Quantitative deep vascular complex analysis of different AMD stages on optical coherence tomography angiography

To investigate alterations in deep retinal vascular complex (DVC) in patients with non-neovascular intermediate AMD (iAMD), treatment-naïve quiescent macular neovascularization (qMNV), exudative AMD (eAMD) by means of OCT angiography (OCTA).

Patients with iAMD, qMNV, eAMD and healthy controls presenting in the Department of Ophthalmology of the Centre Hospitalier Intercommunal de Créteil between January 2016 and January 2018, were retrospectively included. 3 × 3-mm OCTA (AngioVue RTVue XR Avanti) perfusion density (PD) of DVC was computed in all groups at baseline and follow up (12.0 ± 1.1 months).

A total of 46 eyes of 45 patients were enrolled: 11/46 iAMD, 10/46 qMNV, 13/46 eAMD, 12/46 control eyes. PD showed a significant decrease during follow-up in qMNV (p = 0.0059) and iAMD (p = 0.0076) eyes. PD in eAMD and healthy controls didn't show significant changes.

PD decreases at the level of DVC in eyes with qMNV and iAMD, while in eAMD eyes, PD is stable throughout follow up, suggesting that repeated anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) injections do not impact on the DVC PD.