Ultrawide angle fluorescein angiographic imaging: a comparison to conventional digital acquisition systems.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE A prototype ultrawide field angiographic system and conventional technology were compared. PATIENTS AND METHODS Thirty subjects with diabetic retinopathy were imaged in three centers by conventional (Topcon Inc., Paramus, NJ, or Carl Zeiss Meditec, Dublin, CA) and ultrawide field (Optos P200A; Optos Inc., Dunfermline, Scotland) digital fluorescein angiography units. A calibrated grid was digitally placed on the images to facilitate measurements. Main outcome measures were field of view and the number of grid sectors displaying retinal ischemia and neovascularization. Secondary measures were image quality and patient satisfaction scores. RESULTS The P200A provided a significantly greater visual field extent of 8.7 +/- 1.6 disc diameters (DD) compared to the conventional systems (3.4 +/- 0.76 DD) (P < .001). Retinal ischemia was better revealed (16.9 +/- 15 vs 3.4 +/- 4.26 sectors) with the prototype, but image quality was superior with the conventional system. Patient satisfaction scores did not differ between systems. CONCLUSION A prototype ultrawide angle imaging system displayed significantly more diabetic retinal pathology in a single image than conventional systems.