Simultaneous OCT/confocal - OCT/ICG system for imaging the eye

En-face OCT acquired simultaneously with paired confocal ophthalmoscopic (CO) images provides unprecedented point-to-point correlation between surface and subsurface anatomy of the retina. An advanced prototype of a dual channel OCT/CO instrument was developed in terms of signal to noise ratio and image size. The system can operate in A, B and C-scan regimes. The design is such that there is a strict pixel to pixel correspondence between the OCT and confocal images. An extensive array of clinic pathologies were studied including macular degeneration, central serous retinopathy (CSR), macular hole, macular pucker, cystoid macular edema (CME), diabetic maculopathy, and macular trauma. We report observation of reoccurring patterns in the en-face OCT images which could be identified with different diseases. The system can also simultaneously produce en-face OCT and indocyanine green (ICG) fluorescence images where the same source is used to produce the OCT image and excite the ICG. The system is compact and assembled on a chin rest and it enables the clinician to visualise the same area of the eye fundus in terms of both en face OCT slices and ICG angiograms, displayed side by side. The images are collected by fast en-face scanning (T-scan) followed by slower scanning along a transverse direction and depth scanning. The system is capable of providing chosen OCT B-scans at selected points from the ICG image.