Repository of DUTH

Use-contribution of optical coherence tomography (OCT) in diagnosis and management of glaucomatous patient (Master thesis)

Κοντοπάνος, Γεώργιος/ Kontopanos, Georgios

Glaucoma is a heterogeneous group of neurodegenerative disorders described by progressive retinal ganglion cell (RGCs) loss and alterations of the optic nerve axons. It is one of the most common causes of irreversible blindness worldwide, while the number of glaucoma patients is predicted to reach 111.8 million by 2040. Although the exact pathological mechanisms of the onset and progression of glaucoma are not fully understood, early detection and monitoring is vital for the diagnosis and management of glaucoma. Optical coherence tomography is a valuable tool in the detection and progression of the disease and in general in the clinical management of glaucoma. More specifically, optical coherence tomography (OCT) is an imaging, non-invasive method based on interference, one of the properties of the wave nature of light and more specifically in low coherence interferometry. OCT systems are divided into time domain OCT (TD-OCT) and fourier domain OCT (FD OCT). Particularly, fourier domain OCT can be applied in two ways, spectral domain OCT (SD-OCT) and swept source OCT (SS-OCT). Finally, OCT-angiography (OCT-angio) is the most modern technique of optical coherence tomography which is based on the detection of the signal caused by red blood cells by imaging the blood flow. The purpose of this master's thesis is a literature review of OCT in the context of its utility for the diagnosis and management of glaucoma, as well as promising future directions.