Abstract
Purpose :
To detect macular fluid (MF) on optical coherence tomography (OCT) of diabetic macular edema (DME) using semantic segmentation methods and examine changes in MF with the progression of diabetic retinopathy (DR).
Methods :
A retrospective observational study of 104 eyes diagnosed with treatment-naïve DME at our clinic from January 2010 to April 2023. Intraretinal fluid (IRF) and subretinal fluid (SRF) were detected using semantic segmentation methods in OCT horizontal section images at the time DME was first observed in the central fovea during the course of the study. In each stage, mild or moderate non proliferative DR (NPDR), severe NPDR, and proliferative DR (PDR), the area, mean brightness, and variance of the brightness of IRF and SRF were statistically compared.
Results :
The mean age of the patients was 64.2 ± 10.2 years, 64 male and 40 female eyes. Thirty-three, 52, and 19 eyes were in the mild or moderate NPDR, severe NPDR, and PDR groups, respectively. In each group, the area was 13864±10268, 16371±12987, and 20171±18445 for IRF, and 1647±925, 3684±1626(*), and 6861±9318 for SRF (pixels), respectively. The mean brightness was 30.7±4.7, 31.6±4.7, and 33.0±4.8 for IRF (*); and 31.9±15.9, 38.0±12.0, and 45.0±12.4 for SRF (no units), respectively. The variance of brightness was 229±94, 254±153, and 279±74(*) for IRF (*); and 409±361, 574±368, and 802±493 for SRF (no units) (ANOVA and Mann-Whiteney U test, *P<0.05). The area, mean brightness, and variance of the brightness of IRF and SRF all increased with the DR stage. Furthermore, analysis of variance showed statistical differences by each stage in the brightness of IRF and the variance of IRF brightness.
Conclusions :
These indicators, which quantify MF using semantic segmentation methods, may reflect changes in the concentration and heterogeneity of highly reflective material in the fluid with the progression of the DR stage and thus be useful as indicators of the nature of MF in DR.
This abstract was presented at the 2024 ARVO Annual Meeting, held in Seattle, WA, May 5-9, 2024.