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Purpose: Dexamethasone implant (DEX-implant) is one treatment choice in diabetic macular edema. However, steroid-induced cataract is a common complication when treating a chronic disease and could lead to vision loss. Because of the lack of studies specifically focused on the functional outcomes according to the lens status, the authors therefore aim to analyze the effectiveness and safety of DEX-implant treatment for diabetic macular edema in phakic versus pseudophakic eyes., Methods: This multicenter, retrospective study conducted in France included eyes of consecutive patients who had received a DEX-implant for diabetic macular edema., Results: A total of 328 eyes were included: 158 eyes (48.2%) were phakic, 167 eyes (50.9%) were pseudophakic and three were unknown. According to the lens status, mean change in best-corrected visual acuity from baseline was never significantly different between phakic and pseudophakic eyes (likelihood ratio test, P = 0.09) nor in the change in central macular thickness (likelihood ratio test, P = 0.79) in multivariate analysis. Cataract surgery was performed in 63 phakic eyes (39.9%) during the study period with a mean delay of 8.1 months (CI95% [6.59-9.69]). The mean change in best-corrected visual acuity between phakic eyes who underwent cataract surgery and those who did not, was not significantly different during the follow-up at each visit. The risk of ocular hypertension was not statistically different between phakic and pseudophakic subsets ( P = 0.9)., Conclusion: The authors showed here that phakic eyes treated with DEX-implant for diabetic macular edema did not have a significant difference in visual gain in comparison to pseudophakic eyes, with a comparable safety profile., Competing Interests: T. Mathis is consultant for Abbvie, Bayer, GSK and Novartis. F. Devin is consultant for Abbvie, Bayer, Alimera-Horus, Roche and Novartis. L. Kodjikian is consultant for Abbvie, Bayer, Alimera-Horus, Roche, Thea and Novartis. C. Ricard, A. Rezkallah and A. Abukhashabah declare no conflict of interest.

This study aimed to determine the validity of basing retreatment decisions on anatomical criteria alone (captured using optical coherence tomography (OCT)-OCT-guided strategy) rather than the gold standard (combined visual acuity (VA) and OCT) in patients with diabetic macular edema (DME). This cross-sectional study included 81 eyes undergoing treatment for DME from September 2021 to December 2021. An initial therapeutic treatment decision based on OCT results was made on inclusion. Subsequently, in light of the patient's VA score, this initial decision was upheld or adjusted, and the sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), and negative predictive value (NPV) were calculated. In 67 out of the 81 eyes included in the study (82.7%), the OCT-guided strategy produced equivalent results to the gold standard. In this study, the OCT-guided retreatment decision strategy yielded sensitivity and specificity of 92.3% and 73.8%, respectively, and PPV and NPV of 76.6% and 91.2%, respectively. These findings differed according to the patient's treatment regimen: the sensitivity and specificity for eyes under a treat and extend regimen was higher, 100% and 88.9%, respectively, than eyes under a Pro Re Nata regimen, 90% and 69.7%, respectively. These findings show that VA testing could be omitted from the follow-up of certain patients with DME treated with intravitreal injections without impacting the quality of care.

Diabetic macular edema (DME) is the main cause of visual impairment in diabetic patients and a chronic disease requiring long-term treatments. The fluocinolone acetonide (FAc) implant has recently been approved to treat DME in patients considered insufficiently responsive to available therapies. This study evaluates the functional and anatomical efficacy of the FAc implant in real-life practice. A total of 62 eyes with chronic DME were included and followed for a mean of 13.9 (+7.5) months. Previous treatment included at least anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in 83.9% of eyes, dexamethasone implant (DEX-I) in 100% of eyes, vitrectomy in 29.0% of eyes, and laser photocoagulation (either panretinal or focal photocoagulation) in 75.8% of eyes. The mean baseline best corrected visual acuity (BCVA) was 64.0 (+/−17.2) letters (median: 67.5 letters) with a mean DME duration of 60.3 (+/−30.6) months. The maximum BCVA gain occurred at 21 months with a mean gain of 5.0 (+/−12.7) letters. A total of 50.0% of eyes gained ≥5 letters during follow-up. Patients with lower BCVA at baseline had the lowest final BCVA (p < 0.001) but the highest BCVA gain (p = 0.02). The best overall improvement in mean central macular thickness (CMT) occurred at 18 months (p < 0.0001). The improvement in BCVA was inversely associated with the decrease in CMT and showed a decrease when CMT increased (DME recurrence). According to the history of vitrectomy, we did not find any significant difference in mean final BCVA (p = 0.1) and mean BCVA gain (p = 0.2) between eyes previously vitrectomized or not. A total of 23 eyes (37.1%) required additional treatment for DME, and 17.7% required an IOP-lowering procedure during follow-up. In conclusion, this real-life observational study demonstrated the efficacy and safety of the FAc implant in patients with chronic DME already treated with other available therapies.

Purpose: To evaluate quantitative alterations of the choriocapillaris in swept-source optical coherence tomography angiography in diabetic patients., Methods: We included normal patients and diabetic patients with and without diabetic retinopathy (DR), excluding patients with macular edema. Angiograms in 3 × 3 mm were acquired with Plexelite 9000 swept-source optical coherence tomography angiography. Choroidal flow voids were analyzed after removal of projection artifacts. The main evaluation was the correlation between choroidal flow voids area (FVA-CC) and DR stage., Results: A total of 120 eyes of 72 patients were analyzed. There were 17 eyes from healthy subjects, 30 eyes without DR, 22 eyes with minimal nonproliferative DR, 30 eyes with moderate nonproliferative DR, 16 eyes with severe nonproliferative DR, and 5 eyes with proliferative DR (PDR). The percentage of FVA-CC for each group was, respectively, 10.9 ± 3.4%, 14.6 ± 4.8%, 17.6 ± 3.5%, 20.7 ± 5.9%, 19.9 ± 2.9%, and 26.6 ± 4.4%. FVA-CC and DR stage significantly correlated (P < 0.0001). FVA-CC was significantly increased in diabetic patients without DR compared with healthy subjects (P = 0.008)., Conclusion: Diabetes is associated with quantifiable choriocapillaris alterations in swept-source optical coherence tomography angiography. These alterations precede clinical signs of DR and are correlated with DR stage.

Introduction: Early diagnosis of diabetic retinopathy is a public health issue. Fundus retinophotography (FRP) is widely used for the detection of the disease. Recently, ultra-wide field retinophotography (WFRP) device allows imaging of approximately 80% of the retinal surface in a single image. The goal of the present study was to evaluate the efficacy of WFRP in the diagnosis and gradation of diabetic retinopathy compared to the gold standard of FRP., Methods: The non-mydriatic Optos P200Tx was used for WFRP imaging. FRP in the 9 positions of gaze was then acquired with the Topcon TRC-NW6S after pupillary dilation. The processing time for each imaging modality was recorded., Results: One hundred and sixteen eyes of 58 patients were included in this study. Fourteen eyes were excluded from the analysis due to insufficient imaging quality. WFRP sensitivity was 96% and specificity was 92%. Only 6 eyes received a higher severity grade of diabetic retinopathy by WFRP compared to FRP. In these cases, when the WFRP was analyzed in the same field as the FRP, the severity grade was similar for 5 of the 6 eyes. The mean time of acquisition was significantly lower for WFRP compared to FRP., Conclusion: WFRP is fast and effective in screening for diabetic retinopathy. The severity grade of the disease was similar to the gold standard of FRP in most cases. WFRP could thus be used in mass screening for diabetic retinopathy., (Copyright © 2019 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

Purpose: To assess the time to functional and anatomic recurrence of macular edema (ME) after a first intravitreal dexamethasone implant in eyes with diabetic macular edema (DME)., Design: A 6-month observational, prospective, uncontrolled, multicenter, national case series., Participants: Thirty-seven patients included between January 2015 and June 2016., Methods: Patients were monitored at baseline and then monthly over 6 months after the first treatment., Main Outcome Measures: Different patterns of recurrence were defined: qualitative and quantitative anatomic recurrences and functional recurrence., Results: Median ME duration before the first dexamethasone implant was 2.04 months. All patients received a dexamethasone implant for the first time, but 73% of patients had not undergone any form of treatment previously. The mean time from baseline to qualitative anatomic, quantitative anatomic, and functional recurrence was 4.22 months (95% confidence interval [CI], 3.80-4.65 months), 4.73 months (95% CI, 4.34-5.12 months), and 4.89 months (95% CI, 4.53-5.26 months), respectively. Almost all patients (7/8) who demonstrated a qualitative anatomic recurrence showed a subsequent quantitative anatomic and functional recurrence days later. Mean improvement in best-corrected visual acuity was 10.1 letters (95% CI, 6.7-13.4 letters) and 7.3 letters (95% CI, 4.1-10.6 letters) at months 2 and 6, respectively. The mean reduction in central subfield macular thickness was 206 μm (95% CI, 157-255 μm) and 146 μm (95% CI, 98-195 μm) at months 2 and 6, respectively., Conclusions: Dexamethasone implant is a functionally and anatomically effective treatment for DME in real-life practice. Qualitative anatomic recurrence seems to be an early sign of quantitative anatomic and functional recurrence. Further studies should demonstrate if early retreatment at the qualitative anatomic recurrence stage could better protect patient visual function., (Copyright © 2017 American Academy of Ophthalmology. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Objective: The objective of this article is to evaluate in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients the prevalence of persistent complaints of visual disturbances and the mechanisms and resulting functional disability of persistent visual complaints (PVCs)., Methods: Firstly, the prevalence of PVCs was calculated in 303 MS patients. MS-related data of patients with or without PVCs were compared. Secondly, 70 patients with PVCs performed an extensive neuro-ophthalmologic assessment and a vision-related quality of life questionnaire, the National Eye Institute Visual Functionary Questionnaire (NEI-VFQ-25)., Results: PVCs were reported in 105 MS patients (34.6%). Patients with PVCs had more frequently primary progressive MS (30.5% vs 13.6%) and more neuro-ophthalmologic relapses (1.97 vs 1.36) than patients without PVCs. In the mechanisms/disability study, an afferent visual and an ocular-motor pathways dysfunction were respectively diagnosed in 41 and 59 patients, mostly related to bilateral optic neuropathy and bilateral internuclear ophthalmoplegia. The NEI-VFQ 25 score was poor and significantly correlated with the number of impaired neuro-ophthalmologic tests., Conclusion: Our study emphasizes the high prevalence of PVC in MS patients. Regarding the nature of neuro-ophthalmologic deficit, our results suggest that persistent optic neuropathy, as part of the progressive evolution of the disease, is not rare. We also demonstrate that isolated ocular motor dysfunctions induce visual disability in daily life.