# Assessment of episcleral vasculature for glaucoma management

> **NIH NIH R43** · VASOPTIC MEDICAL, INC. · 2021 · $256,555

## Abstract

ABSTRACT
Glaucoma is one of the leading causes of irreversible blindness globally and is caused by retinal ganglion cell
death or loss associated with elevated intra-ocular pressure (IOP). Current treatment strategies revolve around
reduction of IOP, but are limited by poor adherence and potentially blinding surgical complications. Microinvasive
glaucoma surgery (MIGS) has offered a promising solution to reduce IOP, however results have been
inconsistent in part due to the lack of real-time assessment of aqueous outflow. This has limited the success of
MIGS. Our project proposes to develop an optical imaging-based solution to quantify aqueous humor outflow
and blood flow in the episcleral veins to provide crucial insight to ophthalmic surgeons performing MIGS in real-
time to support optimal surgical approach. During Phase I, we will develop a hardware-software system for
estimating flow of blood and aqueous humor, optimize and characterize its performance in vitro using standard
imaging targets and flow phantoms (Aim 1), and subsequently validate its performance in vivo using rabbit
models of anterior segment imaging and glaucoma (Aim 2). If successful, we anticipate undertaking a Phase II
effort comprising clinical studies to validate the clinical performance of the system before and after MIGS (Aim
1) and the demonstration of improvement in outcomes of MIGS outcomes with real-time availability of feedback
from our technology (Aim 2). This project, thereby, aims to the lay the foundation of a data-driven approach for
MIGS, or smart MIGS.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10324938
- **Project number:** 1R43EY032847-01A1
- **Recipient organization:** VASOPTIC MEDICAL, INC.
- **Principal Investigator:** Abhishek Rege
- **Activity code:** R43 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $256,555
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2021-09-01 → 2023-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10324938

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10324938, Assessment of episcleral vasculature for glaucoma management (1R43EY032847-01A1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-29 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10324938. Licensed CC0.

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