Correlation between peripapillary retinal thickness and serum level of vascular endothelial growth factor in patients with POEMS syndrome

Abstract

PurposeTo determine whether there is a significant correlation between the peripapillary retinal thickness (pRT) and the serum level of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in patients with polyneuropathy, organomegaly, endocrinopathy, monoclonal gammopathy, and skin changes (POEMS) syndrome.MethodsThis was a cross sectional, observational case series. We studied 34 eyes of 17 treatment‐naïve patients with POEMS syndrome whose intracranial pressure (ICP) was within the normal range. The spectral‐domain optical coherence tomographic (SD‐OCT) examinations consisted of circle scans around the optic disc (3.45 mm in diameter). The pRT was automatically measured in the SD‐OCT images, and the average pRT was used for the statistical analysis. The serum level of VEGF was measured by Enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs), and the correlation between the pRT and the serum level of VEGF was determined.ResultsThe mean serum level of VEGF in all POEMS patients was 6085 ± 3332 pg/ml with a range of 1380 to 12000 pg/ml. The correlation between the pRT and the serum level of VEGF was significant (right eye, r = 0.85, P < 0.0001; left eye, r = 0.65, P = 0.004, Spearman's rank‐correlation coefficient), and there was a strong positive correlation between the pRT of the right eyes and left eyes (r = 0.83, P < 0.0001, Spearman's rank‐correlation coefficient).ConclusionsThe significant correlation between the pRT and the serum level of VEGF suggests that the higher serum level of VEGF might be associated with the development of the optic disc edema in patients with POEMS syndrome.