Abstract
Purpose:
To determine the relationship between the levels of intraocular inflammatory cytokines and choroidal neovascularization in high myopia.
Methods:
Prospective cohort study. Choroidal neovascularization (CNV) in patients with high myopia (axial length ≥ 26.5 mm) was defined as myopic CNV (mCNV). Forty one patients with mCNV and 44 control subjects were studied. The levels of VEGF, MCP-1, IL-4, IL-10, and IL-23 in the aqueous humor samples from mCNV patients and control subjects were assessed for significant associations with mCNV. Logistic regression analysis was used to compute the odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs).
Results:
Axial length significantly correlated with levels of MCP-1 and IL-4 by Spearman correlation analysis (MCP-1: ρ=0.36, P=0.003, IL-4: ρ=0.33, P=0.009). In contrast, VEGF, IL-10, and IL-23 levels were independent of axial length. In mCNV patients, IL-10, IL-4, and MCP-1 were significantly higher than that in the controls (P=0.005, P=0.04, P=0.047, respectively). The IL-10 elevation was associated with mCNV and provided significant OR after age adjustment, however, no other cytokines discriminated the disease.
Conclusions:
The significant association between elevated levels of IL-10 with mCNV strongly suggests an involvement of inflammatory processes in the etiology of mCNV presumably independent of VEGF or axial length.
Keywords: 453 choroid: neovascularization •
605 myopia