In vivo, micro-morphological vascular changes induced by topical brimonidine studied by Dynamic optical coherence tomography

Brimonidine is a selective α2 adrenergic receptor agonist with potent vasoconstrictive activity topically used for treatment of facial flushing and erythema caused by rosacea. Direct evidence for the in vivo morphology changes in skin vessels induced by topical application of brimonidine is limited. Dynamic optical coherence tomography is a novel technology that combines conventional OCT with information on flow and thereby provides supplementary information about the microvasculature. Dynamic OCT is non-invasive and creates high-resolution in vivo images of skin to a depth of maximum 2 mm.