Infrared Autofluorescence (IRAF) Imaging

Wed, 4 Jan 2023 19:35:52 GMT

Hi everyone,

So, I saw a few articles recently referencing IRAF imaging in addition to standard Blue FAF.

I hadn't seen anything about IRAF before, and wanted to know if anyone here had any practical experience with it and what it's use would be in a clinic setting. Most of the references to it that I've been able to find were scholarly articles, which weren't a lot of help.

Thanks for the help!

Thu, 5 Jan 2023 02:41:44 GMT

Think of the near infrared light used for ICG, it's near infrared, now using the barrier filter and without ICG take a picture. Choroidal areas of hyperfluorescence show on IRAF, and because it's IR it doesn't bother the patient to capture on most systems. I say most because the Clarus still uses a bright visible light and best I figure filters out what is received into the IRAF image. Interesting note on that with the clarus, many times the IRAF image I take with it is a higher quality than the BAF image I take with it

Thu, 5 Jan 2023 15:20:17 GMT

Thanks for the info Paul. It seems to be roughly the same quality on our Spectralis system. I was testing it out a bit yesterday.
Any particular diagnoses that IRAF helps to check for? Or would it fall in to generally the same category as BAF?
The main ones I saw online were in checking for Retinitis Pigmentosa.

Fri, 27 Jan 2023 14:05:26 GMT

Some forms of AMD really show well, I think when there's a true CNVM it shows really nice and compliments an OCT-A. I haven't really tried IRAF with RP but there's a good chance that it would show something differently than BAF would. With the Clarus the IRAF almost come out with a better image more akin to the BAF on the Spectralis rather than what I feel is usually an overly washed out version of a BAF.

Honestly I think anything choroidal or closer to RPE would be more prominent in it, so things like Stargardts, Choroidal Hemangioma, Choroidal Melanoma, maybe even CHRPE lesions, etc.