Abstract
Purpose. To evaluate visual acuity (VA), contrast sensitivity (CS), and central retinal thickness (CRT) after intravitreal triamcinolone acetonide (IVT) injection for macular edema secondary to branch retinal vein occlusion (BRVO). Methods. In this prospective study, a total of 21 eyes of 21 patients were included. VA, CS, and CRT were assessed at baseline and at 1, 3, and 6 months after a single IVT injection. Results. Mean age was 64.57 ± 8.34 years. The mean baseline VA (LogMAR) increased from 1.11 ± 0.63 to 0.55 ± 0.39 (P < 0.001), 0.60 ± 0.40 (P < 0.001), and 0.78 ± 0.39 (P = 0.07) at 1, 3, and 6 months, respectively. The mean baseline CS (log CS) at 1 meter improved from 0.66 ± 0.49 to 1.11 ± 0.32 (P < 0.001), 0.99 ± 0.38 (P < 0.001), and 0.72 ± 0.37 (P = 0.8) at 1, 3, and 6 months, respectively. The mean baseline CS (log CS) at 3 meters improved from 0.34 ± 0.41 to 0.74 ± 0.41 (P < 0.001), 0.64 ± 0.44 (P = 0.036), and 0.46 ± 0.49 (P = 0.8) at 1, 3, and 6 months, respectively. The mean baseline CRT decreased from 511 ± 146 μm to 242 ± 119 μm, 277 ± 131 μm, and 402 ± 166 μm at 1, 3, and 6 months after IVT (P < 0.001 for each). Conclusion. Single IVT injection improved VA and CS and reduced CRT at 1 and 3 months of treatment. VA and CS returned to baseline levels at 6 months.
Highlights
Macular edema (ME) is the most frequent complication of branch retinal vein occlusion (BRVO) [1]
The mean visual acuity (VA) was 0.78 ± 0.39 logarithm of the minimum angle of resolution (Log MAR) at 6 months, and the change was not statistically significant compared to baseline (P = 0.07)
Intravitreal corticosteroids have been used for the treatment of ME in a great number of studies because of their ability to inhibit the arachidonic acid pathway and downregulate the production of vascular endothelial growth factor [3,4,5]
Summary
Macular edema (ME) is the most frequent complication of branch retinal vein occlusion (BRVO) [1]. Since the Branch Vein Occlusion Study Group reported efficacy of grid laser photocoagulation, it has been accepted as the standard treatment for ME secondary to BRVO [2]. An increasing number of reports have revealed the efficacy of new treatment options for ME secondary to BRVO, such as intravitreal injection of triamcinolone acetonide (IVT), bevacizumab, ranibizumab, or aflibercept [3,4,5,6,7]. Most of the previous studies evaluating the outcomes of intravitreal agents in eyes with ME secondary to BRVO assessed visual function with VA measurement [3,4,5,6]. VA is one of the components of functional vision and measures standard high contrast visual acuity which is not a true reflection of visual performance [8]. CS function may give an additional information on visual performance for evaluating functional results of such treatments
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