Intraretinal Exudates in Coats' Disease as Demonstrated by Spectral-Domain OCT

Purpose: To describe the spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) findings in a case of Coats’ disease, with emphasis on the intraretinal exudates. Methods: Case report of a 4.5-year-old girl who presented with total exudative retinal detachment and organized exudates in a stellate configuration. SD-OCT was performed before and after treatment, which included surgical drainage of subretinal fluid and indirect laser application during the surgery. Results: At presentation, the SD-OCT showed an elevation of the foveal contour, with thickening of the retina, many exudates and a large quantity of subretinal fluid. Two months after the surgical treatment, SD-OCT revealed a significant reduction in the amount of subretinal fluids, but with persistence of the exudates. Conclusion: SD-OCT can be used as an important tool in order to describe the changes in each layer of the retina in Coats’ disease. Considering the histopathological findings in Coats’ disease, it is reasonable to assume that the exudates accumulate in the outer plexiform layer

Optical Coherence Tomography: An Adjunctive Tool for Differentiating between Choroidal Melanoma and Metastasis

Purpose. To investigate the value of optical coherence tomography (OCT) for differentiation between choroidal melanoma and metastasis based on characteristics of the anterior choroidal surface and the chorioretinal interface. Methods. This retrospective observational case series included 29 patients with untreated choroidal melanomas and 21 patients with untreated choroidal metastases. Regularity and lobularity characteristics of the anterior choroidal surface were evaluated in a masked manner. Retinal and retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) findings were documented as well. Results. OCT demonstrated a regular and smooth anterior choroidal surface in 89.7% of the eyes with melanoma and in 47.6% of the eyes with metastasis (p=0.002; sensitivity = 89.7%; specificity = 52.4%). The anterior choroidal contour was lobulated in 81.0% of the eyes with metastasis versus 17.2% of the eyes with melanoma (p<0.001; sensitivity = 82.8%; specificity = 81.0%). RPE thickness and neuroretinal characteristics (e.g., retinal thickness, the presence of cysts, and the presence of subretinal fluid) were similar in both choroidal tumors. Conclusion. OCT may serve as a noninvasive adjunctive tool for the differential diagnosis of choroidal tumors. Choroidal melanomas usually demonstrate regular surfaces on OCT, while choroidal metastases usually have an irregular and lobulated surface

External Dacryocystorhinostomy: Characteristics and Surgical Outcomes in Patients with and without Previous Dacryocystitis

Objective. To compare pre- and postoperative characteristics and surgical success rates of patients with and without previous episodes of dacryocystitis, who underwent external dacryocystorhinostomy (DCR) for nasolacrimal duct obstruction (NLDO). Methods. The medical files of all patients who underwent external DCR between 2006 and 2011 in our institution were reviewed. The retrieved data of patients with and without previous episodes of dacryocystitis were compared. Surgical success was determined by postoperative followup of at least 6 months. Results. A total of 185 patients with NLDO underwent external DCR of whom 152 (100 females and 52 males, mean age 67 ± 15 years) met the inclusion criteria. Sixty had previous episodes of dacryocystitis and 92 did not. Left-side obstruction was more common than right-side obstruction among patients with previous episodes of dacryocystitis (48.3% versus 31.7%, resp., P=0.031). Glaucoma patients were significantly more likely to develop dacryocystitis than patients without glaucoma (P=0.002). The success rate of external DCR was 94.4% for patients with previous episodes of dacryocystitis and 86.7% for patients without (P=0.337). Conclusions. The surgical outcomes of external DCR in patients with or without a previous episode of dacryocystitis were similar. Patients with glaucoma and NLDO had a significantly higher risk of developing dacryocystitis

Effect of Hemodialysis on Retinal Thickness in Patients with Diabetic Retinopathy, with and without Macular Edema, Using Optical Coherence Tomography

Background. Effects of hemodialysis (HD) treatment on retinal thickness and macular edema are unclear. Objective. To evaluate changes in retinal thickness using optical coherence tomography (OCT) in end stage renal disease (ESRD) patients with diabetic retinopathy (DR), with and without diabetic macular edema (DME), undergoing HD. Methods. Nonrandomized prospective study. Forty eyes of DR patients with ESRD treated with HD were divided into two groups: patients with macular edema and patients without macular edema. Both eyes were analyzed. Patients underwent an ophthalmic examination including OCT measurements of retinal thickness, blood albumin and hemoglobin A1C levels, blood pressure, and body weight, 30 minutes before and after HD. Results. We found no significant effects of HD on retinal thickness among patients both with and without DME. The former showed a trend towards reduction in retinal thickness in foveal area following HD, while the latter showed an increase. There was no correlation between retinal thickness and mean blood pressure, weight, kinetic model value—Kt/V, glycemic hemoglobin, or albumin levels before and after HD. Conclusions. HD has no significant effect on retinal thickness among patients with or without DME. Further studies on larger cohorts and repeated OCT examinations are needed to confirm the preliminary findings in this study

The role of posterior vitreous detachment on the efficacy of anti-vascular endothelial growth factor intravitreal injection for treatment of neovascular age-related macular degeneration

Purpose: A prospective cohort study investigating the effect of posterior vitreous detachment (PVD) on the efficacy of intravitreal bevacizumab for exudative age-related macular degeneration (AMD), in view of evidence that the vitreoretinal interface impacts the severity of the disease. Methods: Treatment-naïve AMD eyes with (+) complete PVD and without (−) PVD on ultrasonography received three monthly and then pro re nata bevacizumab injections. Best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) on Snellen charts and optical coherence tomography (OCT) findings were recorded for 12 months. Secondary analysis included PVD definition and group allocation according to OCT baseline scan. Results: Forty-one eyes of 34 patients met the inclusion criteria. At 12 months, median BCVA improved by 0.12 logMAR in the PVD+ group [interquartile range (IQR) −0.52, 0.03, P = 0.140] and remained the same in the PVD− group (IQR −0.12, 0.15, P = 0.643). Median central retinal thickness improved by 43.5 μm and 43 μm in the PVD+ (IQR −143, 3, P = 0.016) and PVD− group (IQR −90, −14, P = 0.008), respectively. All parameters were similar in the two groups at final follow up (P > 0.05). The secondary analysis included 32 eyes of 26 patients and showed no significant differences between the groups at the 12 months endpoint (P > 0.05). Conclusion: Our findings show no significant impact of PVD as assessed by ultrasound or by OCT on visual and anatomical outcomes in exudative AMD treated with bevacizumab

Adipose-Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells Migrate and Rescue RPE in the Setting of Oxidative Stress

Oxidative stress leads to the degeneration of retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) and photoreceptor cells. We evaluated the potential of adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells (ASCs) as a therapeutic tool by studying the migration capacity of ASCs in vitro and their protective effect against RPE cell death under oxidative stress in vitro and in vivo. ASCs exhibited enhanced migration when exposed to conditioned medium of oxidative stressed RPE cells obtained by hydrogen peroxide. Migration-related axis SDF-1/CXCR4 was studied, and upregulation of SDF-1 in stressed RPE and of CXCR4 in ASCs was detected. Moreover, ASCs’ conditioned medium prevented H2O2-induced cell death of RPE cells. Early passage ASCs had high expression level of HGF, low VEGF levels, and unmodulated IL-1β levels, compared to late passage ASCs. Thus, early passage ASCs show the potential to migrate towards damaged RPE cells and protect them in a paracrine manner from cell death induced by oxidative stress. In vivo, mice received systemic injection of NaIO3, and 72 h later, ASCs were transplanted in the subretinal space. Seven days after ASC transplantation, the eyes were enucleated fixed and frozen for immunohistochemical analysis. Under such conditions, ASC-treated mice showed preservation of nuclear layers in the outer nuclear layer and stronger staining of RPE and photoreceptor layer, compared to PBS-treated mice. Taken together, our results indicate that ASCs are able to home in on damaged RPE cells and protect against damage to the RPE and PR layers caused by oxidative stress. These data imply the potential that ASCs have in regenerating RPE under oxidative stress, providing the basis for a therapeutic approach to retinal degeneration diseases related to oxidative stress that could help save the eyesight of millions of people worldwide

Adipose-Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells Migrate and Rescue RPE in the Setting of Oxidative Stress

Oxidative stress leads to the degeneration of retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) and photoreceptor cells. We evaluated the potential of adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells (ASCs) as a therapeutic tool by studying the migration capacity of ASCs in vitro and their protective effect against RPE cell death under oxidative stress in vitro and in vivo. ASCs exhibited enhanced migration when exposed to conditioned medium of oxidative stressed RPE cells obtained by hydrogen peroxide. Migration-related axis SDF-1/CXCR4 was studied, and upregulation of SDF-1 in stressed RPE and of CXCR4 in ASCs was detected. Moreover, ASCs’ conditioned medium prevented H2O2-induced cell death of RPE cells. Early passage ASCs had high expression level of HGF, low VEGF levels, and unmodulated IL-1β levels, compared to late passage ASCs. Thus, early passage ASCs show the potential to migrate towards damaged RPE cells and protect them in a paracrine manner from cell death induced by oxidative stress. In vivo, mice received systemic injection of NaIO3, and 72 h later, ASCs were transplanted in the subretinal space. Seven days after ASC transplantation, the eyes were enucleated fixed and frozen for immunohistochemical analysis. Under such conditions, ASC-treated mice showed preservation of nuclear layers in the outer nuclear layer and stronger staining of RPE and photoreceptor layer, compared to PBS-treated mice. Taken together, our results indicate that ASCs are able to home in on damaged RPE cells and protect against damage to the RPE and PR layers caused by oxidative stress. These data imply the potential that ASCs have in regenerating RPE under oxidative stress, providing the basis for a therapeutic approach to retinal degeneration diseases related to oxidative stress that could help save the eyesight of millions of people worldwide