Background: The aim of the study was to evaluate pre-operative and post-operative retinal vasculature using optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) in patients who underwent rhegmatogenous retinal detachment (RRD) surgery repair. Materials and Methods: A total of 33 eyes were included in this prospective consecutive observational study: 15 affected by macula-ON and 18 by macula-OFF RRD. Superficial (SCP), deep capillary plexus (DCP), and foveal avascular zone (FAZ) area variations were evaluated by OCTA and correlated with visual acuity (VA) during a six-month follow-up. Results: In the macula-ON group, the preoperative vascular density (VD) of the whole SCP (wSCP) on affected eyes was lower than that of the fellow eyes (p < 0.05); this difference disappeared at 6 months after surgery (p = 0.88). The wSCP VD and the parafoveal SCP (pfSCP) VD increased during follow-up (p < 0.05); moreover, the higher the preoperative wSCP and pfSCP VD, the better the baseline VA (p < 0.05). In the macula-OFF group, at the first and sixth months after surgery, the larger the FAZ, the lower the VA (p < 0.05). Conclusions: Macula-ON SCP VD affected preoperative VA, and it was lower than the fellow eye, but recovered over time. In the macula-OFF group, a larger FAZ area was related to a worse VA, as is the case in diabetes and in retinal vein occlusion (RVO).

In our series, CT was significantly lower in the RP group in comparison with the controls, as measured by EDI-OCT, but did not correlate with age, age at onset, duration of the disease, macular thickness, visual acuity, visual field loss, or ERG responses. Although the clinical implications of choroidal changes in RP have not yet been clearly determined, the evaluation of choroidal features may provide information that could be useful to clarify the pathophysiology of the disease.

No abstract

PurposeChoroidal thickness (CT) evaluation with EDI-OCT in Stargardt Disease (STGD), considering its possible association with some clinical features of the disease.MethodsCT was evaluated in 41 STGD patients and in 70 controls. Measurements were performed in the subfoveal position and at 1000 μm nasally and temporally. CT average values in STGD and in the control group were first compared by means of Student’s T test. Then, the possible association between CT and some clinical features was evaluated by means of linear regression analysis. Considered clinical parameters were: age, age on onset, duration of the disease, visual acuity, foveal thickness, Fishman clinical phenotype, visual field loss and ERG response.ResultsAverage CT was not significantly different between controls and STGD patients. In the STGD group the correlation between CT and age (r = 0.22, p = 0.033) and age of onset (r = 0.05, p = 0.424) was modest, while that of CT with disease duration (r = 0.30, p<0.001) was moderate. CT and foveal thickness were also significantly but modestly correlated (r = 0.15, p = 0.033).ConclusionIn our series average CT is not significantly changed in STGD in comparison with the controls. Nevertheless a choroidal thinning may be identified in the more advanced stages of the disease.

Dr. M. Fantozzi is a member of the Presbia medical advisory board. No other author has a financial or proprietary interest in any material or method mentioned.

Purpose: To compare visual outcome and postoperative complications of combined 25-gauge pars plana vitrectomy and phacoemulsification with vitrectomy alone surgery in patients with epiretinal membrane and macular hole. Methods: A total of 110 eyes (73 eyes with epiretinal membrane and 37 eyes with macular hole) were enrolled in this prospective study. The eyes were divided into two groups: Group A included 55 eyes which underwent phacovitrectomy at the same time and Group B included 55 eyes which underwent vitrectomy alone. Follow-up visits were at 1, 3, and 6 months. Results: The best-corrected visual acuity correlation by analysis of variance measurement showed statistically non-significant differences between the two groups ( p = 0.32). The post hoc analysis from baseline, 1°, 2°, and 3° follow-ups was not statistically significant ( p > 0.05). The most common postoperative complication was cystoid macular edema that has been detected in 11 patients (10%) (seven eyes in Group A and four eyes in Group B): 2 patients (1.8%) developed a chronic macular edema. Intraocular hypertension occurred in five eyes (4.5%) (three in Group A and two in Group B). Four eyes (3.6%) underwent another surgical procedure for a persistent macular hole (two in Group A and two in Group B). The intraocular lens repositioning was performed one day after surgery in three eyes (2.7%) (Group A). The mean preoperative visual acuity was not different between the two groups ( p = 0.80). Conclusion: No significative differences between combined surgery and vitrectomy alone have been detected, in terms of postoperative complications and visual outcome.

Fabry Disease (FD) is a rare X-linked lysosomal storage disorder characterized by systemic and ocular involvement. It has been described an increasing in retinal and conjunctival vessel tortuosity and this feature represents an important marker for the disease. Currently, there is not an objective method to measure and quantify this parameter. We tested a new semi-automatic software measuring retinal and conjunctival vessel tortuosity from eye fundus and conjunctival digital images in a group of FD patients. We performed an observational case-control study evaluating three mathematical parameters describing tortuosity (sum of angle metric [SOAM], product of angle distance [PAD], triangular index [I2e]) obtained from fundus and conjunctival pictures of 11 FD patients and 11 age and sex-matched controls. Both eyes were considered. Mann–Whitney test was used to compare the FD group versus the control group and, within the FD group, male versus female patients. Linear regression analysis was performed to evaluate the possible association of retinal and conjunctival vessels tortuosity parameters with age and with specific markers of systemic disease’s progression. The tortuosity parameters (SOAM, PAD and I2e) were significantly higher in retinal vessels and in conjunctival nasal vessels in FD patients in comparison with the controls (p=0.003, p=0.002, p=0.001 respectively for retina) (p=0.023, p=0.014, p=0.001 respectively for nasal conjunctiva). No significant association was found between retinal and conjunctival tortuosity parameters and increasing age or systemic involvement markers. Vessel tortuosity represents an important clinical manifestation in FD. A computer-assisted analysis of retinal and conjunctival vasculature demonstrated an increased vessels tortuosity in patients affected by Fabry disease. This non-invasive technique might be useful to help the diagnosis in early stages, to establish disease severity and monitor its progression.

Purpose: Optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) is a non-invasive and objective tool for the evaluation of the retinal microvascular changes in Fabry disease (FD). We investigated changes in retinal vasculature in FD patients, and the possible correlation with systemic parameters, by using OCTA, and reviewed the current status of literature.Methods: Thirteen FD patients (eight females, five males, mean age 49.85 ± 14.7 years) were compared with 13 age- and sex-matched healthy controls. OCTA 3 × 3 mm macular scans were performed in all subjects. We evaluated the vessel density and vessel perfusion in distinct macular areas (whole, inner, and outer) of both the superficial capillary plexus (SCP VD and SCP VP) and of the deep capillary plexus (DCP VD and DCP VP). We also evaluated the foveal avascular zone (FAZ) metrics (area, perimeter, and circularity), and correlation between systemic and OCTA parameters. A literature review on the current understanding of OCTA in FD is then presented.Results: FD patients showed significantly lower SCP VD values in the whole area (17.37 ± 2.08 mm−1 vs. 18.54 ± 1.21 mm−1; p-value 0.022), as well as in the outer area (17.46 ± 2.10 mm−1 vs. 19.08 ± 1.14 mm−1; p-value 0.002), but not in the inner. Even the DCP VD was significantly lower in all the imaged areas: whole (17.75 ± 3.93 mm−1 vs. 19.71 ± 1.20 mm−1; p-value 0.024), outer (18.25 ± 4.17 mm−1 vs. 20.33 ± 1.20 mm−1; p-value 0.023), and inner (19.54 ± 4.17 mm−1 vs. 21.96 ± 1.55 mm−1; p-value 0.011). There were no significant differences in vessel perfusion parameters (both SCP VP and DCP VP ones) and FAZ. No significant correlations were found between the OCTA parameters and systemic parameters (maximal left ventricular wall thickness and glomerular filtration rate) in FD patients.Conclusions: OCTA can be considered as a promising non-invasive tool, which enables a quantitative evaluation of retinal vascular involvement in FD, despite the varying data reported in literature. Our results support the use of OCTA as an objective tool to evaluate retinal vascular abnormalities in FD. The utility of OCTA in FD needs to be validated by longitudinal studies taking into account the overall progression of the disease.