Clinical and Experimental Ophthalmology Conversations

Episode 3: Detecting Reticular Pseudodrusen with Artificial Intelligence

Reticular pseudodrusen (otherwise known as subretinal drusenoid deposits) are an important finding in age-related macular degeneration. They are a risk for geographic atrophy development and growth. In this study, an internally and externally validated deep-learning algorithm was developed to automatically identify reticular pseudodrusen with similar to better accuracy than retinal specialists. This allows for future quantification of reticular pseudodrusen in clinical trials, an important next step to learning more about the importance of this sign.

Episode 2: Tattoo Associated Uveitis - More Common than you Might Realise

This large case series from Australia reviews 40 patients with tattoo associated uveitis. Most cases were found to be bilateral. Although all forms of uveitis are possible, anterior uveitis is the most common presentation, occurring in 70% of eyes. Vision was commonly affected, such that two-thirds of patients required long term immunosuppression. Given that 25% of the Australian population has a tattoo, asking for this is a critical question in any patient presenting with uveitis.

Episode 1: Dominant Optic Atrophy - in Search of Biomarkers

A recent systematic review and meta-analysis of studies on dominant optic atrophy found that visual acuity was the only biomarker with longitudinal data, and its rate of change did not differ significantly from zero. These findings highlight a critical gap in the field - robust, sensitive biomarkers capable of capturing disease progression are lacking. Identifying alternative structural, functional or molecular biomarkers will be essential for designing and validating future therapeutic clinical trials in dominant optic atrophy.