MACULAR CAPILLARY DROPOUT IN FAMILIAL EXUDATIVE VITREORETINOPATHY AND ITS RELATIONSHIP WITH VISUAL ACUITY AND DISEASE...

Area of Science:

• Ophthalmology
• Retinal Vascular Diseases
• Optical Coherence Tomography Angiography

Background:

• Familial exudative vitreoretinopathy (FEVR) is a genetic disorder affecting retinal development.
• Understanding macular microvascular alterations in FEVR is crucial for assessing disease progression and visual outcomes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To quantitatively assess macular microvascular changes in FEVR patients.
• To investigate the association between vascular density and FEVR severity and visual acuity.

Main Methods:

• A case-control study involving 62 FEVR patients and 21 healthy controls.
• Parafoveal vascular density (VD) measured using optical coherence tomography angiography.
• Analysis included visual acuity, intraocular pressure, and axial length.

Main Results:

• FEVR eyes exhibited significantly lower parafoveal VD compared to controls.
• Parafoveal VD decreased with increasing FEVR severity and was independently correlated with disease stage.
• Reduced VD in both superficial and deep capillary plexuses was associated with visual acuity loss in FEVR.

Conclusions:

• Parafoveal microvascular defects are present in FEVR.
• VD loss, particularly in the superficial capillary plexus, correlates with FEVR severity.
• Reduced VD in superficial and deep capillary plexuses is linked to visual impairment in FEVR.