Faculty Bibliography

PURPOSE: To report the use of photodynamic therapy with verteporfin as a treatment for patients with focal retinal pigment epithelial leaks secondary to central serous chorioretinopathy (CSC). DESIGN: Noncomparative, nonrandomized, retrospective interventional case series. PARTICIPANTS: Nine eyes of 9 symptomatic patients with acute focal retinal pigment epithelial leaks secondary to CSC, confirmed with fluorescein angiography, evaluated at 1 of 3 referral retina practices. METHODS: Patients were treated with photodynamic therapy using verteporfin. Best-corrected visual acuity (VA) was recorded at presentation and follow-up visits. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Resolution of neurosensory detachment, status of fluorescein leakage, and VA. RESULTS: Neurosensory detachment and fluorescein leakage resolved in all patients within 1 month. Visual acuity improved from 1 to 6 lines in 7 eyes and remained unchanged in 2. At 6 months, there was a statistically significant improvement in mean VA (P = 0.012, Wilcoxon signed ranks test), and mean VA improved from 20/80 to 20/40. No patient lost vision or suffered any treatment-related complications. CONCLUSION: The treatment of acute CSC with photodynamic therapy may result in prompt resolution of neurosensory detachment and fluorescein leakage, which can be associated with rapidly improved vision. Although this case series is limited in follow-up and number of patients, the encouraging results and lack of visually significant complications suggest that further investigation is warranted

Several recent developments may provide an opportunity to improve outcome in individuals who develop neovascular age-related maculopathy (age-related macular degeneration [ARMD]). Concurrent with progress in isolating clinically relevant subtypes of neovascular ARMD, several therapies have been introduced that show promise for halting progression of this disorder. However, data from controlled clinical trials to test the relative efficacy of different management strategies across these subtypes of disease presentation remain limited. In addition, strategies to control ARMD may evolve quickly as more is learned about how specific molecular events, such as cell-mediated inflammation and angiogenesis, contribute to disease expression. A roundtable of investigators was convened to discuss and summarize recent progress in the treatment of ARMD. Case studies were then presented to provide an opportunity for experts to reveal their specific thought processes in the approach to neovascular ARMD based on their own interpretation of current clinical data and empirical experience

PURPOSE: To examine the 12-month results for a group of patients with nonsubfoveal choroidal neovascularization who were treated with combined photodynamic therapy (PDT) with verteporfin and intravitreal triamcinolone acetonide. METHODS: Patients with nonsubfoveal choroidal neovascularization, which was defined as either juxtafoveal or extrafoveal neovascularization, were treated with PDT immediately followed by an intravitreal injection of 4 mg of triamcinolone acetonide. Need for retreatment was based on fluorescein angiographic evidence of leakage at 3-month follow-up intervals. The main outcome measures were visual acuity and the proportion of patients developing subfoveal extension. RESULTS: Of the 15 patients, 9 were women and 6 were men (mean age +/- SD, 80 +/- 7.5 years). The mean baseline visual acuity was almost 20/60 (mean logMAR = 0.46), and 14 of the 15 eyes had juxtafoveal choroidal neovascularization. At 3, 6, and 9 months, the patients had significant improvement in the mean visual acuity (P = 0.002, 0.001, and 0.007, respectively), but at the end of the 12-month follow-up period, the mean visual acuity was slightly worse than 20/40 (mean logMAR = 0.34), which was not statistically significant at an alpha level adjusted for multiple comparisons of .013 (P = .057) as compared with the baseline visual acuity. One patient had subfoveal extension of choroidal neovascularization. The mean number of treatments was 1.9. Three patients (20%) developed an intraocular pressure of >24 mmHg during follow-up, a threshold used to institute pressure reduction therapy. No patient developed endophthalmitis. CONCLUSION: The number of patients in this pilot study was limited; however, the visual acuity response and the low incidence of subfoveal extension suggest that PDT combined with intravitreal triamcinolone for the treatment of nonsubfoveal choroidal neovascularization merits further investigation as a first-line treatment

PURPOSE: To investigate retinal morphology by means of fluorescein angiography (FA) and optical coherence tomography (OCT) in patients who had undergone photodynamic therapy (PDT) with verteporfin at their 3-month-interval examination. METHODS: Sixty patients with predominantly classic choroidal neovascularization (CNV) secondary to age-related macular degeneration were evaluated with FA and OCT 3 months after their last PDT. FA images were evaluated in a masked fashion for staining of and leakage from the lesion and also for cystoid loculation of fluorescein in the macula. OCT was used to evaluate foveal thickness and the presence of subretinal fluid or cystoid spaces within the retina, also in a masked fashion. RESULTS: The median age of the 60 patients was 78 years, and the median visual acuity of the eyes examined was 20/100. The median number of previous PDT sessions was 2. Fluorescein staining was seen in 57 eyes (95%), and fluorescein leakage was seen in 50 eyes (83%). Cystoid loculation of fluorescein was seen in 21 eyes (35%). By OCT, cystoid spaces in the macula were seen in 42 patients (70%), and subretinal fluid was seen in 15 patients (25%). Leakage seen shown by FA was correlated with the OCT finding of cystoid spaces but not with the OCT finding of subretinal fluid. Some patients had leakage during FA that did not have any observable induced OCT abnormality attributable to fluid accumulation. CONCLUSIONS: After PDT leakage from CNV seen during FA is associated with intraretinal fluid, often seen in loculated cystoid spaces, but not with subretinal fluid

PURPOSE: To investigate the manifestations and clinical course of Coats' disease diagnosed in adulthood and to describe the characteristics of patients who develop it. DESIGN: Retrospective observational case series. PARTICIPANTS: Thirteen eyes of 13 patients with Coats' disease diagnosed after age 35 years. METHODS: All patients examined in the authors' referral practices for Coats' disease diagnosed after the age of 35 years were identified. Patients with a history of radiation exposure, intraocular inflammation, retinal vascular occlusion, or Coats' response were excluded. A review of their historical, clinical, and fluorescein angiographic features and demographics was performed. RESULTS: There were 13 patients with a mean age at diagnosis of 50 years (range, 36-79) and a mean follow-up of 5.8 years (range, 0-17). These patients manifested many findings typical of Coats' disease, including the unilateral nature of the disease (13/13 patients), male predominance (12/13), vascular telangiectasis, lipid exudation, macular edema, and areas of capillary nonperfusion with adjacent webs of filigreelike capillaries. Disease was limited to < or =6 clock hours in 10 of 13 patients (76.9%), did not generally involve the retinal vasculature anterior to the equator, and showed limited potential to expand during the follow-up period. A localized hemorrhage was noted in 10 of 13 patients (76.9%), almost always near larger aneurysmal dilatations. Limited exudative detachment of the retina was seen in 4 eyes, 3 of which responded to localized laser photocoagulation. One patient had subretinal fluid seen on ocular coherence tomography that did not require treatment. On average, patients lost 2.1 lines of visual acuity during the follow-up period; 6 patients had a decline in vision, 2 patients had improved vision, and 3 patients had stable vision. No patient had end-stage findings of Coats' disease, such as iris neovascularization or total exudative detachment. CONCLUSIONS: Coats' disease can first be diagnosed in adulthood with retinal vascular abnormalities similar to those seen in younger patients. There are a number of important differences in disease manifestation in adults, including limited area of involvement, slower apparent progression of disease, and hemorrhage near larger vascular dilatations

PURPOSE: To evaluate the correlation between optical coherence tomographic evaluations of foveal thickness and anatomical changes within the fovea and visual acuity in patients who have unilateral resolved central serous chorioretinopathy. METHODS: A retrospective review of cases of unilateral resolved central serous chorioretinopathy imaged with high-resolution optical coherence tomography was performed. The foveal thickness of the involved eye was normalized by dividing its thickness by that of the uninvolved fellow eye. The best-corrected visual acuity of the involved eye was normalized as well. The normalized foveal thickness was compared with the normalized visual acuity. The anatomical findings of the fovea were compared with the visual acuity. RESULTS: Twenty patients were evaluated (11 men and 9 women; age range, 31-66 years [mean, 46.8 years]). The mean foveal thickness was 135.8 mum in the involved eyes and 184.4 mum in the uninvolved eyes (P < 0.001). There was a correlation between the normalized foveal thickness and the normalized visual acuity (Spearman rho, 0.67; P = 0.001). The external limiting membrane was visible in 7 (35%) of the involved eyes compared with 19 uninvolved eyes (95%) (P < 0.001). In the involved eyes, those with a visible external limiting membrane had better visual acuity than did those that did not (P = 0.001). It was possible to visualize the boundary between the photoreceptor cell bodies and the outer segments in 8 (40%) of the involved eyes and in the 17 uninvolved eyes (85%) (P < 0.001). In the involved eyes, those with a visible boundary between the photoreceptor bodies and the outer segments had a better visual acuity than did those that did not (P = 0.019). CONCLUSIONS: Patients with unilateral resolved central serous chorioretinopathy had a decrease in the central foveal thickness in the involved eyes, and there was a statistically significant correlation between the foveal thickness and the visual acuity, even in eyes with relatively good visual acuity. The inability to observe a discrete signal corresponding to the external limiting membrane layer was more common in involved eyes and was significantly associated with decreased visual acuity. This same relationship was seen with the ability to visualize the boundary between the photoreceptor bodies and the outer segments; this boundary was less commonly observed in involved eyes and was associated with decreased visual acuity. Resolved central serous chorioretinopathy causes a number of morphologic changes in the fovea that are associated with visual acuity