Transcorneal electrical stimulation increases chorioretinal blood flow in normal human subjects

Purpose: The aim of this article is to investigate the effect of transcorneal electrical stimulation (TES) on chorioretinal blood flow in healthy human subjects.

Methods: The chorioretinal blood flow of 10 healthy subjects was measured before and after TES by laser speckle flowgraphy and expressed as the square blur rate (SBR). The chorioretinal blood flow was determined before and immediately after TES and 0.5, 1, 1.5, 2, 2.5, 3, 24, and 40 h after TES in three different areas: the margin of the optic disc, a point located midway between the optic disc and macula, and the macula area. The SBR of the stimulated eye is expressed relative to the value of the fellow eye. The mean standardized blur ratio was calculated as the ratio of the standardized SBR to the baseline SBR. The changes of intraocular pressure (IOP), blood pressure (BP), and pulse rate (PR) were determined after each measurement of the SBR. The ocular perfusion pressure (OPP) was calculated from BP and IOP.

Results: The mean standardized blur ratio at the optic disc did not change significantly throughout the course of the experiment. However, the mean standardized blur ratio midway between the optic disc and macula and at the macula area were significantly higher after TES than that after sham stimulation at 3 and 24 h (P < 0.05, P < 0.01, respectively). At all times, the mean BP, PR, IOP, and OPP were not significantly different from the prestimulation values.

Conclusions: TES increases the chorioretinal blood flow in normal subjects with minimal effects on the systemic blood circulation and the IOP. The increase in chorioretinal blood flow may be one of the beneficial effects that TES has on ischemic retinal diseases.