Ocular blood flow alterations in autoimmune diseases: insights from optical coherence tomography angiography

The global incidence of autoimmune diseases is on the rise, leading to a corresponding increase in ocular complications associated with these conditions. Autoimmune pathologies can directly target ocular tissues via inflammatory mediators or induce endothelial dysfunction and microvascular alterations that compromise ocular integrity. These mechanisms give rise to a broad spectrum of ocular manifestations. In this review, optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA)-detected changes in the eye are examined in the context of systemic autoimmune and inflammatory diseases. These imaging biomarkers show promise as novel indicators for identifying relapse risk and subclinical inflammatory stages in systemic autoimmune disorders. Citation: Tao L, Wei J, Shen X. 2026. Ocular blood flow alterations in autoimmune diseases: insights from optical coherence tomography angiography. Visual Neuroscience 43: e005 https://doi.org/10.48130/vns-0026-0003