Predictive value of color Doppler imaging of central retinal artery in outcome of corneal graft

Abstract

AbstractPurpose To assess the value of color Doppler imaging (CDI) of the Central Retinal Artery (CRA) in predicting visual acuity post corneal graft procedures.Methods Forty‐seven eyes of 47 patients with severe corneal disease that require corneal graft were included in a retrospective cohort study. At baseline, CDI were performed for all eyes and hemodynamic parameters of the CRA were measured: Resistive Index (RI) and peak systolic velocity (PSV). All eyes underwent B mode Echography: Analysis of vitreo‐ retinal morphology, macula, and papilla. Inclusion criteria were the following: Corneal graft for any etiology, Best Corrected visual acuity (BCVA) less than 0.8 Log MAR, and no correct visualization of the fundus at preoperative clinical examination.Results 2 DALK (Depth Anterior Lamellar Keratoplasty), 2 DSEAK (Descemet stripping automated endothelial keratoplasty) and 43 PK (Penetrating Keratoplasty) were performed. After 12 mouths of follow‐up: 41.5% of eyes (Group A) had visual acuity improvement (BCVA equal or superior to 2 lines Log MAR scale compared to baseline) and 58.5 % of eyes (Group B)had no improvement. The mean (SD) PSV was 15.00 ± 8.72 in group A and 11.04 ± 5.39 in the group B with significative difference (p=0.032). The mean (SD) RI was 0.68 ± 0.11 in group A and 0.67 ± 0.06 in the group B with no significative statistical difference (p=0.864). However a Pearson correlation test showed a significative negative correlation between RI and BCVA (p=0.046).Conclusion In eyes with opaque cornea, the RI and PSV of the CRA may reliably predict prognosis in corneal graft. Discovering bad CDI parameters in advance allows avoiding post‐operative disappointments.