Clinical evaluation of AngioScan™, the confocal scanning laser digital ICG angiography system

Purpose: To evaluate clinical usefulness of Automatic Bolus Detection™ and Dual Detector System™ proprietary to AngioScan™ (Laser Diagnostic Technologies, Inc.). Methods: AngioScan™ is a confocal system with two independent detectors to acquire reflective image and ICG fluorescence image simultaneously. The system is also equipped with automatic bolus detection which triggers image acquisition within a fraction of a second once ICG dye reaches the eye. Five normal volunteers and five patients from the eye clinic with diagnosed retinal diseases were examined with AngioScan™. From each eye under examination, thirty-two images were acquired within the first second following the trigger and then the image acquisition was set to a user defined frame rate. Optical sections were acquired through the thickness of the retina. Results: Choroidal vessel hemodynamics at the initial filling of the ten subjects were acquired. A subtraction algorithm was employed to quell brightness "blooming". Three-dimensional structure of the retinal and choroidal vasculature were obtained by reconstructing the optical sections and presented as topographic maps. Conclusions: ICG dye filling pattern can be assessed with the assistance of Automatic Bolus Detection™. Late phase landmark injections might be obviated. AngioScan™ proved to be useful for ICG angiography in a clinical setting.