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Eye (London, England) Jan 2021Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is a common microvascular complication of diabetes mellitus. Optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) has been developed to visualize... (Review)
Review
Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is a common microvascular complication of diabetes mellitus. Optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) has been developed to visualize the retinal microvasculature and choriocapillaris based on the motion contrast of circulating blood cells. Depth-resolved ability and non-invasive nature of OCTA allow for repeated examinations and visualization of microvasculature at the retinal capillary plexuses and choriocapillaris. OCTA enables quantification of microvascular alterations in the retinal capillary network, in addition to the detection of classical features associated with DR, including microaneurysms, intraretinal microvascular abnormalities, and neovascularization. OCTA has a promising role as an objective tool for quantifying extent of microvascular damage and identify eyes with diabetic macular ischaemia contributed to visual loss. Furthermore, OCTA can identify preclinical microvascular abnormalities preceding the onset of clinically detectable DR. In this review, we focused on the applications of OCTA derived quantitative metrics that are relevant to early detection, staging and progression of DR. Advancement of OCTA technology in clinical research will ultimately lead to enhancement of individualised management of DR and prevention of visual impairment in patients with diabetes.
Topics: Diabetes Mellitus; Diabetic Retinopathy; Fluorescein Angiography; Humans; Microaneurysm; Retinal Vessels; Tomography, Optical Coherence
PubMed: 33099579
DOI: 10.1038/s41433-020-01233-y -
Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual... Oct 2023Microaneurysm (MA) plays an important role in the pathogenesis of diabetic macular edema (DME) progression and response to anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)...
PURPOSE
Microaneurysm (MA) plays an important role in the pathogenesis of diabetic macular edema (DME) progression and response to anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) therapy. This study aimed to investigate the effect of faricimab, a bispecific antibody against angiopoietin-2 and VEGF, on the number of MAs and their turnover in the treatment of DME.
METHODS
We included that patients with DME who underwent three monthly injections of faricimab in one eye, with the other eye as control. We examined central retinal thickness (CRT) based on optical coherence tomography (OCT) and best-corrected visual acuity. Turnover, including loss and newly formed MAs, and the total number of MAs were counted based on merged images of the OCT map and fluorescein angiography.
RESULTS
We enrolled 28 patients with DME. After 3 monthly injections of faricimab, CRT significantly improved, 66.0 ± 16.2% of MAs disappeared, and 6.71 ± 5.6% of new MAs were generated, resulting in total reduction to 40.7 ± 15.2%. In the treated eyes, MA disappearance (P < 0.0001) and turnover (P = 0.007) were significantly greater, and new formation was smaller (P < 0.0001) than in non-treated eyes. The size of the retained MAs decreased after treatment. Microaneurysm turnover was not significantly different between areas with and without edema before treatment.
CONCLUSIONS
In the process of improving edema in DME with faricimab, MAs shrink and disappear, and formation of MAs are inhibited, resulting in decreased total number of MAs. Intravitreal administration of faricimab suppresses vascular permeability and improves vascular structure.
Topics: Humans; Macular Edema; Diabetic Retinopathy; Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A; Angiogenesis Inhibitors; Microaneurysm; Intravitreal Injections; Edema; Tomography, Optical Coherence; Diabetes Mellitus
PubMed: 37856112
DOI: 10.1167/iovs.64.13.31 -
No Shinkei Geka. Neurological Surgery Mar 2021Intracranial aneurysms or arterial dissections are major causes of subarachnoid hemorrhage(SAH). Early surgical or endovascular repair of the bleeding source is crucial...
Intracranial aneurysms or arterial dissections are major causes of subarachnoid hemorrhage(SAH). Early surgical or endovascular repair of the bleeding source is crucial because rebleeding mostly occurs within a few days after the initial attack. Radiological examination is an initial step for the appropriate diagnosis of ruptured intracranial aneurysms and arterial dissections. However, misdiagnosis may occur, especially in patients with minor bleeding or multiple aneurysms. In addition to computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, including FLAIR and SWI, and T2WI are useful for detecting minor SAH. Vessel-wall imaging has recently been applied to diagnosing the site of rupture in patients with multiple cerebral aneurysms or microaneurysms, but not to assessing the instability of unruptured cerebral aneurysms or intracranial arterial dissections. In this article, we discuss the current radiological modalities and their usefulness for diagnosing SAH.
Topics: Aneurysm, Ruptured; Cerebral Angiography; Humans; Intracranial Aneurysm; Magnetic Resonance Imaging; Subarachnoid Hemorrhage; Tomography, X-Ray Computed
PubMed: 33762441
DOI: 10.11477/mf.1436204382 -
Rheumatic Diseases Clinics of North... 2015Polyarteritis nodosa (PAN) is a systemic disease, but variants are cutaneous PAN and single-organ disease. Histologic confirmation of vasculitis in medium-sized arteries... (Review)
Review
Polyarteritis nodosa (PAN) is a systemic disease, but variants are cutaneous PAN and single-organ disease. Histologic confirmation of vasculitis in medium-sized arteries is desirable, and biopsies should be obtained from the symptomatic and least invasive sites. Angiography can show multiple microaneurysms in the viscera. Treatment includes high-dose corticosteroids, which are combined with immunosuppressive agents when internal organs are involved and with life-threatening disease. Once remission is achieved, maintenance agents are initiated. PAN is becoming a rare disease. International collaborative efforts are under way to establish better diagnostic and classification for all vasculitides, including PAN.
Topics: Adrenal Cortex Hormones; Angiography; Biopsy; Glucocorticoids; HIV Infections; Hepatitis B; Hepatitis C; Humans; Immunosuppressive Agents; Polyarteritis Nodosa
PubMed: 25399938
DOI: 10.1016/j.rdc.2014.09.005 -
Zeitschrift Fur Rheumatologie Jun 2018Polyarteritis nodosa (PAN) is a necrotizing arteritis of medium-sized vessels, which is often fatal if untreated. It frequently affects the skin (nodules and ulcers),...
Polyarteritis nodosa (PAN) is a necrotizing arteritis of medium-sized vessels, which is often fatal if untreated. It frequently affects the skin (nodules and ulcers), the peripheral nervous system (mononeuritis multiplex) and the visceral vessels (stenoses and microaneurysms). The complex diagnostic work-up requires discriminating PAN from infectious, malignant, drug-induced and other inflammatory conditions. It can be subclassified into further variants (idiopathic, associated with hepatitis B, associated with hereditary inflammatory diseases or isolated cutaneous disease). While idiopathic and hereditary inflammatory variants require immunosuppressive treatment, the hepatitis B-associated variant is treated with virustatic agents and plasmapheresis. The isolated cutaneous variant has a good prognosis and rarely requires highly potent immunosuppressives.
Topics: Hepatitis B; Humans; Immunosuppressive Agents; Plasmapheresis; Polyarteritis Nodosa
PubMed: 29808333
DOI: 10.1007/s00393-018-0469-7 -
Cureus Oct 2022Diabetes is a chronic progressive metabolic disorder that is caused by the body's inability to regulate blood glucose levels. If uncontrolled, it can lead to various... (Review)
Review
Diabetes is a chronic progressive metabolic disorder that is caused by the body's inability to regulate blood glucose levels. If uncontrolled, it can lead to various complications. Among its various complications, long-term diabetes leads to diabetic retinopathy (DR). It is a disease involving blood vessels and the destruction of retinal nerves. It is usually classified into two types: proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR) and nonproliferative diabetic retinopathy (NPDR). It progresses and causes loss of vision. The leading cause of loss of vision is diabetic macular edema (DME). The argon laser is used as a modality in the management of PDR. There are various types of laser photocoagulation, such as peripheral retinal laser photocoagulation, focal macular laser photocoagulation, and grid photocoagulation. DR results in various adverse consequences such as vitreous hemorrhage, fibrosis, traction, detachment of the retina, and glaucoma. To assess DR, a detailed fundus examination with a slit lamp biomicroscope needs to be done. Seven-standard field stereoscopic-color fundus photography needs to be done for documentation and follow-up. Patients with diabetes mellitus (DM) type 1 have a greater risk of suffering from DR. Another major complication of the condition is DME, which is characterized by an increase in the permeability of vessels and the thickening of the central part of the retina along with the accumulation of hard exudates on the macula. This article discusses various laser therapy modalities for the treatment of DR, their types, mechanisms, and aims. Clinical features of DR include abnormal dilatation of capillaries, and outpouchings in the form of microaneurysm from the capillary wall are one of the earliest and most dangerous changes; later, non-perfusion of the retina occurs, which is associated with cotton wool spots and blot hemorrhages. In patients suffering from PDR and maculopathy, peripheral retinal laser photocoagulation is used as a mode of intervention.
PubMed: 36348830
DOI: 10.7759/cureus.30024 -
Journal of Nephrology Aug 2016Medium- and large-vessel vasculitides (MVV and LVV, respectively) comprise a heterogeneous group of disorders whose common denominator is the inflammatory involvement of... (Review)
Review
Medium- and large-vessel vasculitides (MVV and LVV, respectively) comprise a heterogeneous group of disorders whose common denominator is the inflammatory involvement of vessels of medium and large size. This disease spectrum includes giant-cell arteritis and Takayasu's arteritis, which typically affect the aorta and its main branches, and Kawasaki's disease and polyarteritis nodosa, which involve medium-sized arteries. Chronic periaortitis, characterized by a perivascular fibro-inflammatory reaction affecting the abdominal aorta and the periaortic tissue, frequently has a systemic distribution, involving other segments of the aorta and its major branches, and could thus be included in this group. Unlike small-vessel vasculitides, MVV and LVV do not cause glomerulonephritis, although glomerular immune-mediated lesions and tubulo-interstitial nephritis occur with varying frequency. However, MVV and LVV can often involve the renal artery and its branches, causing a wide array of lesions that range from renal artery stenosis to intra-renal vasculitis causing renal ischaemia/infarction, microaneurysms and haemorrhage. This review focuses on renal involvement in MVV and LVV and underlines why renal abnormalities in these syndromes should not be overlooked.
Topics: Giant Cell Arteritis; Humans; Kidney Diseases; Mucocutaneous Lymph Node Syndrome; Polyarteritis Nodosa; Retroperitoneal Fibrosis; Takayasu Arteritis
PubMed: 27098921
DOI: 10.1007/s40620-016-0303-8 -
Developments in Ophthalmology 2017Almost 25 years after its introduction, optical coherence tomography (OCT) is still a crucial test in the evaluation of patients affected by diabetic retinopathy. In... (Review)
Review
Almost 25 years after its introduction, optical coherence tomography (OCT) is still a crucial test in the evaluation of patients affected by diabetic retinopathy. In this chapter, the authors provide an extensive overview of the posterior segment pathological changes induced by diabetes, characterized using OCT. OCT plays a key role in diabetic macular edema (DME) as it assesses related retinal changes both in a qualitative (i.e., DME pattern, presence and aspects of cysts, fluid localization, integrity, and reflectivity of retinal layers) and quantitative (i.e., macula volume, central and sectorial retinal thickness) way, and it is therefore essential for diagnosis, characterization, and follow-up of DME. Diabetic macular ischemia is associated with retinal structural changes which can be investigated using OCT, although its diagnosis relies mostly on fluorescein angiography. Beyond DME and macular ischemia, OCT permits the individuation of many other lesions occurring in the setting of both non-proliferative (i.e., hyperreflective spots, micropseudocysts, hard exudates, microaneurysm, cotton-wool spots) and proliferative (i.e., neovascularization, vitreoschisis, tractional retinal detachment, hemorrhage) retinopathies. OCT provides precious information on several structures, including vitreo-retinal interface, retinal nerve fiber layers, ganglion cell complex, and choroid.
Topics: Diabetic Retinopathy; Humans; Reproducibility of Results; Retina; Tomography, Optical Coherence
PubMed: 28427062
DOI: 10.1159/000459723