Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is a noninvasive imaging technique that allows us to monitor the retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL). This structure contains the axons of the retinal ganglion cells, which form the optic nerves, chiasm and optic tracts. Since retinal axons are nonmyelinated until they penetrate the lamina cribrosa, the RNFL is an ideal structure to visualize any process of neurodegeneration, neuroprotection or regeneration. Therefore, OCT has been applied in several areas in neurology over the last decade, becoming a hot topic and generating great enthusiasm among neurologists and ophthalmologists. The use of OCT to quantify retinal axonal loss is a promising tool to evaluate disease progression in numerous neurodegenerative disorders, including multiple sclerosis, Parkinson disease, Alzheimer disease, intracranial hypertension, and schizophrenia and may be used as a biological marker of neuroaxonal injury. An overview of the advancements in the development of OCT as a novel technology that enables objective analysis of the processes of neurodegeneration within the retina will be given.
Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is a noninvasive imaging technique that allows us to monitor the retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL). This structure contains the axons of the retinal ganglion cells, which form the optic nerves, chiasm and optic tracts. Since retinal axons are nonmyelinated until they penetrate the lamina cribrosa, the RNFL is an ideal structure to visualize any process of neurodegeneration, neuroprotection or regeneration. Therefore, OCT has been applied in several areas in neurology over the last decade, becoming a hot topic and generating great enthusiasm among neurologists and ophthalmologists. The use of OCT to quantify retinal axonal loss is a promising tool to evaluate disease progression in numerous neurodegenerative disorders, including multiple sclerosis, Parkinson disease, Alzheimer disease, intracranial hypertension, and schizophrenia and may be used as a biological marker of neuroaxonal injury. An overview of the advancements in the development of OCT as a novel technology that enables objective analysis of the processes of neurodegeneration within the retina will be given.
