  Advances in optical coherence tomography (OCT) have enabled noninvasive
imaging of substructures of the human retina with high spatial resolution. OCT
examinations are now a standard procedure in clinics and an integral part of
ophthalmic research. The interpretation of the OCT helps ophthalmologists
understand the impact of various retinal and systemic diseases on the structure
of the retina in a way not previously possible. In the early stages of retinal
diseases, however, the identification and analysis of small and localized
substructural changes in the retina remains a challenge. We present an overview
of novel visual analytics approaches for the interactive exploration of early
retinal changes in single and multiple patients, the comparison of the changes
with normative data, and automated quantification and measurement of
diagnosis-relevant information. We developed these approaches in close
collaboration with ophthalmology researchers and industry experts from a
leading OCT device manufacturer. As a result, they not only significantly
reduced the time and effort required for OCT data analysis, especially in the
context of cross-sectional studies, but have also led to several new
discoveries published in biomedical journals.
