E-Mail karger@karger.com Original Paper Ophthalmic Res DOI: 10.1159/000350413 Three-Dimensional Geometries Representing the Retinal Nerve Fiber Layer in Multiple Sclerosis, Optic Neuritis, and Healthy Eyes Elena Garcia-Martin a, b Begoña Calvo c, d Mauro Malvè c, d Raquel Herrero a, b Isabel Fuertes a Antonio Ferreras a, b Jose M. Larrosa a, b Vicente Polo a, b Luis E. Pablo a, b a Ophthalmology Department, Miguel Servet University Hospital, b Aragón Institute of Health Sciences, c Aragón Institute of Engineering Research (I3A), University of Zaragoza, and d Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red en Bioingeniería, Biomateriales y Nanomedicina, Zaragoza, Spain the superonasal RNFL area (101.77 μm in MS vs. 125.47 μm in healthy subjects) and in the inferotemporal RNFL (119.05 μm in MS eyes and 149.26 μm in healthy eyes). Conclusions: The 3D representation of RNFL thickness based on measure- ments allows physicians to better observe damage in the temporal areas, especially in patients with previous ON. Copyright © 2013 S. Karger AG, Basel Introduction Loss of retinal ganglion cells can be detected using oc- ular imaging technologies such as optical coherence to- mography (OCT) and scanning laser polarimetry, that provide noninvasive, objective, and reproducible meth- ods for evaluating the retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) [1]. OCT allows for cross-sectional imaging of the retina and optic disk based on interference patterns produced by low-coherence light reflected from retinal tissues. Re- cently introduced improvements in OCT technology, in- cluding three-dimensional (3D) high-resolution OCT us- ing Fourier domain detection, provide increased resolu- tion compared to classic time domain OCT, such as the Stratus instrument [2–6]. Key Words Multiple sclerosis · Optical coherence tomography · Retinal nerve fiber layer · Optic neuritis · Three-dimensional geometry Abstract Background: To represent and interpret the three-dimen- sional (3D) geometry and the distribution of the axonal dam- age to the retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) compared with healthy subjects. To analyze alterations in RNFL morphology in eyes of MS pa- tients with or without previous episodes of optic neuritis (ON). Methods: MS patients (n = 122) and age-matched healthy subjects (n = 108) were enrolled. The Spectralis opti- cal coherence tomography system was used to determine the circumpapillary RNFL thickness. The 768 RNFL thickness measurements were used to evaluate thickness measure- ments in patients with or without antecedent ON and to de- sign a 3D reconstruction of the RNFL thickness representing the mechanobiologic tissue response to neurodegeneration caused by MS and ON episodes. Results: RNFL thickness was decreased in MS patients, and was higher in the MS group with previous ON. Statistical analysis and 3D RNFL recon- struction revealed greater damage to the ganglionar cells in Received: September 26, 2012 Accepted after revision: January 24, 2013 Published online: ■■■ Elena Garcia-Martin C/Padre Arrupe Consultas Externas de Oftalmologia ES–50009 Zaragoza (Spain) E-Mail egmvivax  @  yahoo.com © 2013 S. Karger AG, Basel 0030–3747/13/0000–0000$38.00/0 www.karger.com/ore ORE350413.indd 1 ORE350413.indd 1 03.06.2013 14:09:08 03.06.2013 14:09:08