Abstract
Purpose: :
To evaluate the efficiency of one time taurine injection on chronic macular edema in non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy patients after pars plana vitrectomy (PPV) with removal of posterior hyaloid membrane
Methods: :
35 patients averaging 60 years of age bearing non-proliferative diabetic vitreoretinopathy with macular edema were enrolled into 3 clinical study arms. Only one eye per subject was permitted for entry into the study. Before vitrectomy, baseline external eye, opthalmoscopic, B-scan ultrasonographic and fluorscein angiography examinations were carried out on each patient, as well as best corrected visual acuity (BCVA) and ocular coherent tomography (OCT) measurements. After PPV control group of 15 subjects received an intravitreal injection of sterile 0.9% sodium chloride solution. The 2nd group of 6 received 2.5ml/250µl and the 3rd group of 14 received 10mg/250 µl intravitreal injection of taurine. The source of taurine was Taufon, containing 4% taurine solution. All subjects had follow-up visits and complete examinations for 3 months on the 1st, 15th, 30th and 90th days. During examinations particular attention was given to any signs of retinal edema, detachment, bleeding, nuclear sclerosis.
Results: :
The most noticeable differences among the study groups were revealed during OCT measurements. In the control group, thickness of neural retina in macular zone before surgery was 504±186 µm and after 90 days 392±138 µm. In second group with 2.5 mg intravitreal taurine thickness of macula before PPV was 477±188 µm and after 90 days 264±161 µm. In third group with 10 mg taurine macula thickness before PPV was 527±184 µm and after 90 days was 213±71 µm. Confidence interval 90%. The lowest macular edema after 3 month also was confirmed in the third group by B-scan ultrasonographiy and flourescein angiography. The average visual acuity per group was approx. 0.1 and after 3 months was increased almost 1.5 times in all groups. It was noted that BCVA was relatively better in the third group with high taurine as compared with the control group.
Conclusions: :
Taurine is revealed to have regenerating potential especially at high doses promoting the recovery of the retina structures in diabetic rethinopathy patients with macular edema in combination with PPV and removal of the posterior hyalid membrane. However, we are far from establishing taurine’s complete ophthalmological potential.
Clinical Trial: :
www.clinicaltrials.gov 1957
Keywords: diabetic retinopathy • macula/fovea • taurine