Photo Credit: miodrag ignjatovic

The following is a summary of “Recent advances and applications of optical coherence tomography angiography in diabetic retinopathy,” published in the April 2025 issue of Frontiers in Endocrinology by Zhang et al. 

Optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA), a noninvasive imaging technique, was increasingly being used in the management of ophthalmic diseases such as diabetic retinopathy (DR).  

Researchers conducted a retrospective study to explore the imaging principles of OCTA, its role in detecting DR lesions, and its diagnostic advantages compared to fundus fluorescein angiography (FFA).  

They systematically reviewed 75 articles (2015–2024) from the Web of Science Core Collection, focusing on OCTA’s technical principles, its clinical role in diagnosing DR, and its application in diabetes mellitus (DM) without DR and prediabetes. The review also explored the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in OCTA image analysis to evaluate DR severity.  

The results showed that OCTA effectively detected DR lesions and early vascular changes in DM and prediabetes, outperforming FFA in terms of noninvasiveness and resolution. The integration of AI improved OCTA’s ability to diagnose, assess, and predict DR progression.  

Investigators concluded that OCTA offered substantial clinical value in the early detection and monitoring of DR, and its combination with AI showed potential for improving diagnostic accuracy and broadening predictive uses, establishing OCTA as a potentially transformative tool in future ophthalmic practice. 

Source: frontiersin.org/journals/endocrinology/articles/10.3389/fendo.2025.1438739/full