Abstract
Purpose: :
To observe the choroidal circulation after photodynamic therapy (PDT) using laser speckle flowgraphy (LSFG).
Methods: :
We examined choroidal blood flow in 11 eyes of 11 patients (10 men and 1 woman) with exudative age-related macular degeneration using LSFG before PDT and at 1week, 3 months after PDT. The patients’ age ranged from 52 to 83 (mean, 66). Chorioretinal blood flow is expressed as a mean square burr rate (MBR) in LSFG. The examined areas were targeted to A which was located within the greatest linear dimension (GLD) of PDT but excluded from the lesion and to B which was located outer to the GLD. The MBR of the B served for control. Choroidal blood flow of the irradiated area (A) was assessed as the ratio to that of the control area (B).
Results: :
After PDT, the MBR of the A decreased compared with that of the control area (B). Before PDT, A/B ratio was 0.8-2.07 (average 1.19), while it decreased to 0.41-1.14(0.84) at 1 week after PDT but recovered to 0.57-1.43 (average 0.92) at 3months. When preoperative mean A/B ratio is determined to 100%, postoperative choroidal blood flow was 71% at 1 week and 78% at 3 months.
Conclusions: :
The choroidal blood flow was maximally decreased at one week after PDT but gradually recovered during postoperative 3 months. However the blood flow remained at 78% of preoperative level.
Keywords: age-related macular degeneration • choroid: neovascularization • photodynamic therapy