The usefulness of Doppler sonography (DS) of the ophthalmic artery (OA) for the screening of occlusive internal carotid artery (ICA) diseases was discussed and analyzed. [Materials and Methods] Forty-seven cases with abnormal findings of DS of OA were examined by cerebral angiography. There were 36 males and 11 females, Mean age was 59 years. Doppler sonography of the OA was performed using Bidirectional Doppler D-10. [Results] 1) The abnormal DS findings were classified into two patterns; an arch stenosis pattern (SP) in 21 cases and a reversed flow pattern (RP) in 26 cases. 2) On the angiograpm, SP cases showed ICA stenosis or occlusion with collateral flow through the intracranial vessels, while RP showed occlusive ICA lesions with collateral flow through the extracranial vessels. 3) In the most of the SP cases, the OA was filled normogradely, and in the most of the RP cases, the OA was filled retrogradely. [Conclusion] DS of the OA is a non-invasive examination and shows good correlation with the angiographical findings of ICA and OA. Therefore, DS of the OA could be useful for the screening of ischemic internal carotid artery diseases.
