High recurrence rate in patients with choroidal hemangioma treated with limited single spot photodynamic therapy during long-term follow-up

Comparison of the therapeutic effects of photodynamic therapy, transpupillary thermotherapy, and their combination on circumscribed choroidal haemangioma

OBJECTIVE

To characterize the clinical and imaging features of circumscribed choroidal hemangioma (CCH), and to evaluate individualized treatment efficiency of photodynamic therapy (PDT), transpupillary thermotherapy (TTT), or their combination, followed by retrobulbar injection of betamethasone on CCH resolvement.

METHODS

Forty-nine patients with CCHs who underwent PDT, TTT or PDT+TTT treatments were retrospectively analyzed. Their treatment efficacy was compared by analyzing the change of best corrected visual acuity (BCVA), subretinal fluid (SRF) and CCH lesion characteristics.

RESULTS

PDT, TTT and PDT+TTT were respectively administrated in 17, 11 and 21 patients. No significant difference in age, gender, affected eyes and tumor location across the three groups. Baseline BCVA were 0.41 ± 0.28, 0.62 ± 0.30 and 0.24 ± 0.24 for PDT, TTT and PDT+TTT groups, respectively (F = 6.572, P = 0.003). CCH treated by three strategies showed significant difference in maximum tumor basal diameter, SRF areas and macula involvement prior to the treatment (P < 0.05). Patients receiving PDT+TTT exhibited larger tumor basal diameter, more SRF, higher ratio of macular involvement than other groups. A total of 38 (77.6 %) cases had good visual acidity with final BCVA ≥0.5 after treatments. PDT and PDT+TTT treatment groups acquired more vision improvement (0.27 ± 0.23 and 0.31 ± 0.26) in BCVA than TTT group (0.09 ± 0.13). All SRF were resolved within two weeks of treatment and no recurrent SRF were found.

CONCLUSION

The three treatments showed good performance in improving visual function and controlling SRF, and individualized treatment should be selected primarily by the tumor location, and then the tumor size and presence of SRF.

Recent Advances in Photodynamic Therapy for Vascular Abnormalities

Abstract Background: Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is a minimally invasive therapy that was gradually established as a first-line treatment for vascular abnormalities. Its action depends on the appropriate wavelength of light and photosensitizer to produce toxic oxygen species and cause cell death. Objective: Several new clinical improvements and trends in PDT have been described in recent years. The aim of this review is to provide an overview of the current data from clinical trials. Methods: In this review, we introduce and generalize the wavelength, duration, dose, strength, and photosensitizer of PDT for the treatment of vascular abnormalities, such as circumscribed choroidal hemangiomas (CCH), choroidal neovascularization (CNV) and capillary malformation (CM). Results: The systematic review findings indicate that the application of PDT is a safe effective method to treat CCH, CNV and CM. However, PDT also has early onset side effects and late onset side effects. Conclusions: Based on the discussion of the effectiveness of PDT, we conclude that PDT has great potential for clinical use, although PDT has possible side effects.

New insights on circumscribed choroidal hemangioma: "bench to bedside"

Circumscribed choroidal hemangioma is a rare vascular hamartoma of the choroid, presenting as a red-orange mass at the posterior pole on fundoscopic examination. Despite its benign origin, associated complications such as subretinal fluid, serous retinal detachment, retinoschisis and neovascular glaucoma may lead to serious visual impairment in more than half patients. Because of its similarity to amelanotic choroidal melanoma and choroidal metastasis, differential diagnosis is still challenging for specialists. Multimodal imaging such as ultrasonography, fluorescein angiography, indocyanine green angiography, optical coherence tomography, and optical coherence tomography angiography guides the clinician to the correct diagnosis and the proper follow-up. Treatment is indicated in symptomatic cases in order to resolve exudation and improve visual acuity. Treatment options include photocoagulation, transpupillary thermotherapy, radiation therapy, photodynamic therapy and anti-vascular endothelial growth factor therapy. Currently, photodynamic therapy is the treatment of choice due to its effectiveness and safety. The purpose of this review is to describe the latest knowledge in the etiopathogenesis of the circumscribed choroidal hemangioma, the most recent multimodal imaging findings, and the available treatment options.

PHOTODYNAMIC THERAPY-INDUCED ACUTE EXUDATIVE MACULOPATHY IN A CASE SERIES OF CIRCUMSCRIBED CHOROIDAL HEMANGIOMA

PURPOSE

To describe the incidence, features, and clinical outcomes of photodynamic therapy-induced acute exudative maculopathy (PAEM) in circumscribed choroidal hemangioma.

METHODS

Prospective series of 10 patients who underwent standard-fluence photodynamic therapy for circumscribed choroidal hemangioma. Best-corrected visual acuity in the Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Score and swept-source optical coherence tomography were performed before PDT and 3 days and 1 month after PDT. Central retinal thickness, circumscribed choroidal hemangioma retinal thickness, and subretinal fluid were measured. Photodynamic therapy-induced acute exudative maculopathy was considered as an increase ≥50 µ m in subretinal fluid or intraretinal fluid or the appearance of fibrin 3 days after photodynamic therapy.

RESULTS

Six men and four women were included; median age was 55 years (19-69 years). The incidence rate of PAEM was 7 of 10. Five PAEM patients showed an increase in intraretinal fluid, two in subretinal fluid, and one developed abundant fibrin. Median best-corrected visual acuity at baseline was 57.5 letters (5-76 letters) being stable at 1 month (64 letters; 5-80) ( P = 0.03). Median central retinal thickness increased from 516 µ m (262-1,265 µ m) to 664.5 µ m after 3 days and diminished to 245 µ m after 1 month (156-1,363) ( P ≤ 0.022). In 6 of 7 of PAEM, a complete resolution of the fluid was obtained.

CONCLUSION

Photodynamic therapy-induced acute exudative maculopathy was frequent in circumscribed choroidal hemangioma, although a favorable prognosis was observed in most cases.

Safety and Efficacy of Photodynamic Therapy in the Treatment of Circumscribed Choroidal Hemangioma: A Systematic Review

Circumscribed choroidal hemangioma (CCH) is a sort of non-malignant hamartomatous tumor that occurs in the choroidal layer of the eye. It is a rare condition that affects people between their second and fourth decades of life, leading to significant deterioration of vision. One of the most catastrophic consequences of CCH is exudative retinal detachment (ERD), which has a severe impact on vision. This review aims to comprehensively assess the safety and efficacy of photodynamic therapy (PDT) using verteporfin as a therapeutic approach. Using the eligibility criteria, we analyzed the findings of 18 published articles from PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, and Cochrane. The standard PDT protocol was used in all included studies, except two (one used half-dose, the other one used the double-dose) with an average of 1-2 sessions. PDT induced substantial tumor regression, with a mean thickness range from 0 to 2.3 mm. However, this contrasted with a previous study that reported a thickness of 3.46 mm as an indication of PDT failure. The mean tumor diameter varied from 4.8 mm to total tumor flattening. A suboptimal effect with a mean diameter ranging from 6mm to 8mm was found in two clinical studies. Significant improvement in vision was observed during the last follow-up, ranging from a normalization of Best Corrected Visual Acuity (BCVA) 20/20 to 20/80; counting finger vision persisted in two patients even after treatment. PDT successfully achieved complete subretinal fluid (SRF) resolution in 14 studies and resolved ERD in nine articles. Most studies did not report serious adverse events, but some reported macular atrophy, microcystic degeneration of the retina, transient visual disturbances, Retinal pigmented epithelium (RPE) metaplasia, and cystic degeneration of the retina. This systemic review demonstrated PDT's effectiveness and safety as a first-line management modality for CCH. Photodynamic therapy efficiently induced tumor regression, resulting in a notable reduction in both tumor diameter and thickness, with optimal efficacy to improve vision and resolution of the consequences of CCH, such as SRF and ERD.

Update on the diagnosis and treatment of choroidal hemangioma

Choroidal hemangioma (CH) is a benign vascular tumor dependent on the choroid. Two types of lesions are distinguished: circumscribed (CCH), the most frequent variant, and diffuse (DCH), normally associated with Sturge-Weber syndrome. HCC appears as an orange mass that can present asymptomatically, however, when it produces symptoms, the most frequent is decreased visual acuity due to neurosensory retinal detachment. Due to its benign nature, only those that produce symptoms should be eligible for treatment. Knowledge of this pathology and its correct differential diagnosis is very relevant to establish the appropriate diagnosis and treatment, avoiding unnecessary treatments. There is currently a wide variety of multimodal diagnostic imaging tests that allow us to identify and adequately monitor this tumor. In addition, in recent years, there has been a change in the paradigm of the treatment of these tumors thanks to the use of photodinamic therapy, which has led to a significant improvement in the visual prognosis of these patients. This has been due to the use of photodynamic therapy as the treatment of choice for HCC.

Half-fluence photodynamic therapy in peripapillary circumscribed choroidal haemangiomas

PURPOSE

To evaluate the safety and efficacy of half-fluence photodynamic therapy (PDT) as treatment for symptomatic peripapillary circumscribed choroidal haemangiomas (CCHs).

METHODS

In this prospective, interventional case series; 11 patients with symptomatic peripapillary CCHs presenting to a single centre were treated with half-fluence PDT using verteporfin 6 mg/m2 with fluence of 25 mJ/cm2 (standard is 50 mJ/cm2) and other standard settings. Patients were evaluated at baseline, four weeks, twelve weeks and twenty-four weeks post-PDT treatment with best corrected visual acuity (BCVA), ultrasonography, spectral domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT), visual evoked potential and angiographic studies.

RESULTS

Eleven patients with peripapillary CCHs received half-fluence PDT. The BCVA significantly improved to 0.558 ± 0.118 at four weeks post-treatment (P = 0.014), to 0.494 ± 0.114 at twelve weeks (P = 0.006) and 0.441 ± 0.125 at twenty-four weeks (P = 0.007) from baseline levels of 1.017 ± 0.075 on log MAR scales. Similar improvement was observed in central macular thickness (CMT) of 78.50 ± 13.73 μm (P = 0.001) at four weeks; 114.70 ± 27.73 μm (P = 0.003) at twelve weeks and 174.60 ± 23.13 μm (P = 0.001) at twenty-four weeks post-treatment. A single session of re-treatment was required in 18% (n = 2) of patients which also showed complete resolution at last follow-up. No complications were observed without any significant change in retinal nerve fibre layer (RNFL) thickness at six months follow-up.

CONCLUSIONS

Half-fluence PDT can be an effective and safe treatment option for peripapillary CCHs which results in both anatomical and functional improvements with no observable complications.

Cytokine Concentrations in Aqueous Humor of Eyes With Circumscribed Choroidal Hemangioma

PURPOSE

Anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (anti-VEGF) treatment are now widely used in patients with circumscribed choroidal hemangioma (CCH), however the concentrations of VEGF and other cytokines in CCH patients have not been known before. The study was conducted to compare various cytokine concentrations in the aqueous humor of eyes with CCH and control.

METHODS

A total of 16 eyes of 16 patients with CCH, and 15 eyes of 15 patients with cataract as the control group were examined. Aqueous humor samples were assessed for 30 angiogenic and inflammatory cytokines by Luminex bead-based multiplex array.

RESULTS

Significantly, compared with control group, higher concentrations of VEGF-A and IP-10 were found in the CCH patients (P = 0.002 and P < 0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

VEGF-A and IP-10 might be involved with the angiogenic and antiangiogenic process in CCH patients, which provides new insight into the pathophysiology of CCH and could be potential targets for treatment.

Serous business: Delineating the broad spectrum of diseases with subretinal fluid in the macula

A wide range of ocular diseases can present with serous subretinal fluid in the macula and therefore clinically mimic central serous chorioretinopathy (CSC). In this manuscript, we categorise the diseases and conditions that are part of the differential diagnosis into 12 main pathogenic subgroups: neovascular diseases, vitelliform lesions, inflammatory diseases, ocular tumours, haematological malignancies, paraneoplastic syndromes, genetic diseases, ocular developmental anomalies, medication-related conditions and toxicity-related diseases, rhegmatogenous retinal detachment and tractional retinal detachment, retinal vascular diseases, and miscellaneous diseases. In addition, we describe 2 new clinical pictures associated with macular subretinal fluid accumulation, namely serous maculopathy with absence of retinal pigment epithelium (SMARPE) and serous maculopathy due to aspecific choroidopathy (SMACH). Differentiating between these various diseases and CSC can be challenging, and obtaining the correct diagnosis can have immediate therapeutic and prognostic consequences. Here, we describe the key differential diagnostic features of each disease within this clinical spectrum, including representative case examples. Moreover, we discuss the pathogenesis of each disease in order to facilitate the differentiation from typical CSC.