Safety and efficacy of selective retina therapy (SRT) for the treatment of diabetic macular edema in Korean patients

• Published in: Graefe's archive for clinical and experimental ophthalmology 2016-09, Vol.254 (9), p.1703-1713
• Main Authors: Park, Young Gun, Kim, Jae Ryun, Kang, Seungbum, Seifert, Eric, Theisen-Kunde, Dirk, Brinkmann, Ralf, Roh, Young-Jung
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Aged; Diabetic Retinopathy - diagnosis; Diabetic Retinopathy - epidemiology; Diabetic Retinopathy - surgery; Female; Fluorescein Angiography; Follow-Up Studies; Fundus Oculi; Humans; Incidence; Laser Therapy - methods; Macular Edema - diagnosis; Macular Edema - epidemiology; Macular Edema - surgery; Male; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Middle Aged; Ophthalmology; Ophthalmoscopy; Prospective Studies; Republic of Korea - epidemiology; Retinal Disorders; Retinal Pigment Epithelium - diagnostic imaging; Time Factors; Tomography, Optical Coherence; Treatment Outcome; Visual Acuity
• ISSN: 0721-832X; 1435-702X
• DOI: 10.1007/s00417-015-3262-1

Purpose Selective retina therapy (SRT) stimulates retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) cell migration and proliferation into irradiated areas. The objective of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of SRT in Korean patients with clinically significant diabetic macular edema (DME). Methods Prospective non-randomized interventional case series study. Twenty-three eyes of 21 patients with clinically significant DME were treated with SRT and followed for 6 months. Patients underwent an evaluation of best corrected visual acuity (BCVA) in Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study (ETDRS) letters. Microperimetry was employed to measure macular sensitivity within the central 10° field, and the central macular thickness (CMT) and maximum macular thickness (MMT) were measured. Results An improvement in BCVA of one to two ETDRS lines was observed in 41.2 % of patients and an improvement of greater than two lines in 29.4 %. Although there was no significant change in CMT ( P  > 0.05), MMT decreased from 465.8 ± 87.4 μm to 434.3 ± 83.9 μm ( P  = 0.006), and mean macular sensitivity increased from 20.8 ± 3.4dB to 22.5 ± 3.5dB ( P  = 0.02). Conclusions The gains in BCVA and improvement in macular sensitivity demonstrated that SRT may be used as an effective and safe treatment modality in Korean patients with clinically significant DME.