Adaptive Optics and Multimodal Retinal Imaging for Postoperative Evaluation in Patients With Epiretinal Membrane.

Purpose: To evaluate adaptive optics scanning laser ophthalmoscope (AO-SLO) features and identify their multimodal retinal imaging characteristics using AO-SLO, swept-source optical coherence tomography (SS-OCT), and color fundus photography in patients undergoing surgery for epiretinal membrane (ERM), and to provide valuable insights into the mechanism underlying postoperative ERM progression.

Methods: Patients with ERM underwent multimodal retinal imaging following surgery, including color fundus photography, SS-OCT, and AO-SLO. AO-SLO features were characterized, and their corresponding multimodal retinal imaging findings were analyzed.

Results: Seventeen eyes from 17 postoperative ERM patients were included in this pilot study (mean age [SD], 68.06 [8.26] years; 12 female [70.6%]). Seven categories of AO-SLO features were identified in patients with ERM after surgery. The most common features were granular membrane (n = 17 [100%]), waxy membrane (n = 12 [70.6%]), and microcysts (n = 12 [70.6%]), after dissociated optic nerve fiber layer (n = 11 [64.7%]), microfolds (n = 6 [35.3%]), punctate reflectivity (n = 6 [35.3%]), and retinal folds (n = 5 [29.4%]).

Conclusions: AO-SLO imaging provides detailed insights into retinal microstructural changes after surgery for ERM. Further longitudinal studies tracking AO-SLO features over time and integrating multimodal retinal imaging modalities could enhance our understanding of retinal restoration processes and improve the prediction of surgical outcomes in ERM.