Use of the laser speckle flowgraphy in posterior fundus circulation research

Objective To review articles aiming to present an overview of the principles, progress, uses and limitations of laser speckle flowgraphy (LSFG) in posterior fundus circulation research. Data sources The data used in this review was obtained mainly from the studies reported in PubMed using the key terms "laser speckle", "ocular blood flowmetry" and "retinal imaging". Study selection Relevant literatures on studies of LSFG were selected. Results LSFG is a unique, noninvasive imaging instrument to quantitatively visualize posterior fundus circulation in vivo. This review delineates the LSFG principles and development, demonstrates its extensive applicability for measurement of retina, choroid and optic nerve head circulation, compares it with other retinal imaging technologies and discusses unresolved issues. Conclusions LSFG is a noninvasive, two-dimensional objective diagnostic technique that has become a powerful method for the clinical and scientific assessment of posterior fundus circulation. Further studies may help to develop a more comprehensive evidence-based measurement and facilitate the correlation with other methods for chorioretinal circulation assessment. Chin Med J 2011;124(24):4339-4344