Abstract
Purpose :
To evaluate optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) changes in patients with non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy (NPDR)
Methods :
This is a preliminary study to explore early vessel parameter changes after an anti-VEGF intravitreal injection in eyes with macular edema and NPDR. The electronic medical record was reviewed to obtain information regarding disease severity, presence of diabetic macular edema and treatment. OCTA information was reviewed and six quantitative OCTA features including VCI (vessel complexity index), VAD (vessel area density), VSD (vessel skeleton density), BVT (blood vessel tortuosity), VDI (vessel diameter index), and VPI (vessel perimeter index) were recorded. Statistical analyses were performed using MATLAB (Mathworks, Natick, MA, USA).
Results :
A total of 23 eyes of 19 patients were evaluated across three visits. Mean visual acuity was 20/40 at visit 1, 20/50 at visit 2 and 20/50 at visit 3. From visit 1 to visit 2, 21 eyes remained stable, 3 eyes improved, and 6 eyes worsened in severity. From visit 2 to visit 3, 20 eyes remained stable, 7 eyes improved and 2 eyes worsened.
VCI was 0.37±0.23 at visit 1, 0.46±0.32 at visit 2, and 0.39±0.32 at visit 3 (visit 1 and 2, p=0.09). VAD was 0.43±0.27 at visit 1, 0.54±0.31 at visit 2, and 0.48±0.33 at visit 3 (visit 1 and 2, p=0.01). VSD was 0.45±0.28 at visit 1, 0.54±0.31 at visit 2, and 0.45±0.32 at visit 3 (visit 1 and 2, p=0.03 and visit 2 and visit 3, p=0.08). BVT was 0.56±0.22 at visit 1, 0.41±0.27 at visit 2 and 0.44±0.26 at visit 3 (visit 1 and 2, p=0.01 and visit 1 and visit 3, p=0.04). VDI was 0.25±0.33 at visit 1, 0.18±0.26 at visit 2, and 0.22±0.25 at visit 3 (visit 2 and 3, p=0.006). VPI was 0.58±0.29 at visit 1, 0.44±0.26 at visit 2, and 0.61±0.31 at visit 3 (visit 1 and 2, p< 0.001, visit 2 and 3, p=0.001). See Figure 1 for an example of a patient with NPDR and OCTA changes.
Conclusions :
Quantitative OCTA features including VAD, VSD, VPI, and BVT changed significantly between visits and can detect early changes in NPDR.
This is a 2021 ARVO Annual Meeting abstract.