Effects of laser combined with alpha lipoic acid on hemodynamics and VEGF in the central retinal artery of diabetic retinopath

Abstract

Objective To study the effects of laser combined with alpha lipoic acid on hemodynamics and vascular endothelial growth factor(VEGF) in the central retinal artery of diabetic retinopathy. Methods From June 2014 to December 2016, 84 patients with diabetic retinopathy(109 eyes) in the General Hospital of Zoucheng Yankuang were selected as the research objects, and they were randomly divided into observation group of 42 cases(56 eyes) and control group of 42 cases(53 eyes). The two groups were treated with laser at first.The observation group was treated with alpha lipoic acid after laser treatment for 4 weeks.The central retinal artery systolic peak velocity(PSV), end diastolic flow velocity(EDV) and resistance index(RI) were evaluated by color Doppler ultrasonography before and after the treatment.The serum VEGF was measured before and after treatment. Results The PSV, EDV and RI of central retinal artery of the control group before therapy were (5.72±1.33)cm/s, (2.26±1.09)cm/s, (0.71±0.08), respectively, which after treatment were (8.15±1.72)cm/s, (3.88±1.06)cm/s, (0.65±0.05), respectively.The PSV, EDV and RI of central retinal artery of the observation group before therapy were (5.70±1.17)cm/s, (2.31±1.12)cm/s, (0.70 ±0.07), respectively, which after treatment (9.82±1.83)cm/s, (4.62±1.01)cm/s, (0.53±0.04), respectively.The blood PSV and EDV of central retinal artery of the two groups were increased significantly after treatment (t=2.368, 4.016, 2.886, 3.924, all P<0.05), which of the observation group increased more significantly compared with those of the control group after treatment(t=2.628, 2.776, all P<0.05). After the treatment, the RI of the central retinal artery flow decreased significantly(t=2.013, 4.448, all P<0.05), which of the observation group decreased significantly after treatment compared with the control group after treatment(t=3.014, P<0.05). The serum VEGF before treatment in the control group was (409.5±28.6)ng/L, which after treatment was (261.3±11.6)ng/L.The serum VEGF before treatment in the observation group was (397.5±27.1)ng/L, which after treatment was (192.5±10.1)ng/L.After treatment, the serum VEGF levels of the two groups were significantly lower(t=3.162, 5.334, all P<0.05), the serum VEGF of the observation group decreased more significantly compared with those of the control group after treatment(t=3.016, P<0.05). Conclusion Laser combined with lipoic acid can improve the central retinal artery hemodynamics and VEGF in diabetic retinopathy patients, which may be an important reason for improving the therapeutic effect. Key words: Diabetic retinopathy; Laser therapy; Hemodynamics; Vascular endothelial growth factors