Comparison of spectral- and time-domain optical coherence tomography for retinal thickness measurements in healthy and diseased eyes

Am J Ophthalmol. 2009 May;147(5):847-58, 858.e1. doi: 10.1016/j.ajo.2008.11.019. Epub 2009 Feb 6.

Abstract

Purpose: To compare retinal thickness (RT) measurements obtained by spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) and time-domain OCT (TD-OCT) in eyes with and without posterior segment disease diagnoses.

Design: Retrospective, observational chart review.

Methods: Scans of 184 healthy and diseased eyes from 106 patients were included in the study. Pair-wise comparisons of RT measurements from SD-OCT machines from 2 different manufacturers and TD-OCT were performed for all scans and with eyes stratified by disease diagnosis.

Results: Foveal thickness measurements obtained from both SD-OCT machines were greater than those measured by TD-OCT, by 51.0 +/- 23.8 microm and 72.5 +/- 30.4 microm, respectively. The foveal thickness difference between the 2 SD-OCT models was 24.3 +/- 19.1 microm. Foveal thickness differences varied by disease diagnosis.

Conclusions: RT measurements obtained by SD-OCT are consistently greater than those obtained by TD-OCT. RT measurement differences may vary by disease diagnosis or by SD-OCT model. Consideration of these measurement differences is essential when OCT-determined RT measurement data are used in clinical settings.

Publication types

  • Comparative Study
  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Adult
  • Aged
  • Aged, 80 and over
  • Female
  • Fourier Analysis
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Reproducibility of Results
  • Retina / anatomy & histology*
  • Retina / pathology*
  • Retinal Diseases / diagnosis*
  • Retrospective Studies
  • Tomography, Optical Coherence
  • Young Adult