2MD, Kayseri City Hospital , Ophthalmology Department, Kayseri, Turkey DOI : 10.37845/ret.vit.2022.31.21 Purpose: To investigate the perfusion status of the optic nerve head using optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) in patients who had an operation for idiopathic macular hole (IMH) and to compare the differences in the blood flow status of the optic nerve head in both eyes of the patients with unilateral IMH with healthy control eyes.
Materials and Methods: The study included patients that underwent surgery with the diagnosis of full-thickness unilateral IMH, with the affected eyes being evaluated as Group 1 and the unaffected eye of the same patients being evaluated as Group 2. A control group (Group 3) was formed with age-matched healthy individuals. In addition to a general ophthalmologic examination, OCTA imaging was performed. Optic disc density and retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) measurements were compared between the three groups.
Results: The peripapillary and inferior RNFL measurements were lower in Group 1 compared to Group 3 (p<0.05 for both). The optic disc density measurements were lower in Group 1 compared to Group 3 in all areas. However, there was no statistically significant difference between Group 2 and Group 3.
Conclusions: The optic nerve head blood flow density is reduced in IMH, and a decrease in the optic disc vessel density revealed by OCTA can be an early indicator of the development of IMH.
Keywords : Optical coherence tomography angiography, Idiopathic macular hole, Optic disc, Optic nerve