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Vitrectomy with ILM peeling in diabetic macular edema in one eye vs. intravitreal anti-VEGF injections in the second
Zofia Anna Nawrocka1, Zofia Nawrocka2, Jerzy Nawrocki2
1Ophthalmic Clinic "Jasne Blonia", Rojna 90, Lodz, Poland. zosia_n@yahoo.com.
Purpose:
The aim of this study was to compare the results of vitrectomy performed in patients' worse eyes with diabetic macular edema to the results of continuous anti-VEGF treatment performed in patients' fellow eyes.
Methods:
A retrospective interventional study of 14 patients with diabetic macular edema in both eyes. The better eye was always qualified for aflibercept injections (group 1), and the worse eye was scheduled for vitrectomy (group 2). The follow-up lasted 12 months. The following parameters were measured: visual acuity (V), central retinal thickness (CRT), maximum retinal thickness (MRT), central choroidal thickness (CCT), superficial fovea avascular zone (sFAZ) and deep fovea avascular zone (dFAZ), and vessel density at the level of superficial (sVD) and deep (dVD) retinal vessels.
Results:
None of the analyzed factors differed between groups with statistical significance at any timepoint. The time of recovery of vision was identical in both eyes (F = 0.91, p = 0.449). The final sFAZ was significantly smaller for group 2 (median 196 μm) than for group 1 (median 375 μm; U = 101.0; p = 0.022; r = 0.44).
Conclusion:
Both techniques resulted in similar improvements in visual acuity and decreases in CRT after 1 year. sFAZ decreased in all eyes, with a higher extent after vitrectomy.
