FLUORESCENT INFRARED SCANNING-LASER OPHTHALMOSCOPE FOR 3-DIMENSIONAL VISUALIZATION - AUTOMATIC RANDOM-EYE-MOTION CORRECTION AND DECONVOLUTION

Scanning-laser ophthalmoscope (SLO) technology has provided, among oth er possibilities, the potential for three-dimensional (3-D) visualizat ion of anatomy in the posterior pole of the eye. The use of indocyanin e green (ICG) as an infrared fluorescent marker of vasculature in comb ination with an infrared SLO (the Heidelberg Retina Angiograph) is pre sented. Presently,two main factors among others discussed impede the v isualization of 3-D structures in observed SLO data. Random eye motion between optical sections and (to a lesser degree) motion between rast er scan lines prevent assessment of spatial orientation and connectivi ty of vasculature. Second, smear along the optic axis owing to the opt ics prevents accurate determination of vessel or lesion size and shape , especially for features spanning several optical sections. A novel, to our knowledge, deconvolution algorithm is described that automatica lly corrects for the poor axial (optical-sectioning) resolution of the SLO and for patient random eye motion during target fixation. Encoura ging preliminary results are presented showing the usefulness of apply ing blind deconvolution toward improving the 3-D clarity of SLO data. Although clinical and medical research applications are broad, the spe cific medical sample selected shows the potential of examining microva scular 3-D morphology for diagnosis and treatment of choroidal tumors. (C) 1998 Optical Society of America.