Choroidal Alterations in Diabetic Macular Edema Treated with Intravitreal Dexamethasone: What Can Choroidal Vascularity Index Tell Us?

Abstract

Diabetes mellitus (DM) significantly impacts ocular health, particularly the retina and choroid, leading to diabetic retinopathy (DR) and diabetic macular edema (DME). This study aimed to evaluate the effects of intravitreal dexamethasone (IVD) on the choroidal vascularity index (CVI) in order to evaluate its potential as a biomarker. This was a retrospective observational study in which 37 eyes with DME treated with IVD were included. Baseline and follow-up (2 and 4 months post-injection) comprehensive ophthalmological examinations and spectral domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) were performed. The CVI, luminal area (LA), stromal area (SA), and total area (TA) were assessed. No statistically significant changes in CVI, LA, SA, and TA were observed in the overall patient sample from baseline to 2 and 4 months post-IVD injection. However, a significant CVI reduction was noted in responder patients at 4 months. Positive correlations were found between the CVI and central macular thickness (CMT) at 2 months, suggesting that higher CMT values are associated with higher CVI values. This study indicated that IVD influences choroidal circulation, as evidenced by CVI reduction in responder patients. The CVI could potentially serve as an objective biomarker for treatment response in DME. Larger, prospective studies are warranted to clarify these findings further.

Keywords

• diabetic macular edema
• optical coherence tomography
• choroid
• choroidal vascularity index
• dexamethasone
• retinal imaging