Ophthalmologic diagnostic procedures and imaging of retinal vein occlusions

• Published in: Der Ophthalmologe : Zeitschrift der Deutschen Ophthalmologischen Gesellschaft Vol. 108; no. 2; p. 111
• Main Authors: Mirshahi, A, Lorenz, K, Kramann, C, Stoffelns, B, Hattenbach, L-O
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English; German
• Published: Germany 01-02-2011
• Subjects: Fluorescein Angiography - methods; Humans; Ophthalmoscopy - methods; Retinal Vein Occlusion - diagnosis; Retinoscopy - methods; Tomography, Optical Coherence - methods
• ISSN: 1433-0423
• DOI: 10.1007/s00347-010-2290-9

Retinal vein occlusions are a common vascular disease of the eye. Ophthalmological diagnostic procedures and imaging are important for the prognosis of the disease, as are the systemic work-up and therapy. Besides routine ophthalmic tests (visual acuity, slit lamp examination, funduscopy) a work-up for glaucoma such as intraocular pressure, visual field or 24 h IOP profile is useful as a diagnostic procedure. Furthermore, new diagnostic and imaging tests such as central corneal thickness and optic nerve head imaging by Heidelberg retina tomography or optical coherence tomography (OCT) should be considered for glaucoma evaluation. Optical coherence tomography also plays a major role in treatment monitoring of macular edema secondary to retinal vein occlusions. Fluorescein angiography is well established and can provide information with regard to size and extent of the occlusion, degree of ischemia, areas of non-perfusion and neovascularization, as well as macular edema.