OCT and Imaging in Central Nervous System Diseases: The Eye as a Window to the Brain

The second edition of OCT and Imaging in Central Nervous System Diseases offers updated state-of-the-art advances using optical coherence tomography (OCT) regrading neuronal loss within the retina. Detailed information on the OCT imaging and interpretation is provided for the evaluation of disease progression in numerous neurodegenerative disorders and as a biological marker of neuroaxonal injury. Covering disorders like multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, intracranial hypertension, Friedreich’s ataxia, schizophrenia, hereditary optic neuropathies, glaucoma, and amblyopia, readers will given insights into effects on the retina and the and optic nerve. Individual chapters are also devoted to OCT technique, new OCT technology in neuro-ophthalmology, OCT and pharmacological treatment, and the use of OCT in animal models.

Similar to the first edition, this book is an excellent and richly illustrated reference for diagnosis of many retinal diseases and monitoring of surgical and medical treatment. OCT allows to study vision from of the retina to the optic tracts. Retinal axons in the retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) are non-myelinated until they penetrate the lamina cribrosa. Hence, the RNFL is an ideal structure for visualization of any process of neurodegeneration, neuroprotection, or regeneration. By documenting the ability of OCT to provide key information on CNS diseases, this book illustrates convincingly that the eye is indeed the “window to the brain”.