Correlation between macular edema recurrence and macular capillary network destruction in branch retinal vein occlusion

Abstract

Purpose: To evaluate the correlation between changes of the macular capillary network and macular edema (ME) recurrence in branch retinal vein occlusion (BRVO) using swept-source optical coherence tomography (SS-OCT) angiography. Methods: We reviewed the data of 43 patients with treatment-näive ME associated with BRVO. Patients who received intravitreal bevacuzumab injection were divided into two groups based on ME recurrence after 6 months after edema resolution. The perifoveal capillary morphology and the macular capillary vessel density (VD) were retrospectively analyzed with en face SS-OCT angiography image after ME resolution. Results: In the ME recurrence group (n=22), a broken the perifoveal capillary ring in the superficial capillary plexus (SCP) and deep capillary plexus (DCP) was more common than the no ME recurrence group (p = 0.047 and p = 0.002). The destruction of the perifoveal capillary ring of the DCP (30.0° vs 87.3°, p = 0.001) was more severe than that of the SCP (17.3° vs 69.5°, p = 0.006) in the ME recurrence group compared with the no ME recurrence group. The hemi-VD disparity between the affected areas and the unaffected areas in the SCP and DCP showed significant differences (p = 0.031 and p = 0.017), while macular VD showed no differences between the groups. Conclusions: The destroyed perifoveal capillary ring and the hemi-VD disparity were related to the recurrence of ME in BRVO. Therefore, these factors can be helpful in predicting ME recurrence.