Evaluation of Optic Nerve Development in Preterm and Term Infants Using Handheld Spectral-Domain Optical Coherence Tomography

Purpose To evaluate effects of prematurity on early optic nerve (ON) development and the usefulness of ON parameters as indicators of central nervous system (CNS) development and pathology. Design Prospective, cross-sectional, longitudinal study. Participants Forty-four preterm infants undergoing retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) screening and 52 term infants. Methods We analyzed ON from portable handheld spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) images (Bioptigen, Inc, Research Triangle Park, NC) of 44 preterm and 52 term infants. The highest-quality ON scan from either eye was selected for quantitative analysis. Longitudinal analysis was performed at 31–36 weeks and 37–42 weeks postmenstrual age (PMA). Preterm ON parameters also were assessed for correlation with indicators of cognitive, language, and motor development and CNS pathology. Main Outcome Measures Vertical cup diameter (vCD), vertical disc diameter (vDD), vertical cup-to-disc ratio (vCDR), cup depth, and indicators of neurocognitive development and CNS pathology. Results At 37–42 weeks PMA, preterm infants had larger vCD and vCDR than term infants (908 vs. 700 μm [ P