Patent ID: 11998270

Abstract:
The invention provides methods of diagnosing neuropathic corneal pain by the detection of neuromas, such as micro-neuromas, on the cornea. The invention also features systems for detecting the presence of anatomical features located on an ocular tissue surface that may be a marker for neuropathic corneal pain. The systems feature an in vivo confocal microscope and a computer N programmed with a neural network to automate the analysis of the microscope images. The invention provides methods of using the system to identify a micro-neuroma in images collected of an ocular surface and methods of diagnosing neuropathic corneal pain and monitoring treatment of neuropathic corneal pain using a system of the invention. The invention further provides a non-transitory computer readable medium having instructions stored thereon, wherein the instructions, when executed by a processor, perform a method for automatically determining the presence of at least one neuroma on a plurality of images of an ocular surface of a patient.