Does the ISNT rule apply to the radial peripapillary capillary vessel density in OCT angiography?

Abstract

Purpose: To investigate the applicability of ISNT (inferior ≥ superior ≥ nasal ≥ temporal), IST (inferior ≥ superior ≥ temporal), and T min (temporal quadrant with the minimum value) rules to the peripapillary nerve fiber layer (NFL) thickness and radial peripapillary capillary (RPC) vessel density (VD) using Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) and OCT angiography (OCT-A). Materials and methods: This cross-sectional study included 134 eyes of 74 healthy individuals. NFL thickness and RPC VD were measured in all four quadrants using OCT and OCT-A in order to determine the number of eyes that obey the ISNT, IST, and T min rules. Results: Mean age was 48.8 ± 15.5 (range 25–82) years. The ISNT rule was valid in 52 eyes (38.81%) on OCT and only 12 eyes (8.95%) on OCT-A scans. The IST rule was followed by 83 (61.94%) and 37 (27.61%) eyes on OCT and OCT-A scans respectively. The T min rule was valid in 86 eyes (64.18%) in OCT scans and in 26 eyes (19.4%) in OCT-A scans. Conclusion: The topography of the RPC network does not obey the ISNT rule in healthy eyes. The ISNT rule and its variants were found to be more relevant in OCT NFL thickness measurements compared to OCT-A RPC VD measurements. © 2021, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.