Alterations in the Retinal Nerve Fiber Layer Thickness Color Map in Non-Glaucomatous Eyes with Myopia.

Objectives: To determine the normal values for retinal nerve fiber layer thickness (RNFLT) in myopic patients without glaucoma and analyze the changes in their color map. Materials and Methods: A total of 245 eyes without glaucoma were included in the study. According to the degree of myopia, the cases were divided into 4 groups: control group (+1.00/-1.00 D; n=70), Group 1 (-1.00/-3.00 D; n=50), Group 2 (-3.00/-6.00 D; n=75), and Group 3 (>-6.00 D; n=50). Intra-group comparisons were performed in terms of superotemporal, superonasal, nasal, inferonasal, inferotemporal, temporal, and global RNFLT (Heidelberg Spectralis, Optic Coherence Tomography, Germany) and the color coding of these quadrants (green: within normal limits, yellow: borderline, red: outside normal limits). Results: All groups were similar in age and gender (p>0.05). As the degree of myopia increased, RNFLT became thinner in the upper and lower temporal and upper and lower nasal quadrants (p<0.01). The rate of measurements considered borderline and outside normal limit in at least 1 quadrant was higher in groups with higher myopia for all quadrants (p<0.05). This rate was found to be 8/70 (11.4%) for the control group, 9/50 (18.0%) for Group 1, 21/75 (28.0%) for Group 2, and 33/50 (66.0%) for Group 3 (p<0.01). Conclusion: The high rate of RNFLT classified as borderline or outside normal limits in myopic patients is a finding to which clinicians should pay attention in order not to make a misdiagnosis, especially in cases of suspected glaucoma.

Effect of blunt ocular trauma on retinal microvasculature: An optical coherence tomography angiography study.

BACKGROUND: To evaluate the retinal vascular changes and foveal avascular zone area in patients with unilateral blunt ocular trauma using optical coherence tomography angiography. METHODS: This retrospective study consisted of 50 traumatized and 50 contralateral sound eyes of the patients with blunt ocular trauma. The foveal avascular zone area, choriocapillaris flow area, foveal, parafoveal, and perifoveal vessel densities in both superficial capillary plexus and deep capillary plexus and central macular thickness were evaluated. RESULTS: There were no significant differences between traumatized and sound eyes in the foveal avascular zone area (p:0.36), choriocapillaris flow area (p:0.43), central macular thickness (p:0.67), and in vessel densities of superficial capillary plexus over all regions (p > 0.05 for all). However, the vessel densities of deep capillary plexus were significantly lower in traumatized eyes (p < 0.05 for all). CONCLUSION: Optical coherence tomography angiography demonstrated a significant decrease in retinal deep capillary plexus vessel density of the eyes effected by blunt ocular trauma, even with no evident findings on fundus examination or structural spectral domain-optical coherence tomography changes.

A Color Perimetric Test to Evaluate Macular Pigment Density in Age-Related Macular Degeneration.

PURPOSE: To evaluate differences in measurements of macular pigment optical density (MPOD) in patients with dry age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and a group of healthy patients (control group). Short-term repeatability of MPOD measures was also assessed in the control group. METHODS: This cross-sectional study included 31 eyes from 31 patients with bilateral dry AMD, 21 eyes from 21 cases with dry AMD in the study eye and exudative AMD in the fellow eye. The control group included 17 eyes from 17 healthy patients of similar age and sex. The MPOD values were measured using a commercially available color perimetry technique (CP). Short-term repeatability of MPOD measurements by the CP technique was assessed in 20 eyes of 20 healthy subjects who were measured 3 times on 3 consecutive days. RESULTS: The mean values for MPOD were 5.59 ± 2.06 dB in cases in which both eyes had dry AMD, 5.25 ± 2.72 dB in cases in which one eye had wet AMD and the studied eye had dry AMD, and 5.97 ± 2.14 dB in the eyes of the healthy control group. The mean value was lower in cases in which the fellow eye had wet AMD; however, no significant difference in MPOD was found between the three groups (p = 0.659) or between the group with dry AMD in both eyes and the healthy control group (p = 0.977). The intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) value was 0.664 between day 1 and day 2, and 0.822 between day 2 and day 3. CONCLUSIONS: Our results do not show a direct relation between MPOD and dry AMD. Color perimetry does not provide acceptable short-term repeatability for measuring MPOD. Learning effects may contribute to the measured test-retest variability. Other studies are needed to determine if CP is suitable for repeated measurements during the long term follow-up with the same patient.

Geographic atrophy progression in eyes with age-related macular degeneration: role of fundus autofluorescence patterns, fellow eye and baseline atrophy area.

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVE: To evaluate if fundus autofluorescence (FAF) patterns around geographic atrophy (GA) and the status of the fellow eye have an impact on GA progression. METHODS: We included 54 eyes of 35 patients with GA. Areas of GA were quantified by RegionFinder software. RESULTS: GA progression rates in eyes with a diffuse trickling pattern (median 1.42 mm(2)/year) were significantly higher than in normal eyes (median 0.22 mm(2)/year) and eyes with other diffuse FAF patterns (median 0.46 mm(2)/year). Eyes with a banded pattern had a significantly higher progression rate (median 0.81 mm(2)/year) than those without any FAF abnormalities (p = 0.038). The group with baseline total atrophy of the eyes <1 disk area (DA; median 0.42 mm(2)) had an inverse relation with GA progression compared to the groups with baseline atrophy >1 DA (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Diffuse trickling and banded patterns may have an impact on GA progression and may serve as prognostic factors.

The relationship between serum levels of angiogenin, bFGF, VEGF, and ocular involvement in patients with Behçet's disease.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to investigate the possible role of angiogenin, vascular endothelial growth factor, (VEGF) and basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) in the pathogenesis of BD. DESIGN AND METHODS: Sixty-five patients with BD and 21 healthy control subjects were included in the study, and serum angiogenin, bFGF, and VEGF concentrations were measured by using in-vitro enzyme immunoassay (ELISA) kits according to the manufacturer's instructions. RESULTS: The median serum angiogenin level was significantly higher in patients with BD (391.8; range:151.6-594.8 pg/ml) than controls (298.8; range:241.9-449.6 pg/ml) (p = 0.001). The levels were similar in both ocular and non-ocular BD patients (p = 0.537). The mean serum bFGF level was higher in patients with BD (38.8 ± 12.3 pg/ml) than controls (33.2 ± 11.3 pg/ml); the median serum VEGF level was also higher in BD patients (239.7; range:53-991.3 pg/ml) than controls (189.4; range:53.6-357.9 pg/ml). But these differences were not statistically significant. Serum bFGF and VEGF levels were also not different statistically in ocular and non-ocular Behçet's patients. There was no statistically significant relationship between serum angiogenin, bFGF, and VEGF levels and the presence of active eye disease or anatomic location of uveitis. While there was a correlation of borderline significance in angiogenin levels between the patients with anterior uveitis and panuveitis (p = 0.053), we did not obtain any correlation between serum angiogenin, bFGF, and VEGF levels and the duration of BD. CONCLUSIONS: This study suggests that angiogenin may be associated with pathophysiology of BD, and highlights the need of further investigation of the role of angiogenin, bFGF, and VEGF serum levels in BD susceptibility and its clinical manifestations.