Predictive factors of age-related macular degeneration with poor response to three loading doses of anti-vascular endothelial growth factor.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the predictive factors of neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD) with poor response to three loading doses of intravitreal bevacizumab (IVB). METHODS: A retrospective cohort study was performed on nAMD patients three loading IVB initial treatment. The patients were divided into two groups, without residual fluid on optical coherence tomography (OCT) images (Group 1) and with residual fluid (Group 2). Demographic data, OCT findings, and morphological features of macular neovascularization (MNV) in optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) were recorded. RESULTS: The study included one hundred thirty-six eyes of 120 patients (Group 1: n = 66 eyes, Group 2: n = 70 eyes). Central macular thickness, presence of intraretinal fluid, subretinal fluid, hyperreflective foci-band, pigment epithelial detachment (PED), and prechoroidal cleft were similar between the two groups. Pre-injection central choroidal thickness (CCT) was 214.17 ± 50.28 µm in Group 1 and 247.40 ± 60.55 µm in Group 2 (p = 0.021). PED width (p = 0.028) and PED area (p = 0.042) were statistically significantly higher in Group 1. When the morphology of MNV in OCTA was examined, branching (p = 0.736), loops (p = 0.442), peripheral arcade (p = 0.600), hypointense halo (p = 0.779), sea fan (p = 0.250), medusa (p = 0.255), pruned vascular tree pattern (p = 0.148), capillary fringe (p = 0.683) were similar in both groups. The presence of a closed circuit pattern was significantly higher in Group 2 (p = 0.028). CONCLUSION: Initial CCT and closed circuit pattern MNV were higher in IVB-resistant cases. It was observed that PEDs with large bases and areas responded significantly better to loading therapy. The presence of a closed-circuit pattern was an independent risk factor for poor response to loading therapy. Retrospectively registered. REGISTRATION NUMBER: 2011-KAEK-25 2023/05-08.

Evaluation of choroidal thickness in children with type 1 diabetes: the role of optical coherence tomography in diabetic retinopathy screening.

The present study aimed to evaluate choroidal changes and alternations within the structure of the retina prior to visible morphologic signs of diabetic retinopathy (DR) in pediatric type 1 diabetes (T1D) cases. Two hundred and six eyes of 103 pediatric patients with T1D without DR and 88 eyes of 44 healthy controls were enrolled. They underwent a comprehensive ophthalmic examination and optical coherence tomography evaluation. Choroidal thickness (ChT) measurements were performed manually on macular and peripapillary regions. There was no significant difference between the two groups in terms of age, intraocular pressure, and axial length (p > 0.05). ChT measurements of subfoveal, nasal, and temporal macula were slightly thinner in the diabetic group, and no statistical significance was found (p = 0.835, p = 0.305, and p = 0.054, respectively). Peripapillary ChT of eight sectors were also thinner in T1D; however, superonasal, nasal, inferonasal, and inferior sector values were significantly different (p = 0.010, p = 0.020, p = 0.019, and p = 0.018, respectively). In conclusion; this study demonstrated evidence of peripapillary choroidal thinning in pediatric diabetic patients without visible signs of retinopathy.

Surgical outcomes of combined gonioscopy-assisted transluminal trabeculotomy and cataract surgery.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the success, safety, and complication rates of gonioscopy-assisted transluminal trabeculotomy (GATT) combined with cataract surgery. METHODS: A retrospective study was conducted for 32 patients who underwent GATT combined with phacoemulsification and intraocular lens implantation. Patients with primary open-angle glaucoma were enrolled. The primary outcome measures were visual acuity, intraocular pressure (IOP), the number of antiglaucoma medications used, and complications. RESULTS: The average preoperative visual acuity of the patients was logMAR 1.57 ± 1.2, and the average postoperative visual acuity was logMAR 0.39 ± 0.38. A significant increase in visual acuity was observed post-surgery (P < 0.05). The average preoperative IOP was 34.2 ± 10.6 mmHg. In the 3rd postoperative month, the average IOP was 10.5 ± 2.2 mmHg, and in the 6th postoperative month, the average IOP was 11.2 ± 2.4 mmHg. In all postoperative follow-ups, IOP was significantly lower than that during the preoperative period (P < 0.05). A decrease of 2.7 ± 0.6 on average was detected in the number of glaucoma medications used in the postoperative period compared to the preoperative period, and the average decrease in the number of active ingredients post-surgery was 3.5 ± 0.8. The most frequent complication was hyphaema (31.2%). In only one patient (3.1%), the surgery was considered to have failed due to the development of deep hypotony. CONCLUSION: Performing GATT in the same session as cataract surgery does not reduce the efficacy of GATT, yet this procedure reduces the incidence of the most frequent complication of GATT, i.e. hyphaema. Therefore, in convenient cases, combined surgery can safely be performed.