Abstract
Purpose :
Choroidal vascularity index (CVI) is the proportion of luminal area to total choroidal area, and has been shown to be a sensitive parameter for detecting choroidal vascular changes in a range of ocular and systemic diseases. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the longitudinal changes in CVI in active and inactive patients with intermediate uveitis (IU).
Methods :
Enhanced-depth optical coherence tomography (EDI-OCT) images of IU patients were retrospectively reviewed. The subfoveal choroidal area within the central 1500 µm of the macula was segmented into luminal area and stromal area using an image binarization tool (ImageJ software; Bethesda, MD USA). Choroidal parameters including subfoveal choroidal thickness (SCT), total choroidal area (TCA), luminal area (LA), stromal area (SA) and CVI were compared between baseline and follow-up visits among patients with active and inactive IU.
Results :
Twenty patients with active IU (36 eyes; mean age 32.75 ± 17.00) and twelve patients with inactive IU (21 eyes; mean age 34.3 ± 22) were included. At baseline, no difference of CVI, LA, SA, TCA, and SCT was noted between two groups. After follow-up, CVI and LA in active IU eyes significantly increased from 66.80 ± 3.36% to 68.36 ± 4.32% (P = 0.02), and 0.93 ± 0.21 to 0.99 ± 0.21 mm2 (P =0.001) while SCT did not significantly change (325.50 ± 68.07 to 331.03 ± 63.05 μm, P=0.335). In patients with inactive IU, CVI did not significantly change after follow-up (66.49 ± 4.03% to 66.78 ± 3.90%, P=0.690).
Conclusions :
Our results show that in eyes with active intermediate uveitis, the CVI increased significantly on follow up following resolution of inflammation, which may be the result of increased vascularization of the choroid after treatment. Further studies are needed to evaluate the role of CVI as a biomarker for monitoring treatment response in uveitis patients.
This is a 2021 ARVO Annual Meeting abstract.