The primary goal of this K23 proposal is to train Dean A. VanNasdale, Jr, OD as an independentclinician scientist. This training plan emphasizes mentoring in advanced retinal imaging, as wellas advanced training in biostatistics and epidemiology. It will span 4 years of a Ph.D. program,followed by a 1-year post-doctoral training program. Concurrent with this, a 3-year MS programin Clinical Research will be completed. Included in the Retinal Disease Program set forth in theNEI's 'National Plan for Eye and Vision Research' are goals emphasizing early detection andtreatment of diabetic retinopathy and macular degeneration. Specific goals include improvingearly diagnosis of macular degeneration; understanding the pathogenesis of diabeticretinopathy and other vascular diseases of the retina; and developing strategies for primaryprevention and improved treatment. Macular degeneration is a serious public health problemand the leading cause of blindness in the United States in adults, and increasing in frequencywith advancing age. Diabetic retinopathy is also a significant public health problem in the UnitedStates, in the top three causes of vision loss. Early diagnosis will be necessary for thedevelopment of new treatment modalities; however, the ability to improve early diagnosis willdepend on the capabilities of newer ophthalmic instruments that allow improved visualization ofsubtle changes taking place within the deeper structures of the retinal tissue. Improved imagingtechniques will also be necessary to examine the pathogenesis of these diseases and toevaluate the efficacy of new therapeutic options. The long-term goal of this project is to usecurrent ocular imaging technology, and design new imaging technology, to image the retinal andsubretinal structure in patients with various stages of macular degeneration and diabeticretinopathy. This will facilitate identification and localization early retinal pathology that iscurrently not detectable by standard clinical methods. New therapeutic interventionsemphasizing earlier treatment can be developed if better localization of retinal pathology can beassessed in earlier disease stages. This will lead to improved treatments that minimize visionloss in affected individuals.
The focus of this research project is to develop improved techniques for identifying early retinal damage in age-related macular degeneration and diabetic retinopathy, two of the leading causes of blindness in the United States. By using specific instruments with polarized light and high magnification, damage in the retina can be detected earlier. This early detection can lead to better management of patients with sight-threatening disease and can be used to assess the effectiveness of newer treatment options.
| Chui, Toco Y P; VanNasdale, Dean A; Elsner, Ann E et al. (2014) The association between the foveal avascular zone and retinal thickness. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci 55:6870-7 |
| VanNasdale, Dean A; Elsner, Ann E; Peabody, Todd D et al. (2014) Henle fiber layer phase retardation changes associated with age-related macular degeneration. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci 56:284-90 |
| Chui, Toco Y P; Vannasdale, Dean A; Burns, Stephen A (2012) The use of forward scatter to improve retinal vascular imaging with an adaptive optics scanning laser ophthalmoscope. Biomed Opt Express 3:2537-49 |
| VanNasdale, Dean A; Elsner, Ann E; Kohne, Kimberly D et al. (2012) Foveal localization in non-exudative AMD using scanning laser polarimetry. Optom Vis Sci 89:667-77 |
| VanNasdale, Dean A; Elsner, Ann E; Hobbs, Timothy et al. (2011) Foveal phase retardation changes associated with normal aging. Vision Res 51:2263-72 |
| VanNasdale, Dean A; Elsner, Ann E; Weber, Anke et al. (2009) Determination of foveal location using scanning laser polarimetry. J Vis 9:21.1-17 |
| Twietmeyer, K M; Chipman, R A; Elsner, A E et al. (2008) Mueller matrix retinal imager with optimized polarization conditions. Opt Express 16:21339-54 |
