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Purpose. To ascertain wet AMD (wAMD) management patterns in Spain. Methods. A two-round Delphi study conducted through a questionnaire-based survey designed from literature review and validated by an independent Steering Committee. Results. Forty-nine retina specialists experienced in wAMD participated by answering the two-round study questionnaire. Retina specialists are the main responsible for wAMD diagnosis and monitoring, including visits and associated procedures, with a median time per visit of 15 minutes. Standard treatment strategies are based on anti-VEGF administration, including standard loading dose administration followed by maintenance with aflibercept or ranibizumab (81% of patients). Although treat and extend (T&E) dosing strategy is considered as optimal for wAMD management (78% of the panelists), the main routine healthcare limitations (i.e., visits overload, reduced staff, short visit time, coordination issues, lack of facilities) conduct to self-defined “flexible” strategies, based on T&E and pro-re-nata (PRN) protocols. Conclusion. Proactive treatment patterns (T&E) are the preferred ones by the retina specialists in Spain. However, their proper implementation is difficult due to healthcare resource limitations, as well as organisation and logistic issues. The use of anti-VEGF agents with longer duration of action could facilitate the use of strict T&E approaches according to routine clinical practices.

The retina is an organ frequently affected by ischemic changes. Retinal arterial occlusion can be considered the equivalent of stroke, in terms of presentation, management and treatment. In addition to a specific ophthalmological treatment systemic management is essential with an appropriate study and control of cardiovascular risk factors considering these patients of a very high cardiovascular risk. In this consensus document we aim to provide an update on this relatively frequent pathology in our practices, considering the importance of an early and systematic action., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier España, S.L.U. and Sociedad Española de Medicina Interna (SEMI). All rights reserved.)

The main objective of this study was to determine plasma levels of PS and to study SNVs rs41360247, rs4245791, rs4148217, and rs11887534 of ABCG8 and the r657152 SNV at the ABO blood group locus in a sample of a population treated at our hospital, and to determine whether these SNVs are related to plasma PS concentrations. The secondary objective was to establish the variables associated with plasma PS concentrations in adults. Participants completed a dietary habit questionnaire and a blood sample was collected to obtain the following variables: campesterol, sitosterol, sitostanol, lanosterol, stigmasterol, biochemical parameters, and the SNVs. In addition, biometric and demographic variables were also recorded. In the generalized linear model, cholesterol and age were positively associated with total PS levels, while BMI was negatively related. For rs4245791, homozygous T allele individuals showed a significantly lower campesterol concentration compared with C homozygotes, and the GG alleles of rs657152 had the lowest levels of campesterol compared with the other alleles of the SNV. Conclusions: The screening of certain SNVs could help prevent the increase in plasma PS and maybe PNALD in some patients. However, further studies on the determinants of plasma phytosterol concentrations are needed.

Introduction: AZURE was a 76-week, randomized, open-label, parallel-group, phase IIIb noninferiority study comparing the efficacy and safety of intravitreal aflibercept (IVT-AFL) in a treat-and-extend (T&E) regimen with fixed dosing in patients with neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD) previously receiving IVT-AFL for ≥ 1 year., Methods: Patients were aged ≥ 51 years and had completed ≥ 1 year of IVT-AFL treatment prior to enrollment (IVT-AFL once per month [- 1 or + 2 weeks] for 3 months followed by IVT-AFL every 2 months [6-12 weeks]). Patients were randomly assigned (1:1) to receive IVT-AFL 2 mg in either a T&E (minimum treatment interval of 8 weeks with no upper limit, adjusted according to functional and anatomic outcomes, as assessed by the investigator; n = 168), or a fixed dosing regimen (treatment every 8 weeks [± 3 days]; n = 168). The primary endpoint was best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) change from baseline to week (W) 52. The key secondary endpoint was the proportion of patients maintaining vision (< 15-letter loss) at W52., Results: The full analysis set comprised 332 patients (T&E: n = 165; fixed dosing: n = 167). Mean BCVA change (baseline to W52) was - 0.3 ± 7.5 vs. - 0.5 ± 8.4 letters (T&E vs. fixed dosing; least-squares mean difference [95% CI]: 0.22 [- 1.51 to 1.96] letters; P < 0.0001 for noninferiority test [5-letter margin]). From baseline to W52, 95.2% (T&E) and 94.0% (fixed dosing) of patients maintained vision. Mean central subfield thickness change from baseline to W52 was - 24 ± 55 (T&E) and - 33 ± 47 (fixed dosing) µm. Last treatment interval to W76 was ≥ 12 weeks for 37.0% of T&E patients. No new safety signals were identified., Conclusion: IVT-AFL T&E can achieve similar functional and anatomic outcomes to fixed dosing every 8 weeks over 52 weeks in patients with nAMD who have completed ≥ 1 year of treatment, while reducing treatment burden., Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT02540954., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Objective: To assess the effectiveness and safety of the intravitreal fluocinolone-acetonide implant (FAc-i) in patients with chronic diabetic macular edema who did not sufficiently respond to other available therapies., Methods: This was a multicenter, prospective, non-randomized, and phase-IV observational study conducted on patients with recurrent-DME who were insufficient responders to currently available therapies (REACT-Study). The primary end-point was the mean change in best-corrected-visual-acuity from baseline to month-24 values., Results: Thirty-one eyes from 31 patients were included in the study. Mean age was 68.0 ± 7.7 years, and 10 (32.3%) were women. Study patients had received 5.3 ± 7.3 previous DME treatments before starting the study. In the overall study sample, BCVA improved from 56.1 ± 12.3 letters at baseline to 62.4 ± 17.0 letters at month-24 (p = 0.0510). The eyes with a baseline BCVA < 70 ETDRS letters had a significant improvement in BCVA from 53.2 ± 10.2 letters at baseline to 61.5 ± 17.9 letters at month-24 (p = 0.0165). In the overall study population, central-subfoveal-thickness (CST) was significantly reduced from 474.0 ± 135.1 µm at baseline to 333.4 ± 135.6 at month-24 (p < 0.0001). Similarly, macular-volume (MV) was significantly reduced from 10.7 ± 2.7 mm 3 at baseline to 9.6 ± 2.9 mm 3 (p = 0.0027) at month-24. Among the 31 study eyes, 19 (61.3%) required an additional treatment for DME. Throughout the study, 9 (29.0%) eyes required ocular hypotensive medication for controlling their intraocular-pressure and 5 (16.1%) eyes underwent cataract surgery., Conclusions: In DME eyes who did not sufficiently respond to previous therapies, the FAc-i was associated with an improvement in visual and anatomic outcomes. There were no unexpected adverse-events., Trial Registration Number: EudraCT identifier: 2016-001680-37., (© 2023. The Author(s).)

The entry into force of the regulation on medical devices obliges clinicians to identify and report to the Health Authorities possible serious incidents arising from their use. In view of the doubts that may arise as to whether or not it may be considered a serious incident, a working group, set up by members of the Spanish Society of Retina and Vitreo and the cluster of ophthalmology and vision sciences (Cluster4Eye) have prepared a document that aims to guide ophthalmologists about some of the incidents that, in the experience of the work team, are not common or can cause serious damage to the patient's function., (Copyright © 2023 Sociedad Española de Oftalmología. Published by Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.)

Background: To describe the functional and anatomical impact that the worldwide shortage of verteporfin has had on patients diagnosed with chronic central serous chorioretinopathy (cCSCR) whose treatment with photodynamic therapy (PDT) had to be delayed., Methods: Prospective observational study. Patients were divided into two groups based on the time interval since PDT had been indicated: groups 1 and 2, with waiting times of less and more than 9 months respectively. Best corrected visual acuity (BCVA), the maximum height of the subretinal fluid (MSRF) and subfoveal choroidal thickness (SFCT) at the baseline visit and the last visit were compared., Results: 49 eyes of 48 patients with cCSCR were included. The mean waiting time for PDT was 9.0 ±3.8 months. The mean BCVA was 69.0 ±17.1 letters and 68.9 ±16.4 letters for the baseline and last visit respectively, showing no difference (p= 0.958). Although there was no difference in the mean global BCVA, 15 eyes (30.5%) showed a deterioration of ≥5 letters, including 7 eyes (14%) with a decrease of ≥10 letters. Mean MSRF height was 151.4 ±97.2 μm and 98.2 ±83.1 μm for the baseline and last visit respectively (p= 0.005), persisting in 74.5% of the eyes., Conclusion: No significant impact was observed in the BCVA in cCSCR due to the shortage of verteporfin. However, one-third of patients had BCVA loss. There was a significant spontaneous decrease in MSRF, but it persisted in the majority of the patients, still susceptible to PDT., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest None., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Purpose: To analyze the effect of fluid on visual acuity in cases of Type 3 macular neovascularization., Methods: This multicentric, retrospective cohort study included eyes with treatment-naïve Type 3 macular neovascularization. Analysis of fluid in different compartments was performed. Group A included eyes with isolated intraretinal fluid, whereas Group B included eyes with intraretinal fluid in conjunction with subretinal fluid and/or sub retinal pigment epithelial fluid., Results: Eyes in Group A (31, 55.3%) had better best-corrected visual acuity of 20/50 snellen equivalent (0.42 ± 0.31 logarithm of the minimum angle of resolution) at baseline and 20/50 snellen equivalent (0.40 ± 0.28 logarithm of the minimum angle of resolution) at complete resolution compared with Group B with visual acuity of 20/80 snellen equivalent (0.64 ± 0.35 logarithm of the minimum angle of resolution) (P = 0.0181) at baseline and 20/100 snellen equivalent (0.70 ± 0.40 logarithm of the minimum angle of resolution) (P = 0.0021) at complete resolution. Subfoveal atrophy was more in Group B (82.6% 19/23) at complete resolution in comparison to Group A (16/31, 51.6%). Eyes in Group B needed more anti-vascular endothelial growth factor injections (10.3 ± 9.0) for complete resolution compared with Group A (5.7 ± 4.8)., Conclusion: Intraretinal fluid may be associated with good visual acuity in Type 3 macular neovascularization in contrast to other forms of neovascular age related macular degeneration. Furthermore, intraretinal fluid in isolation may need fewer injections and could probably be associated with less subfoveal atrophy.

Purpose: To assess the effect of fluid status at baseline (BL) and at the end of the loading phase (LP) of three different ranibizumab regimens: treat-and-extend (T&E), fixed bimonthly (FBM) injections and pro re nata (PRN), in patients with neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD)., Design: Post hoc analysis of the In-Eye study (phase IV clinical trial)., Methods: Patients were randomized 1:1:1 to the three study arms and were treated accordingly. The presence and type of fluid, intraretinal fluid (IRF) or subretinal fluid (SRF) and the anatomical and visual outcomes were analysed., Main Outcome Measures: Best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), the mean change from baseline BCVA (BL BCVA), and the proportion of eyes gaining more than 15 letters or losing more than five letters were analysed. Morphological characteristics including the subtype of choroidal neovascular membrane and the development of atrophy and fibrosis were also evaluated., Results: Patients with SRF at LP had better visual outcomes than patients with IRF. The persistence of SRF did not affect the mean change from BL BCVA among the three treatment regimens. However, in patients with IRF mean change from BL BCVA was significantly lower in the FBM group. The presence of IRF at BL and at the end of the loading phase was associated with the development of fibrosis at the end of the study; this result was contrary to that observed for patients with SRF., Conclusions: While SRF is compatible with good visual and anatomical outcomes, IRF leads to worse results in patients with nAMD; our results suggest that patients with IRF have better outcomes when individualized treatment regimens are used (PRN or T&E) in contrast with a FBM regimen., (© 2021 Acta Ophthalmologica Scandinavica Foundation. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Purpose: This paper aimed to present daily-practice recommendations for the management of diabetic macular edema (DME) patients based on available scientific evidence and the clinical experience of the consensus panel., Methods: A group of Spanish retina experts agreed to discuss different aspects related with the clinical management of DME patients., Results: Panel was mainly focused on therapeutic objectives in DME management; definition terms; and role of biomarkers as prognostic and predictive factors to intravitreal treatment response. The panel recommends to start DME treatment as soon as possible in those eyes with a visual acuity less than 20/25 (always according to the retina unit capacity). Naïve patient was defined, in a strict manner, as a patient who, up to that moment, had never received any treatment. A refractory DME patient may be defined as the one who did not achieve a complete resolution of the disease, regardless of the treatment administered. Different optical coherence tomography biomarkers, such as disorganization of the retinal inner layers, hyperreflective dots, and cysts, have been identified as prognostic factors., Conclusion: This document has sought to lay down a set of recommendations and to identify key issues that may be useful for the daily management of DME patients., Competing Interests: Dr Patricia Udaondo reports grants from Allergan, an AbbVie company, during the conduct of the study. Dr Veronica Castro-Navarro reports grants from Allergan, an AbbVie company, over the last year. Dr José María Ruiz Moreno reports grants from Allergan, an AbbVie company, over the last year. Dr Javier Ascaso reports personal fees from Allergan, personal fees from Novartis, personal fees from Bayer, personal fees from Brill Pharma, personal fees from Alcon, outside the submitted work. Dr Alfredo García-Layana reports personal fees from Allergan, personal fees from Novartis, personal fees from Bayer, personal fees from Roche, grants, personal fees from Thea, during the conduct of the study. Dr Francisco Javier Lavid reports personal fees from Allergan, during the conduct of the study; personal fees from Novartis, personal fees from Bayer, personal fees from Allergan, outside the submitted work. The authors report no other conflicts of interest in this work., (© 2021 Udaondo et al.)

Purpose: To determinate the variation in thickness of the individual choroidal layers in patients with central serous chorioretinopathy treated with half-fluence photodynamic therapy., Methods: Twenty-two eyes were evaluated with spectral-domain optical coherence tomography. The images were taken before photodynamic therapy, 3 months, and 6 months after the treatment. Two investigators performed these measurements: 1) choroidal thickness (CT), 2) Haller layer thickness, defined as the most external layer containing a 100-μm vessel, and 3) choriocapillaris + Sattler layer (C&S). Nine measurements were taken in the macular region., Results: Choroidal thickness before photodynamic therapy was 471.8 µm ± 145.8. The Haller layer was 358.4 µm ± 122.6, and C&S was 114.3 µm ± 27.8. At 3-month follow-up, CT was 441.1 µm ± 150.7, Haller layer 348.8 µm ± 127.6, and C&S 92.4 µm ± 27.9. At 6-month follow-up, CT was 420.4 µm ± 118.4, Haller layer 331.8 µm ± 97.2, and C&S 89.5 µm ± 28.0. Using a multilevel mixed-effects linear regression, CT was found to be reduced at both 3 months (P < 0.03) and at 6 months (P < 0.001), Haller layer showed no significant reduction at 3 months (P = 0.483) or at 6 months (P = 0.055), and C&S showed reduction at 3 months (P < 0.001) and at 6 months (P < 0.001). Fellow nonaffected eyes showed no statistical variation at 3-month and 6-month follow-up., Conclusion: Reduction in CT in patients affected by central serous chorioretinopathy after half-fluence photodynamic therapy occurs primarily in the choriocapillaris and medium diameter vessel layers of the choroid in a short- and medium-term follow-up.

Purpose: To assess the noninferiority of the treat-and-extend (T&E) and fixed bimonthly regimens of 0.5 mg intravitreal ranibizumab as compared with the pro re nata (PRN) in naïve patients with neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD)., Methods: Phase IV, randomized, 12-month, multicentre trial. Patients aged ≥50 years with nAMD and visual impairment [best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) between 23 and 78 Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study (ETDRS) letters] were eligible. Patients (one eye per patient) were randomized to bimonthly, n = 103, T&E, n = 99 or PRN, n = 104. Noninferiority was established at five letters ETDRS., Results: The mean (95% CI) difference in BCVA at 12 months was 7.2 (4.2-10.2), 6.4 (2.9-9.8), and 8.0 (51.1-11.0) in the bimonthly, T&E and PRN, respectively. The bimonthly or T&E regimens were not inferior to the PRN scheme. All regimens were associated with a significant reduction of central subfield thickness and volume. The mean (95% CI) number of injections in the bimonthly regimen (7.6, 7.5-7.7) was similar as compared with the PRN regimen (7.4, 6.7-8.0) (p = 0.159) but lower than in the T&E regimen (9.3, 8.9-9.7) (p < 0.001)., Conclusion: At 12 months, bimonthly and T&E ranibizumab were noninferior to PRN in naïve nAMD., (© 2020 Acta Ophthalmologica Scandinavica Foundation. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Purpose: To ascertain wet AMD (wAMD) management patterns in Spain., Methods: A two-round Delphi study conducted through a questionnaire-based survey designed from literature review and validated by an independent Steering Committee., Results: Forty-nine retina specialists experienced in wAMD participated by answering the two-round study questionnaire. Retina specialists are the main responsible for wAMD diagnosis and monitoring, including visits and associated procedures, with a median time per visit of 15 minutes. Standard treatment strategies are based on anti-VEGF administration, including standard loading dose administration followed by maintenance with aflibercept or ranibizumab (81% of patients). Although treat and extend (T&E) dosing strategy is considered as optimal for wAMD management (78% of the panelists), the main routine healthcare limitations (i.e., visits overload, reduced staff, short visit time, coordination issues, lack of facilities) conduct to self-defined "flexible" strategies, based on T&E and pro-re-nata (PRN) protocols., Conclusion: Proactive treatment patterns (T&E) are the preferred ones by the retina specialists in Spain. However, their proper implementation is difficult due to healthcare resource limitations, as well as organisation and logistic issues. The use of anti-VEGF agents with longer duration of action could facilitate the use of strict T&E approaches according to routine clinical practices., Competing Interests: Drs. A. Garcia‐Layana, J. García-Arumí, M. S. Figueroa, L. Arias Barquet, and J. M. Ruíz‐Moreno report financed collaboration as advisors for Bayer and Novartis. Drs. A. Garcia‐Layana, M. S. Figueroa, L. Arias Barquet, and J. M. Ruíz‐Moreno are also collaborating with Allergan. Dr. J. García Arumí declares to be also an advisor for Alcon, and Dr. M. S. Figueroa for Roche. Dr. L. Monclús‐Arbona is a staff of Bayer, Spain., (Copyright © 2019 A. García-Layana et al.)

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the leading cause of irreversible central vision loss in developed countries. With the aging of population, AMD will become globally an increasingly important and prevalent disease worldwide. It is a complex disease whose etiology is associated with both genetic and environmental risk factors. An extensive decline in the quality of life and progressive need of daily living assistance resulting from AMD among those most severely affected highlights the essential role of preventive strategies, particularly advising patients to quit smoking. In addition, maintaining a healthy diet, controlling other risk factors (such as hypertension, obesity, and atherosclerosis), and the use of nutritional supplements (antioxidants) are recommendable. Genetic testing may be especially important in patients with a family history of AMD. Recently, unifying criteria for the clinical classification of AMD, defining no apparent aging changes; normal aging changes; and early, intermediate, and late AMD stages, are of value in predicting AMD risk of progression and in establishing recommendations for the diagnosis, therapeutic approach, and follow-up of patients. The present review is focused on early and intermediate AMD and presents a description of the clinical characteristics and ophthalmological findings for these stages, together with algorithms for the diagnosis and management of patients, which are easily applicable in daily clinical practice., Competing Interests: Disclosure The authors report no conflicts of interest in this work.

Background: To correlate retina-choroidal anatomy as assessed via swept-source OCT (SS-OCT) with retinal function as determined by best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) and multifocal electroretinogram (mfERG)., Methods: Thirty-three eyes from 33 patients including 16 with neovascular AMD (nvAMD) and 17 controls were included. Patients were included in the present study after a complete ophthalmologic examination, including BCVA, slit-lamp study, intraocular pressure measurement, dilated fundus examination after tropicamide instillation, SD-OCT, SS-OCT, fundus photographs and mfERG. Age, sex, BCVA, number of anti-VEGF intravitreal injections in the nvAMD group, were recollected. Outer retinal and choroidal thickness were determined at the fovea and 500 μm temporal, superior, nasal and inferior. First-order response from mfERG was collected. P1 amplitude was recorded in R1, R2 and the average of R1 + R2. The measurements recollected from the SS-OCT, mfERG and BCVA were compared., Results: Better BCVA was found with thicker outer retina foveal thickness (r = 0.349; P  = 0.047), with thicker subfoveal choroidal thickness (r = 0.443; P  = 0.010), and with higher amplitude in P1 at R1 (r = 0.346; P  = 0.037). Outer retina foveal thickness did not correlate with P1 amplitude at R1 (r = 0.072; P  = 0.692), R2 (r = 0.265; P  = 0.137) either with the average P1 amplitude at R1 + R2 (r = 0.253; P  = 0.156). A thicker subfoveal choroidal thickness was related with higher amplitude in P1 at R1 (r = 0.383; P  = 0.028), R2 (r = 0.409; P  = 0.018) and the average of R1 + R2 (r = 0.419; P  = 0.015)., Conclusions: Choroidal thickness demonstrated a positive correlation with retinal function in the sample studied, so a thicker choroid is related to a better retinal function measured with mfERG and BCVA.

Objective: To study the effectiveness and limitations of photodynamic therapy (PDT) as treatment of choice in patients with symptomatic circumscribed choroidal haemangioma., Methods: A retrospective study was conducted on 16 patients (13 men and 3 women, with mean age of 54.88 years) with circumscribed choroidal haemangioma, who attended our centre and were treated with PDT in the last 7 years., Results: All patients had circumscribed choroidal haemangioma, which caused a decrease in visual acuity (VA) secondary to the presence of intraretinal microcystic oedema or neurosensory detachment. The mean initial VA was 0.23, and the final mean VA after performing PDT was 0.38 (all the VA were measured in decimal scale). It should be noted that patients needed a mean of 1.69 PDT sessions. Three of the patients needed rescue treatment with trans-pupillary thermotherapy, intravitreal injection of anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (ranibizumab, aflibercept) or a dexamethasone intravitreal implant (Ozurdex ® ). The indication for a change of treatment was the persistence of intraretinal microcystic oedema and/or neurosensory detachment (or incomplete resolution) after 3 PDT sessions. As overall results, 62.5% of patients evolved into anatomical and functional (increase in AV or stability) resolution., Conclusions: PDT is a straight forward and fast procedure, with a good anatomical and functional response, causing minimal damage to adjacent vessels., (Copyright © 2016 Sociedad Española de Oftalmología. Publicado por Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.)

Purpose: To describe the findings in circumscribed choroidal haemangioma (CCH) using en face swept-source optical coherence tomography (SS-OCT)., Methods: En face images were obtained employing DRI-1 Atlantis OCT (Topcon, Tokyo, Japan), using a three-dimensional volumetric scan of 12×9 mm. Images were obtained from the retinal pigment epithelium to 1000 μm in depth of the tumour., Results: Twenty-two eyes from 22 patients with the clinical diagnosis of CCH were included. In 20 eyes (90.9%), a characteristic pattern was visualised in the en face image across the vascular tumour. A multilobular pattern, similar to a honeycomb, with hyporeflective, confluent, oval or round areas corresponding with the lumen of the tumour vascular spaces, and hyper-reflective zones, which may represent the vessels walls and connective tissue of the tumour. Ten eyes (45.4%) showed a hyper-reflective halo surrounding the tumour. Seventeen tumours (77.2%) showed small diameter vessels at the inner zone and larger vessels in the outer area. Twelve patients (54.5%) had previously received treatment (photodynamic therapy, transpupillary thermotherapy, dexamethasone intravitreal implant or brachytherapy with ruthenium-106). No differences were found between treated and untreated patients in any of the measured parameters., Conclusions: En face SS-OCT is a rapid, non-invasive, high-resolution, technology, which allows a complementary study to cross-sectional scans in CCH. A characteristic multilobular pattern, with a hyper-reflective halo surrounding the tumour, was found in en face SS-OCT images. No morphological differences were found between naïve patients and patients who received previous treatment., (Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/)

Purpose: To determine the prevalence of vitreomacular interface (VMI) pathology, using spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT)., Methods: VMI status was classified into macular posterior vitreous detachment (PVD), focal vitreomacular adhesion (VMA; ≤1,500 μm), broad VMA (>1,500 μm), focal vitreomacular traction (VMT; ≤1,500 μm), broad VMT (>1,500 μm), full-thickness macular hole (FTMH) with the presence of VMT, and FTMH without the presence of VMT., Results: A total of 1,976 eyes were included. A nonpathologic VMI was observed in 1,875 eyes (94.8%), including 1,050 (53.1%) with PVD, 120 (6.1%) with focal VMA and 705 (35.6%) with broad VMA. A pathologic state of the VMI was diagnosed in 101 eyes (5.1%). Thirty-three eyes (1.7%) were classified as focal VMT, 29 (1.4%) as broad VMT, 39 (1.9%) as FTMH, resulting in 6 small, 12 medium and 21 large FTMHs, six eyes had VMT associated to FTMH., Conclusions: Even in a tertiary care, retinal referral practice, VMI pathology is a relatively rare condition. There was a higher prevalence in a tertiary hospital study compared to population-based studies., (© 2016 S. Karger AG, Basel.)

A formulation of aflibercept for intravitreal injection (Eylea) is approved for the treatment of patients with exudative age-related macular degeneration (AMD). Aflibercept has a significantly higher affinity for Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)-A compared with other monoclonal anti-VEGF antibodies. In addition to binding all VEGF-A isoforms, aflibercept also blocks other proangiogenic factors such as VEGF-B and placental growth factor. The VIEW 1 and 2 trials showed this drug achieves improved results in patients with exudative AMD similar to those obtained with monthly ranibizumab, using a bimonthly treatment regimen after a loading dose of three intravitreal injections, which translates to less use of healthcare resources. There is a subgroup of patients that present with persistent fluid after the loading dose that could benefit from monthly injections or personalized proactive treatment after the first year. In the second year of treatment, the Treat and Extend patterns can permit even more lengthening of the time between injections. More data are needed to confirm the optimal monitoring and retreatment dosing, to maintain long-term efficacy. Other preliminary data suggest that patients that do not respond to other anti-angiogenics and patients with special pathologies such as polypoidal choroidopathy or retinal angiomatous proliferation can improve upon switching to aflibercept. To date, the safety profile of aflibercept is excellent and is comparable to other anti-angiogenic treatments.

Purpose: To describe en face swept-source optical coherence tomography (SS-OCT) findings in the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) and choroid and to correlate them with fluorescein angiography (FA) and/or indocyanine green angiography (ICGA) in neovascular age-related macular degeneration (AMD)., Methods: Thirty-eight eyes with the recent diagnosis of neovascular AMD were imaged using an SS-OCT system. En face images were obtained at RPE, choriocapillaris, Sattler's layer and Haller's layer level. Analysis of the images and correlation with colour fundus photographs, FA, ICGA in selected cases, were made., Results: En face images at RPE level revealed changes in all eyes. The neovascular complex appeared hyper-reflective in 9 of 38 eyes (23.7%), and in 29 of 38 eyes (76.3%), it was hyporeflective. The choriocapillaris en face image showed pathological changes in all eyes as well, and in 20 out of 38 eyes (52.6%), the alterations were hyper-reflective, while 18 of 38 eyes (47.4%) showed hyporeflective changes. Twenty (52.6%) eyes and 19 (50.0%) had a hyper-reflective lesion in Sattler's layer and Haller's layer, respectively, and 15 (39.4%) cases showed a hyporeflective lesion in both layers. No differences were found between the neovascular complex area, horizontal and vertical diameters, measured in the en face image and FA (p=0.171, p=0.061, p=0.133, respectively). Hyporeflective changes were predominant at RPE level and hyper-reflective at choriocapillaris, Sattler's and Haller's layers., Conclusions: En face SS-OCT is a rapid, non-invasive, high-resolution, promising technology, which allows a complementary study to angiography of neovascular AMD. There is a correlation between angiography and en face SS-OCT images in neovascular AMD., (Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions.)

The paper presents a review of the sequence of events of posterior vitreous detachment (PVD), vitreomacular adhesion (VMA), vitreomacular traction (VMT), and macular hole (MH) from their pathophysiological aspects, clinical features, diagnostic implications, and current management strategies. A treatment algorithm to be used in clinical practice in patients with VMA, VMT, and MH based on the presence of symptoms, visual acuity, associated epiretinal membrane, and width of the vitreous attachment is presented. Observation, pharmacologic vitreolysis with ocriplasmin, and surgical treatment are positioned as treatment options in the different steps of the therapeutic algorithm, with clear indications of the paths to be followed according to the initial presenting manifestations and the patient's clinical course.

We present the ultrasound and optic coherence tomography follow-up of a presumed choroidal metastasis from a contralateral melanoma. A 53-year-old male was diagnosed with uveal melanoma with extraescleral extension in his left eye. A year later, the fundus examination revealed a flat, gray-green, pigmented choroidal lesion in the right eye. The ultrasonography showed a mass, almost flat, and all these findings were compatible with a choroidal melanocytic lesion with risk factors for growth. One month later, melanocytic skin lesions appeared on the scalp, as well as small tumors. Three months later, an ultrasonography on B scan showed a growth of the tumor size. The patient developed a progressive deterioration and died. Three possibilities can explain the occurrence of a choroidal pigmented tumor in the contralateral eye: first, bilateral primary choroidal melanomas; second, both choroidal tumors are metastatic in origin from an unknown primary melanoma; and third, the contralateral tumor is a metastatic tumor from the primary choroidal melanoma.

A 45-year-old man presented with a mobile shadow in the central visual field of his left eye for the preceding 4 months. His visual acuity was not affected. Funduscopy showed a brownish, oval-shaped structure floating in the vitreous cavity of the left eye. B-scan ultrasound demonstrated an oval-spherical hypoechogenic structure floating at the posterior pole. The absence of pertinent medical history and normal results from systemic exploration suggested a congenital etiology. The condition was observed regularly without any evidence of change. Differential diagnosis of vitreous cysts is important in order to establish an adequate therapeutic approach., (Copyright 2014, SLACK Incorporated.)

Objective: The purpose of this article is to report the correlation between spectral domain-optical coherence tomography and autofluorescence findings in 3 consecutive cases with sclerochoroidal calcification., Design: Observational case series., Participants: The study involved 3 patients with bilateral sclerochoroidal calcification., Methods: B-scan ultrasonography, spectral domain-optical coherence tomography, and autofluorescence were performed in each eye. The choroidal vascular thickness and autofluorescence patterns of the calcified plaques were evaluated with spectral domain-optical coherence tomography and autofluorescence, respectively., Results: An important variation of choroidal vascular thickness overlying sclerochoroidal calcification was observed in spectral domain-optical coherence tomography. Autofluorescence showed 2 patterns of autofluorescence closely correlated with changes in choroidal vascular thickness. In those zones where the thicknesses of choriocapillaris complex were reduced, a hyperautofluorescence pattern was observed in autofluorescence. The hypoautofluorescence pattern was observed in outpouching zone of retinal pigment epithelium-choriocapillaris complex seen in spectral domain-optical coherence tomography. The hypoautofluorescence pattern was closely correlated with remarkable reduction of the choriocapillaris complex. There were no significant differences between the patterns of autofluorescence except the extension., Conclusions: Spectral domain-optical coherence tomography and autofluorescence are noninvasive complementary imaging studies that may help to improve our knowledge about sclerochoroidal calcification. Characteristic patterns of autofluorescence were closely correlated with spectral domain-optical coherence tomography findings. More patients need to be evaluated with both complementary studies to establish conclusions related with these findings., (Copyright © 2013 Canadian Ophthalmological Society. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Intravitreal ranibizumab (Lucentis®) injections are the treatment of choice in patients with exudative macular degeneration. In the last few years, several treatment and follow-up strategies have been evaluated with the aim of optimizing the safety and efficacy of this drug. In routine clinical practice, the Pro Re Nata (PRN) and treat-and-extend protocols or variants of the FUSION regimen have been used. PRN protocols are based on regular patient follow-up and on retreatment when there is evidence of reactivation of the lesion, basically determined by loss of visual acuity and persistent or recurrent macular fluid on optical coherence tomography. Treat-and-extend or FUSION protocols are based on early retreatment of the lesion before reactivation occurs with the aim of avoiding the irreversible visual loss that can occur in disease recurrences. There is no ideal treatment and follow-up protocol that could be used as an alternative to the monthly regimen and be applied and reproduced in all patients. Consequently, intravitreal ranibizumab therapy should be individualized in each patient., (Copyright © 2012 Sociedad Española de Oftalmología. Published by Elsevier Espana. All rights reserved.)

Objective: Age related macular degeneration (ARMD) in its neovascular form is a serious disease which produces legal blindness in many patients with poor prognosis if left untreated. We intend to establish a clinical guide with the different therapeutic options that exist nowadays, which may help the ophthalmologists in their clinical practice., Methods: A group of medical retina experts selected by SERV have evaluated the results of different published studies with the drugs currently available, obtaining an evidence-based consensus. Some recommendations have been established for diagnosis, treatment and monitoring of patients with neovascular ARMD., Results: The intravitreal injection of ranibizumab at a dosage of 0.5 mg produces significant improvement of visual acuity in subfoveal lesions, according to data obtained from studies with the highest level of evidence. It should be considered as a first choice drug. The use of bevacizumab, a drug with not approved indication for intraocular use, nor for the treatment of neovascular ARMD can reach a result which is closer to the ones obtained with ranibizumab than to those obtained with photodynamic therapy (PDT) and pegaptanib. The use of intravitreal pegaptanib sodium in intravitreal injection at a dosage of 0.3 mg as a treatment for subfoveal lesions can obtain similar results to the TFD, but with a wider range of injuries., Conclusion: The results of the evidence-based studies are a good guide for the treatment of this disease.

Purpose: To assess the value of multifocal electroretinogram (mfERG) in clinical evaluation of the response of patients with choroidal neovascularization (CNV), secondary to age-related macular degeneration, to photodynamic therapy (PDT)., Methods: We designed a prospective non-comparative case series and enrolled 23 eyes of 22 patients with predominantly classic CNV. The initial evaluation included clinical examination with measurement of visual acuity (Colenbrander), biomicroscopic evaluation (BMC), retinography, fluorescein angiography (FA), Humphrey 24-2 visual field examination and mfERG. All patients were treated with PDT. Clinical follow-up was performed two and six months after treatment with visual acuity evaluation, BMC, visual field assessment and mfERG. FA was repeated after an interval of between four and six months in all patients., Results: Visual acuity remained stable or improved in all patients included in the study. Visual field examination gave erratic and unreliable results because of patients' unstable fixation. N1 and P1 wave peak amplitudes in the central rings did not change significantly after treatment but they improved in rings 3 (p=0.000), 4 and 5 (p=0.008)., Conclusions: Multifocal ERG is a useful tool for the clinical follow-up of CNV. It offers interesting non-subjective data of retinal sensitivity of patients with macular diseases treated with PDT. In addition we obtained a central retinal sensitivity map where we were able to evaluate the extent and depth of retinal damage.