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Retina
Fluorescein Anglography
Fluorescein angiography is a diagnostic procedure which uses a specialized fundus
camera system to take a series of photographs of the retina. This diagnostic test can supply
valuable information about a patient's ocular health otherwise unavailable to the
ophthalmologist.
A special water-soluble dye (fluorescein) is injected into a vein
in the arm. The dye travels through the veins and into the arteries which circulate
throughout the body. (This procedure is often confused with an X-ray angiogram where an
iodine dye is injected into a vessel. The fluorescein angiogram is a photographic test, not
an x-ray.) As the dye passes through the blood vessels of the retina, which will happen in a
matter of seconds, a special camera flashes a blue light into the eye and takes multiple
photographs of the retina. The figure above shows the fluorescein dye (the white areas) as
it enters the retinal blood vessels.
If the blood vessels are abnormal, the dye may
leak into the retina or stain the blood vessels. Damage to the lining underneath the retina
or the appearance of abnormal new blood vessels growing beneath the retina may also be
revealed. The precise location of these abnormalities can be determined by a careful
interpretation of the fluorescein angiogram by your ophthalmologist.
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