Use of intravitreal triamcinolone acetonide injection in unilateral idiopathic juxtafoveal telangiectasis

Navigated Focal Laser of Macular Telangiectasia Type I (Adult-Onset Coats' Disease)

We aimed to evaluate the anatomical and functional outcome of selective photocoagulation of idiopathic macular telangiectasia type 1 by navigated focal laser (Navilas, OD-OS GmBH). Consecutive patients with idiopathic macular telangiectasia type 1 were included in the analysis. All patients were treated with navigated focal laser, planned on multimodal imaging. Seven eyes of seven patients were retrospectively analyzed. Navigated laser photocoagulation of idiopathic macular telangiectasia type 1 successfully occluded the microaneurysms, inducing regression of macular edema and exudation, significative improvement in best-corrected visual acuity at 3 (P = 0.035) and 6 months (P = 0.034) and a decrease in central macular thickness at 3 (P = 0.01) and 6 months (P = 0.01). Patients with idiopathic macular telangiectasia type 1 are ideal candidates for navigated laser treatment. Navigated focal treatment has been shown to be effective and safe in occluding aneurysmal dilations without any side effects. [Ophthalmic Surg Lasers Imaging Retina 2024;55:545-551.].

THE LONG-TERM EFFECT OF CYSTOTOMY WITH FIBRINOGEN CLOT REMOVAL FOR A CYSTOID MACULAR EDEMA SECONDARY TO IDIOPATHIC MACULAR TELANGIECTASIA TYPE 1: A CASE REPORT

PURPOSE

To report the case of a patient with cystoid macular edema secondary to idiopathic macular telangiectasia (MacTel) Type 1, which was successfully treated by cystotomy and en bloc removal of the fibrinogen-rich component of the cystoid lesion.

METHODS

An 80-year-old man was referred to our department because of a visual defect in his right eye. His best-corrected decimal visual acuity was 0.7 (Snellen equivalent, 20/30). A fundus examination revealed clustered temporal juxafoveal microaneurysms and foveal cystoid macular edema. The patient refused to undergo conventional treatments, including direct retinal photocoagulation for microaneurysms, intravitreal anti-vascular endothelial growth factor injection, and intravitreal triamcinolone injection. However, he provided consent to undergo cystotomy and en bloc removal of the fibrinogen-rich component of the cystoid lesion.

RESULTS

His best-corrected decimal visual acuity was 0.2 (Snellen equivalent, 20/100) just before the surgery. A 27-gauge vitrectomy with internal limiting membrane peeling was performed. Cystotomy was performed during the surgery, and the fibrinogen clot visible in the cystoid cavity was also removed. Cystoid macular edema rapidly disappeared after the surgery. Three years postoperatively, the patient had best-corrected decimal visual acuity of 0.5 (Snellen equivalent, 20/40) at the last medical examination, and the cystoid macular edema had not recurred.

CONCLUSION

Cystotomy and en bloc removal of the fibrinogen-rich component of the cystoid lesion could be valid treatment options for cystoid macular edema secondary to MacTel Type 1.

Comparison of anatomical and visual outcomes following different anti-vascular endothelial growth factor treatments in subretinal neovascular membrane secondary to type 2 proliferative macular telangiectasia

PURPOSE

To evaluate central macular thickness (CMT), subfoveal choroidal thickness (SFCT), and visual outcomes following different intravitreal anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) treatments in eyes with subretinal neovascular membrane (SRNVM) due to type 2 proliferative macular telangiectasia (Mac Tel 2).

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A total of 38 eyes of 34 patients who underwent intravitreal aflibercept (IVA), intravitreal ranibizumab (IVR), or intravitreal bevacizumab (IVB) injections secondary to SRNVM due to type 2 proliferative MacTel were retrospectively reviewed. The CMT, central macular volume (CMV), best corrected visual acuity (BCVA), and SFCT were evaluated at baseline and at 2 weeks, at 1 month, and at final visits following treatment. Spectral-domain optical coherence tomography and enhanced depth optical coherence tomography were used for the analysis.

RESULTS

The mean age of the patients was 58.34 ± 12.48 years (range, 27-79 years). The mean follow-up time was 15.97 ± 6.79 months (range 5-32 months). The mean BCVA showed a statistically significant increase in each group (< 0.001). There was no statistically significant difference in BCVA changes between groups in follow-up periods. There was a significant decrease in CMT following IVA (326.4 ± 168.03 μm to 236 ± 58.33 μm) and IVB (383.71 ± 156.79 μm to 343.85 ± 146.25 μm) (p < 0.001, p = 0.004, respectively) whereas no significant decrease in CMT was observed following IVR (374.57 ± 124.28 μm to 339.71 ± 126.10 μm) (p = 0.65) between baseline and final visit. The SFCT significantly decreased following both IVB and IVR treatments (p = 0.009, p = 0.03, respectively).

CONCLUSIONS

The IVA, IVR, and IVB were found to be effective with regards to anatomical and visual outcomes in proliferative Mac Tel type 2 patients related with SRNVM. Patients receiving both IVA and IVB needed less injections compared to patients who received IVR. Moreover, IVB and IVR lead to significant decrease in SFCT whereas IVA did not show significant effect on SFCT.

Type II Macular Telangiectasia Presenting as Bilateral Retinochoroidal Anastomosis

PURPOSE

Retinochoroidal anastamosis (RCA) is known to be associated with retinal angiomatous proliferans rather than idiopathic macular telangiectasia. The case report describes a rare association of bilateral RCA with type II idiopathic macular telangiectasia in an elderly woman.

CASE REPORT

A 65-year-old female patient presented with decreased vision in both eyes to the ophthalmology clinic. She was diagnosed with bilateral large serous retinal pigment epithelial detachments (PED). Atypical association of PED with IMT led to additional imaging, including fluorescein angiography (FA), spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT), and indocyanine green angiography (ICGA). Multimodal imaging analysis revealed characteristic signs of RCA such as the so-called kissing sign on SD-OCT. The patient was not offered any treatment due to the poor prognosis associated with the condition.

CONCLUSIONS

Although more commonly associated with retinal angiomatous proliferans (type III neovascular age-related macular degeneration), RCA can present in type II IMT Stage 5.

Treatment Modalities for Idiopathic Macular Telangiectasia: An Evidence-Based Systematic Review of the Literature

PURPOSE

The purpose of this systematic review was to stratify the literature on the therapeutic approaches for macular telangiectasia (Mactel type 1 and 2) to provide evidenced-based practical guidelines for the optimal standard care of these conditions.

METHODS

A comprehensive search of PubMed was performed using a specific search algorithm. All articles retrieved were carefully screened and their references were manually reviewed for additional relevant data. Level of evidence was provided for each treatment modality, graded as level I, II, III, IV, and V, and indicative of very strong, strong, substantial, relatively weak, and weak evidence, respectively.

RESULTS

1445 abstracts were checked and 123 were found to be relevant. Out of them, 102 were eligible for the purpose of our review and 86 were focused on treatment of macular telangiectasia. Most publications combined cases of Mactel type 1 and type 2, despite their distinct pathophysiology. In Mactel type 1, laser photocoagulation of the telangiectasia remains the mainstay in controlling macular edema, while anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (anti-VEGF) agents provide short-term benefits. In Mactel type 2, current treatment options are not effective in the management of the non-proliferative stage, while anti-VEGF agents seem to be effective in the treatment of choroidal neovascularization complicating the disease.

CONCLUSION

It is important to differentiate the type of macular telangiectasia to plan appropriate treatment.

Dexamethasone Implant for the Treatment of Type 1 Idiopathic Macular Telangiectasia

PURPOSE

To report our results of 4 patients about the efficacy and safety of intravitreal dexamethasone implant for type 1 idiopathic macular telangiectasia (IMT).

METHODS

Four patients' charts with type 1 IMT treated with intravitreal dexamethasone implant were retrospectively reviewed. All patients underwent full ophthalmic examination including best corrected visual acuity (BCVA), spectral domain optical coherence tomography, and fluorescein angiography. BCVA, central macular thickness (CMT), and macular volume (MV) were evaluated.

RESULTS

The median BCVA was logMAR 0.55 (range 0.2-1.3) at baseline, improved to logMAR 0.45 (range 0.2-1) at 2 months after the first injection, and deteriorated to logMAR 0.7 (range 0.2-1) at final visit. The median CMT was 393 μm (range 283-410 μm) and MV was 2.70 mm(3) (range 1.96-2.87 mm(3)) at baseline. Two months after the first injection median CMT decreased to 327 μm (range 269-356 μm) and MV decreased to 2.45 mm(3) (range 1.93-2.57 mm(3)). At final visit median CMT slightly increased to 342 μm (range 258-444 μm) and MV slightly increased to 2.56 mm(3) (range 1.93-2.89 mm(3)). None of the changes were statistically significant.

CONCLUSION

Considering the effects of dexamethasone on macular edema intravitreal dexamethasone implant can be used in selected cases. Randomized clinical trials with larger sample size are needed for further evaluation.

[Intravitreal bevacizumab in the treatment of idiopathic juxtafoveal telangiectasis type I]

CLINICAL CASE

We report a case of a 42 year-old male with a macular edema due to idiopathic juxtafoveal retinal telangiectasis type i, treated with 3 sequential injections of intravitreal bevacizumab (1.25 mg in 0.05 ml). Anatomical improvements were observed after one year of follow up.

DISCUSSION

There is currently no general consensus regarding the treatment of unilateral idiopathic juxtafoveal telangiectasis. The therapeutic options are, grid laser photocoagulation, intravitreal triamcinolone, verteporfin photodynamic therapy, or anti-VEGF. Visual acuity and anatomical improvements were observed in this case after intravitreal bevacizumab. Thus, intravitreal bevacizumab seems to be effective to treat macular edema in idiopathic juxtafoveal telangiectasis type i.

Pars plana vitrectomy combined with focal endolaser photocoagulation for idiopathic macular telangiectasia

Background. To report the outcome of pars plana vitrectomy (PPV) combined with intraoperative endolaser focal photocoagulation (PC) on eyes with idiopathic macular telangiectasis (MacTel) type 1. Methods. This was a retrospective study of two female patients with MacTel type 1 who were resistant to focal photocoagulation, sub-Tenon triamcinolone injection, and/or antiangiogenic drugs. The best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) was determined, and fluorescein angiography (FA) and spectral domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) were performed before and after surgery for up to 19 months. Results. After surgery, the BCVA gradually improved from 20/100 to 20/20 at 19 months in Case 1 and from 20/50 to 20/13 at 13 months in Case 2. Fluorescein angiography (FA) showed leakage at the late phase, and OCT showed that the cystoid macular edema was resolved and the fovea was considerably thinner postoperatively. Conclusion. Patients with MacTel type 1 who are refractory to the other types of treatments can benefit from PPV combined with intraoperative endolaser focal PC with functional and morphological improvements.

Macular telangiectasia type 2

Macular telangiectasia type 2 is a bilateral disease of unknown cause with characteristic alterations of the macular capillary network and neurosensory atrophy. Its prevalence may be underestimated and has recently been shown to be as high as 0.1% in persons 40 years and older. Biomicroscopy may show reduced retinal transparency, crystalline deposits, mildly ectatic capillaries, blunted venules, retinal pigment plaques, foveal atrophy, and neovascular complexes. Fluorescein angiography shows telangiectatic capillaries predominantly temporal to the foveola in the early phase and a diffuse hyperfluorescence in the late phase. High-resolution optical coherence tomography (OCT) may reveal disruption of the photoreceptor inner segment-outer segment border, hyporeflective cavities at the level of the inner or outer retina, and atrophy of the retina in later stages. Macular telangiectasia type 2 shows a unique depletion of the macular pigment in the central retina and recent therapeutic trials showed that such depleted areas cannot re-accumulate lutein and zeaxanthin after oral supplementation. There have been various therapeutic approaches with limited or no efficacy. Recent clinical trials with compounds that block vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) have established the role of VEGF in the pathophysiology of the disease, but have not shown significant efficacy, at least for the non-neovascular disease stages. Recent progress in structure-function correlation may help to develop surrogate outcome measures for future clinical trials. In this review article, we summarize the current knowledge on macular telangiectasia type 2, including the epidemiology, the genetics, the clinical findings, the staging and the differential diagnosis of the disease. Findings using retinal imaging are discussed, including fluorescein angiography, OCT, adaptive optics imaging, confocal scanning laser ophthalmoscopy, and fundus autofluorescence, as are the findings using visual function testing including visual acuity and fundus-controlled microperimetry. We provide an overview of the therapeutic approaches for both non-neovascular and neovascular disease stages and provide a perspective of future directions including animal models and potential therapeutic approaches.

Primitive retinal vascular abnormalities: tumors and telangiectasias

Primitive retinal vascular abnormalities are benign conditions of the retinal circulation that comprise vascular tumors and telangiectasias. The principal vascular tumors of the retina include retinal capillary hemangioma, cavernous hemangioma of the retina, racemose hemangiomatosis of the retina and retinal vasoproliferative tumor, while primary retinal telangiectasias include Coats' disease, Leber's miliary aneurysms and idiopathic juxtafoveal telangiectasias. In most cases, these alterations result in significant visual impairment due to exudation determined by the structural abnormalities of the retinal vasculature. The aim of this review is to assess the different clinical and diagnostic features of the single pathological entities and to discuss the available treatment modalities including the onset of intravitreal antivascular endothelial growth factor therapy.

Idiopathic juxtafoveolar retinal telangiectasis: a current review

Idiopathic juxtafoveolar retinal telangiectasis (IJFT), also known as parafoveal telangiectasis or idiopathic macular telangiectasia, refers to a heterogeneous group of well-recognized clinical entities characterized by telangiectatic alterations of the juxtafoveolar capillary network of one or both eyes, but which differ in appearance, presumed pathogenesis, and management strategies. Classically, three groups of IJFT are identified. Group I is unilateral easily visible telangiectasis occurring predominantly in males, and causing visual loss as a result of macular edema. Group II, the most common, is bilateral occurring in both middle-aged men and women, and presenting with telangiectasis that is more difficult to detect on biomicroscopy, but with characteristic and diagnostic angiographic and optical coherence tomography features. Vision loss is due to retinal atrophy, not exudation, and subretinal neovascularization is common. Group III is very rare characterized predominantly by progressive obliteration of the perifoveal capillary network, occurring usually in association with a medical or neurologic disease. This paper presents a current review of juxtafoveolar retinal telangiectasis, reviewing the classification of these entities and focusing primarily on the two most common types encountered in clinical practice, i.e., groups I and II, describing their clinical features, histopathology, natural history, complications, latest results from imaging modalities and functional studies, differential diagnosis, and treatment modalities.

Bevacizumab in the treatment of idiopathic macular telangiectasia

BACKGROUND

To describe functional and morphological long-term follow-up results in patients with idiopathic macular telangiectasia (IMT) treated with intravitreal bevacizumab.

METHODS

Retrospective case series of three consecutive male patients with IMT who were treated with intravitreal bevacizumab injections. Best corrected visual acuity (BCVA) as well as fluorescein angiography (FA) and optical coherence tomography (OCT) were monitored over the period of up to 12 months.

RESULTS

Single intravitreal bevacizumab injection resulted in a marked increase in BCVA from 20/50 to 20/20 in the patient with type 1 (aneurysmal) IMT during the first 4 weeks. Late-phase leakage on FA and cystoid macular oedema on OCT decreased significantly. This was sustained over the whole follow-up period of 12 months. In contrast, in the two patients with type 2 (perifoveal) IMT, leakage on FA decreased likewise, but this was not accompanied by an increase in BCVA despite triple injections. Small cystic changes seen on OCT remained unchanged.

CONCLUSION

Patients with type 1 IMT with pronounced macular oedema on OCT may benefit from intravitreal bevacizumab injections, showing functional as well as morphological improvement, while patients with type 2 IMT with minimal cystic changes on OCT do not show functional improvement despite repeated injections.

Indocyanine-green-mediated photothrombosis (IMP) with intravitreal triamcinolone acetonide for macular edema secondary to group 2A idiopathic parafoveal telangiectasis without choroidal neovascularization: a pilot study

BACKGROUND

The purpose of this study was to determine the feasibility, safety and clinical effect of indocyanine green (ICG)-mediated photothrombosis (IMP) combined with intravitreal triamcinolone acetonide (IVTA) in patients with macular edema secondary to idiopathic parafoveal telangiectasis (IPFT) group 2A without choroidal neovascularization (CNV).

METHODS

Nine eyes of six patients that were treated with IMP immediately followed by IVTA at a dose of 4 mg participated in the study. Patients had a mean follow-up of 23.3 months (range 12-36 months). Patients underwent one or two sessions of IMP combined with IVTA ("study group"). An IVTA-only group of 19 eyes from 14 patients with macular edema secondary to IPFT group 2A that underwent an IVTA 4 mg without IMP ("IVTA-only group") was included for comparison. In addition, a matched control group of 40 eyes from 20 patients selected retrospectively from our medical records with macular edema secondary to IPFT group 2A without any therapy was included ("observation group").

RESULTS

The best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) remained stable in five eyes (55.5%). Four eyes (44.4%) demonstrated improvement of BCVA (> or = two ETDRS lines), and no eyes experienced worsening of visual acuity (> or = two ETDRS lines). A significant decrease in hyperfluorescence was not seen with fluorescein angiography (FA), however optical coherence tomography (OCT) showed a decrease in the size of inner intraretinal hyporeflective spaces or cystic edema. Two (22.2%) eyes developed an increase in intraocular pressure. However, it was medically controlled with topical anti-glaucoma medications. Cataract developed in five eyes (55.5%). Six of nine eyes (66.6%) required one retreatment during the study period. At the last follow-up (mean 21.1 months, range 12-30 months) in the IVTA-only group, 5 (25.3%) eyes improved BCVA, 11 (57.9%) eyes remained within two lines of baseline BCVA and 3 (15.8%) eyes lost BCVA. In the observation group, with similar follow-up, 87.5% of eyes showed either stabilization or deterioration of BCVA over time.

CONCLUSIONS

Combined IMP and IVTA may provide stability or improvement in BCVA and fundus findings in eyes with macular edema secondary to IPFT group 2A without CNV at a minimum follow-up of 12 months.