Optical coherence tomography angiography in cerebral small vessel disease: a review

Cerebral small vessel disease (CSVD) is a progressive microvascular condition affecting the entire brain, often leading to cognitive impairment and vascular dementia. Optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) is an emerging non-invasive technique primarily used for assessing retinal vascularization, with potential applications in both ophthalmology and the diagnosis of CSVD. This review outlines the fundamental principles and applications of OCTA, discusses ongoing research on imaging characteristics of different cerebral small vessel disorders using OCTA, and consolidates the current findings in this field.The association between OCTA and different types of cerebral small vessel diseases has been initially confirmed in small-scale studies. Nevertheless, there is a need to standardize OCTA imaging and analysis techniques and validate existing results through large-sample, multicenter studies.