Abstract

P 246

Longitudinal morphological changes in patients with dry ARMD

Ute Wolf-Schnurrbusch, Simon Rothenbuehler, Sebastian Wolf
Universitäts-Augenklinik, Inselspital, Bern, Schweiz

Objective
To investigate longitudinal changes due to geographic atrophy in high-resolution optical coherence tomography (OCT) images and in simultaneously recorded in fundus autofluorescence (FAF), and infrared images with a novel combined OCT-scanning laser ophthalmology (SLO) system.
Methods
Patients aged over 50 years with areas of geographic atrophy due to age-related macular degeneration (ARMD) were included into this study. These patients were assessed every 6 months over a follow-up period of 2 years using the  spectral OCT-SLO (Spectralis HRA+OCT; Heidelberg Engineering, Heidelberg, Germany). The integrity of the retinal layers was analyzed in the apparently normal areas, the junctional zone between the normal retina and the geographic atrophy, and the atrophic area. The presence and integrity of the external limiting membrane, the photoreceptor inner segments, the outer segments, and the retinal pigment epithelium were assessed.
Results
148 eyes of 84 patients aged 57 to 92 years were examined. Morphological changes, retinal layer alterations were documented over 2 years, not only in atrophic zones, but also in junctional zones surrounding the geographic atrophy. Disintegration of the retinal layers began in the RPE and adjacent retinal layers, such as the photoreceptor inner and outer segments and external limiting membrane.
Conclusions
Novel imaging modalities will provide further valuable insight into ARMD pathogenesis. The key to understanding the morphologic change lies in vivo depiction of retinal layers by spectral OCT technology in combination with other imaging modalities such as FAF.

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