A FALSE COLOR FUSION STRATEGY FOR DRUSEN AND GEOGRAPHIC ATROPHY VISUALIZATION IN OPTICAL COHERENCE TOMOGRAPHY IMAGES

Purpose: To display drusen and geographic atrophy (GA) in a single projection image from three-dimensional spectral domain optical coherence tomography images based on a novel false color fusion strategy. Methods: We present a false color fusion strategy to combine drusen and GA projection images. The drusen projection image is generated with a restricted summed-voxel projection (axial sum of the reflectivity values in a spectral domain optical coherence tomography cube, limited to the region where drusen is present). The GA projection image is generated by incorporating two GA characteristics: bright choroid and thin retina pigment epithelium. The false color fusion method was evaluated in 82 three-dimensional optical coherence tomography data sets obtained from 7 patients, for which 2 readers independently identified drusen and GA as the gold standard. The mean drusen and GA overlap ratio was used as the metric to determine accuracy of visualization of the proposed method when compared with the conventional summed-voxel projection, (axial sum of the reflectivity values in the complete spectral domain optical coherence tomography cube) technique and color fundus photographs. Results: Comparative results demonstrate that the false color image is more effective in displaying drusen and GA than summed-voxel projection and CFP. The mean drusen/GA overlap ratios based on the conventional summed-voxel projection method, color fundus photographs, and the false color fusion method were 6.4%/100%, 64.1%/66.7%, and 85.6%/100%, respectively. Conclusion: The false color fusion method was more effective for simultaneous visualization of drusen and GA than the conventional summed-voxel projection method and color fundus photographs, and it seems promising as an alternative method for visualizing drusen and GA in the retinal fundus, which commonly occur together and can be confusing to differentiate without methods such as this proposed one.

[1]  Ronald Klein,et al.  Fifteen-year cumulative incidence of age-related macular degeneration: the Beaver Dam Eye Study. , 2007, Ophthalmology.

[2]  Shuliang Jiao,et al.  Simultaneous acquisition of sectional and fundus ophthalmic images with spectral-domain optical coherence tomography. , 2005, Optics express.

[3]  P. Rosenfeld,et al.  Current Clinical Trials in Dry AMD and the Definition of Appropriate Clinical Outcome Measures , 2011, Seminars in ophthalmology.

[4]  E Reichel,et al.  Projection OCT fundus imaging for visualising outer retinal pathology in non-exudative age-related macular degeneration , 2008, British Journal of Ophthalmology.

[5]  Aziz A. Khanifar,et al.  Drusen ultrastructure imaging with spectral domain optical coherence tomography in age-related macular degeneration. , 2008, Ophthalmology.

[6]  William J Feuer,et al.  Natural history of drusen morphology in age-related macular degeneration using spectral domain optical coherence tomography. , 2011, Ophthalmology.

[7]  A. Ramé.  [Age-related macular degeneration]. , 2006, Revue de l'infirmiere.

[8]  Gui-Shuang Ying,et al.  The role of apoptosis in age-related macular degeneration. , 2002, Archives of ophthalmology.

[9]  Luis de Sisternes,et al.  Quantitative evaluation of drusen on photographs. , 2013, Ophthalmology.

[10]  Sina Farsiu,et al.  Quantitative comparison of drusen segmented on SD-OCT versus drusen delineated on color fundus photographs. , 2010, Investigative ophthalmology & visual science.

[11]  B. Lujan,et al.  Spectral domain optical coherence tomography imaging of drusen in nonexudative age-related macular degeneration. , 2011, Ophthalmology.

[12]  U. Schmidt-Erfurth,et al.  Performance of OCT segmentation procedures to assess morphology and extension in geographic atrophy , 2011, Acta ophthalmologica.

[13]  B. Lujan,et al.  Progression of geographic atrophy in age-related macular degeneration imaged with spectral domain optical coherence tomography. , 2011, Ophthalmology.

[14]  Roberto Manduchi,et al.  Bilateral filtering for gray and color images , 1998, Sixth International Conference on Computer Vision (IEEE Cat. No.98CH36271).

[15]  J. Grunwald,et al.  Changes in Choriocapillaris and Retinal Pigment Epithelium ( RPE ) in Age-Related Macular Degeneration , 1999 .

[16]  Joseph A Izatt,et al.  CORRELATION OF PATHOLOGIC FEATURES IN SPECTRAL DOMAIN OPTICAL COHERENCE TOMOGRAPHY WITH CONVENTIONAL RETINAL STUDIES , 2008, Retina.

[17]  Don H. Anderson,et al.  Age‐related macular degeneration—emerging pathogenetic and therapeutic concepts , 2006, Annals of medicine.

[18]  Paul Mitchell,et al.  Ten-year incidence and progression of age-related maculopathy: the blue Mountains Eye Study. , 2007, Ophthalmology.

[19]  The Age-Related Eye Disease Study system for classifying age-related macular degeneration from stereoscopic color fundus photographs: the Age-Related Eye Disease Study Report Number 6. , 2001, American journal of ophthalmology.

[20]  G. Jensen,et al.  14-year incidence, progression, and visual morbidity of age-related maculopathy: the Copenhagen City Eye Study. , 2005, Ophthalmology.

[21]  J. Duker,et al.  Three-dimensional retinal imaging with high-speed ultrahigh-resolution optical coherence tomography. , 2005, Ophthalmology.

[22]  S. Resnikoff,et al.  Global data on visual impairment in the year 2002. , 2004, Bulletin of the World Health Organization.

[23]  Glenn J Jaffe,et al.  Semiautomated image processing method for identification and quantification of geographic atrophy in age-related macular degeneration. , 2011, Investigative ophthalmology & visual science.

[24]  D. S. Mcleod,et al.  Quantifying changes in RPE and choroidal vasculature in eyes with age-related macular degeneration. , 2002, Investigative ophthalmology & visual science.

[25]  L. D. Del Priore,et al.  Drusen in age-related macular degeneration: pathogenesis, natural course, and laser photocoagulation-induced regression. , 1999, Survey of ophthalmology.

[26]  R T Smith,et al.  A method of drusen measurement based on reconstruction of fundus background reflectance , 2004, British Journal of Ophthalmology.

[27]  Daniel L Rubin,et al.  AN IMPROVED OPTICAL COHERENCE TOMOGRAPHY–DERIVED FUNDUS PROJECTION IMAGE FOR DRUSEN VISUALIZATION , 2014, Retina.

[28]  Daisuke Iwama,et al.  Automated assessment of drusen using three-dimensional spectral-domain optical coherence tomography. , 2012, Investigative ophthalmology & visual science.

[29]  J. Izatt,et al.  Spectral domain optical coherence tomography imaging of geographic atrophy margins. , 2009, Ophthalmology.

[30]  Robert F. Mullins,et al.  An Integrated Hypothesis That Considers Drusen as Biomarkers of Immune-Mediated Processes at the RPE-Bruch's Membrane Interface in Aging and Age-Related Macular Degeneration , 2001, Progress in Retinal and Eye Research.

[31]  Christian Ahlers,et al.  Performance of automated drusen detection by polarization-sensitive optical coherence tomography. , 2011, Investigative ophthalmology & visual science.