Abstract
Purpose: :
It is unclear whether anti-VEGF monotherapy in age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is able to achieve morphologic CNV regression. It was the aim of this study to image CNV structure before and after anti-VEGF treatment using spectral domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT).
Results: :
Classic CNV components were observed above the RPE/photoreceptor complex, whereas occult CNVs stayed below. 62% of all postoperative OCTs revealed complete dry retinal structures, in 25% edema reduced, and in 13% edema remained unchanged. Qualitatively, overall CNV architecture appeared to be unchanged in 79%, reduced in thickness in 19%, and became larger in 2%. Quantitatively, for all CNV subtypes the diameter of CNVs (preoperatively: 2961µm; postoperatively: 2946µm) did not change after treatment (classic CNVs: p=0.307; occult CNVs: p=0.472, minimal classic CNVs: p=0.116) independently of postoperative retinal edema. The overall thickness of the CNV; however, reduced from 203µm to 175µm (p=0,000). In CNVs with classic components (n=17) thickness regressed from 266µm to 208µm (p=0.001). In contrast, for occult CNVs thickness reduced insignificantly from 173.6µm to 158.4µm (p=0.060).
Keywords: age-related macular degeneration • choroid: neovascularization • imaging methods (CT, FA, ICG, MRI, OCT, RTA, SLO, ultrasound)