Abstract
Purpose :
To report a series of eyes in which subretinal fluid (SRF) developed in macular telangiectasia type II (MacTel) in the apparent absence of choroidal neovascularization (CNV).
Methods :
Color fundus photography, optical coherence tomography (OCT), and fluorescein angiography of patients in two of the largest MacTel Study registries in the world at the Save Sight Institute in Sydney and Moorfields Eye Hospital in London were assessed to identify patients who have SRF causing a foveal detachment without any other evidence of CNV. We confirm that the research followed the tenets of the Declaration of Helsinki; informed consent was obtained from the subjects; and the research was approved by local institutional review boards.
Results :
There were four female patients identified from the registries with SRF in the apparent absence of CNV. Their ages ranged from 50-66 years. Follow-up ranged from 5-8 years. Visual acuity was only mildly affected by the presence of SRF. Occasionally, the SRF resolved spontaneously, remaining stable for years before recurring. There was variable response to intravitreal vascular endothelial growth factor inhibitors (anti-VEGF) therapy.
Conclusions :
These cases suggest that SRF in MacTel can occur in the absence of CNV. We propose that deep intraretinal neovascularization penetrates the subretinal space, leading to accumulation of SRF. Intravitreal anti-VEGF therapy may not always be necessary in such cases.
This is an abstract that was submitted for the 2016 ARVO Annual Meeting, held in Seattle, Wash., May 1-5, 2016.