Interdigitation and Ellipsoid Zones Disruption Correlate with Visual Outcomes among Treatment-Naive Patients with Diabetic Macular Edema.

Ophthalmic Research
Nardine SharefAsaf Achiron

Abstract

We have recently shown that defects in interdigitation and ellipsoid zones (IZ and EZ) can predict response to anti-VEGF therapy in a small group of treatment-naive diabetic macular edema (DME) patients. The aim of the current study is to further evaluate this association in a larger study group of patients over a longer follow-up time. Thirty eyes of 30 treatment-naive DME patients were analyzed in this retrospective study. The integrity of foveal IZ and EZ was evaluated using optical coherence tomography at the diagnosis of DME and following anti-VEGF injections. The defect size was correlated with best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) and central macular thickness (CMT). The mean patients' age at baseline was 63.0 ± 10.0 years. Patients underwent 3.9 ± 2.9 anti-VEGF injections for a mean of 9.1 ± 4.8 months. Following treatment, the mean Snellen visual acuity (VA) improved from 20/52 to 20/44 (p = 0.05), CMT decreased from 432.5 ± 141.4 μm to 375.2 ± 121.4 µm (p = 0.05) and IZ/EZ defect size decreased from 259.83 ± 375.94 µm to 65.34 ± 143.97 µm (p = 0.001). In patients with no IZ/EZ defects at baseline, the mean Snellen VA was better when compared to those with IZ/EZ defects (20/36 vs. 20/70, p = 0.031). The number of eyes wi...Continue Reading

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