By: Alfredo A. Sadun, MD, PhD, Isabella Ciccone, MPH
The chief of ophthalmology at the Doheny Eye Institute discussed decades of research uncovering how Alzheimer’s can impact visual function and how retinal imaging may advance diagnosis. [WATCH TIME: 13 minutes]
The retina has been gaining recognition as a promising site for noninvasive diagnosis and monitoring of Alzheimer’s disease (AD), with studies showing that key pathological features such as amyloid-β deposits, abnormal tau, vascular changes, inflammation, and neurodegeneration can be present in both the retina and brain of patients with the disease. Overall, these parallels suggest a strong correlation between retinal and cerebral pathology. Advanced imaging technologies like optical coherence tomography (OCT), OCT-angiography, and confocal scanning laser ophthalmoscopy have allowed for the detection of these changes in patients, offering potential tools for early screening and disease tracking; however, further large-scale, biomarker-confirmed studies may be needed to validate retinal biomarkers and standardize imaging protocols.1