, Anca Elena Târtea and Andrei Theodor Bălășoiu
Diagnostics 2025, 15(13), 1703; https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics15131703 - 3 Jul 2025
Viewed by 363
Abstract
Background/Objectives: This study aims to investigate the progression of retinal microvascular changes using OCTA in young T1DM patients without clinical signs of DR over a period of 3 years. Methods: This prospective, longitudinal study analyzed OCT angiograms of T1DM patients without clinical [...] Read more.
Background/Objectives: This study aims to investigate the progression of retinal microvascular changes using OCTA in young T1DM patients without clinical signs of DR over a period of 3 years. Methods: This prospective, longitudinal study analyzed OCT angiograms of T1DM patients without clinical signs of DR. It included 40 T1DM patients aged between 7 and 20 years old who formed the T1DM study group and 40 healthy subjects with similar demographic characteristics to the control group. The patients underwent comprehensive ophthalmic examination and OCT imaging using a Retina Wide protocol (6 × 6 mm). We analyzed the following microvascular retinal parameters: FAZ area, perimeter and circularity and superficial capillary plexus (SCP) and deep capillary plexus (DCP) vessel density. Results: Statistically significant differences between the two groups were identified for the following parameters: the mean FAZ area at follow-up (0.38 ± 0.13) was larger than the mean FAZ area at baseline (0.31 ±0.11), the mean FAZ perimeter at follow-up (3.22 ± 0.75) was larger than the mean FAZ perimeter at baseline (2.61 ± 00.52) and the men FAZ circularity index at follow-up (0.47 ± 0.13) was decreased compared to the FAZ circularity index at baseline (0.56 ± 0.12). A statistically significant difference were also registered for the following parameter: the total SCP and DCP vessel density was decreased at follow-up (37.47 ± 1.57) compared to baseline (38.79 ± 1.00). Conclusions: OCTA long-term monitoring of T1DM patients represents an effective method for tracking progressive changes in FAZ parameters and capillary plexus vascular density. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue OCT and OCTA Assessment of Retinal and Choroidal Diseases)
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Review

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32 pages, 4514 KiB  
Review
Blue Light and Green Light Fundus Autofluorescence, Complementary to Optical Coherence Tomography, in Age-Related Macular Degeneration Evaluation
by Antonia-Elena Ranetti, Horia Tudor Stanca, Mihnea Munteanu, Raluca Bievel Radulescu and Simona Stanca
Diagnostics 2025, 15(13), 1688; https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics15131688 - 2 Jul 2025
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Abstract
Background: Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is one of the leading causes of permanent vision loss in the elderly, particularly in higher-income countries. Fundus autofluorescence (FAF) imaging is a widely used, non-invasive technique that complements structural imaging in the assessment of retinal pigment epithelium [...] Read more.
Background: Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is one of the leading causes of permanent vision loss in the elderly, particularly in higher-income countries. Fundus autofluorescence (FAF) imaging is a widely used, non-invasive technique that complements structural imaging in the assessment of retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) integrity. While optical coherence tomography (OCT) remains the gold standard for retinal imaging due to its high-resolution cross-sectional visualization, FAF offers unique metabolic insights. Among the FAF modalities, blue light FAF (B-FAF) is more commonly employed, whereas green light FAF (G-FAF) provides subtly different image characteristics, particularly improved visualization and contrast in the central macula. Despite identical acquisition times and nearly indistinguishable workflows, G-FAF is notably underutilized in clinical practice. Objectives: This narrative review critically compares green and blue FAF in terms of their diagnostic utility relative to OCT, with a focus on lesion detectability, macular pigment interference, and clinical decision-making in retinal disorders. Methods: A comprehensive literature search was performed using the PubMed database for studies published prior to February 2025. The search utilized the keywords fundus autofluorescence and age-related macular degeneration. The primary focus was on short-wavelength FAF and its clinical utility in AMD, considering three aspects: diagnosis, follow-up, and prognosis. The OCT findings served as the reference standard for anatomical correlation and diagnostic accuracy. Results: Both FAF modalities correlated well with OCT in detecting RPE abnormalities. G-FAF demonstrated improved visibility of central lesions due to reduced masking by macular pigment and enhanced contrast in the macula. However, clinical preference remained skewed toward B-FAF, driven more by tradition and device default settings than by evidence-based superiority. G-FAF’s diagnostic potential remains underrecognized despite its comparable practicality and subtle imaging advantages specifically for AMD patients. AMD stages were accurately characterized, and relevant images were used to highlight the significance of G-FAF and B-FAF in the examination of AMD patients. Conclusions: While OCT remains the gold standard, FAF provides complementary information that can guide management strategy. Since G-FAF is functionally equivalent in acquisition, it offers slight advantages. Broader awareness and more frequent integration of G-FAF that could optimize multimodal imaging strategies, particularly in the intermediate stage, should be developed. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue OCT and OCTA Assessment of Retinal and Choroidal Diseases)
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Other

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13 pages, 10701 KiB  
Case Report
Characterization of Syphilitic Chorioretinitis as a White Dot Syndrome with Multimodal Imaging: Case Series
by Robert J. Contento, Neha Gupta and Mark P. Breazzano
Diagnostics 2025, 15(3), 369; https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics15030369 - 4 Feb 2025
Viewed by 1141
Abstract
Background/Objectives: To investigate the role of multimodal imaging, including ultra-widefield fundus autofluorescence (UWFAF), in diagnosing and monitoring syphilitic chorioretinitis, focusing on the detection of placoid appearance and white dots/spots. We aim to classify syphilitic chorioretinitis as a white dot syndrome, given evident [...] Read more.
Background/Objectives: To investigate the role of multimodal imaging, including ultra-widefield fundus autofluorescence (UWFAF), in diagnosing and monitoring syphilitic chorioretinitis, focusing on the detection of placoid appearance and white dots/spots. We aim to classify syphilitic chorioretinitis as a white dot syndrome, given evident features in the context of recent case reports and previously unavailable multimodal imaging. Methods: This single-institution study was conducted as a consecutive, observational case series. Five eyes from three patients were diagnosed with syphilitic chorioretinitis using multimodal imaging, including ultra-widefield pseudocolor fundus photography and intravenous fluorescein angiography, UWFAF, and swept-source optical coherence tomography, upon laboratory results. Results: In all five eyes with serologically confirmed syphilitic chorioretinitis, UWFAF revealed hyperautofluorescent white dots and spots scattered in the fundus, a finding minimally apparent with fluorescein angiography. Two eyes did not show evidence of classic placoid lesions. The hyperautofluorescence resolved after standard neurosyphilis treatment with intravenous course of penicillin. Conclusions: The presence of dots and spots identified through UWFAF may indicate syphilitic chorioretinitis and support its classification as a white dot syndrome. Based on the presence of hyperautofluorescent placoid lesions in some but not all cases with dots and spots, this study highlights the utility of multimodal imaging, including the more recent availability of UWFAF, in diagnosing syphilitic chorioretinitis. Future research is needed to determine whether the dots and spots in syphilitic chorioretinitis represent direct spirochete infiltration or a secondary inflammatory response. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue OCT and OCTA Assessment of Retinal and Choroidal Diseases)
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