Correlation of aqueous cytokines with OCT appearance in patients with diabetic macular oedema.

Abstract

Purpose: <br /> To assess the levels of nine angiogenic and inflammatory cytokines in the aqueous of treatment naïve patients with diabetic macular edema and correlate this with the appearance of the optical coherence tomography scan (OCT).

Methods: The aqueous from 15 eyes with newly diagnosed treatment naïve diabetic macular edema were sampled and a time-domain OCT scan of the macula was also performed. The OCT appearance was classified as diffuse retinal thickening (DRT), cystoid macular edema (CME) and serous retinal detachment (SRD). The angiogenic and inflammatory cytokines VEGF, Ang2, bFGF, HGF, PDGF, IL8, TNF-alpha, TIMP1 and TIMP2 were analysed using multiplex ELISA. The levels were correlated with the appearance of the OCT and BCVA at presentation.

Results: In DME, a greater CMT was correlated with higher bFGF (P=0.034) and a worse BCVA was correlated with higher IL8 (p=0.044) and HGF (p=0.022). Aqueous levels of VEGF were not found to be correlated with BCVA (p>0.1) or CMT (p>0.1). A higher bFGF was correlated with CME appearance on OCT.

Conclusions: Aqueous levels of bFGF, IL8 and HGF may have important roles in the anatomical and functional changes seen in DME. These cytokines provide further insight into the disease process of DME and may in the future be able to guide us in the treatment of DME.