The Occurrence of Intraretinal and Subretinal Fluid in Anterior Ischemic Optic Neuropathy Pathogenesis, Prognosis, and Treatment

Purpose: To describe the frequency and characteristics of intraretinal and subretinal fluid in nonarteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (NAAION) and to assess the influence on the visual deficit and optic nerve fiber/ganglion cell loss. Design: A retrospective, single-center study. Participants: Thirty-two patients with NAAION referred to our Neuro-ophthalmology Department between 2014 and 2021. Methods: The study was carried out at the University Hospital of Liege, Belgium. For participants in whom subretinal fluid was identified on standard OCT (Carl Zeiss Meditec) an additional macular OCT (Spectralis Heidelberg) had been performed. The pattern and the maximal height of the retinal fluid were determined manually, and thicknesses of retinal layers were obtained using the OCT protocol analysis. Results: The mean age of the cohort was 60 years (standard deviation, +/- 12.5; range, 22e88 years), and 65.6% were male. In the 21 eyes (46.7%) in which retinal fluid was observed, macular OCT findings were categorized according to fluid localization: 19 cases had parafoveal fluid (of whom 9 also had subfoveal fluid). One patient had subfoveal fluid alone, and 1 patient had peripapillary subretinal fluid alone. Specific patterns of optic disc (OD) swelling were associated with the occurrence and distribution of retinal edema. Visual acuity, visual field loss, and foveal thresholds were stable over the period of observation (P = 0.74, P = 0.42, and P = 0.36, respectively). No difference was found in visual function at 6 months between patients with retinal fluid treated (n = 10) or not treated (n = 11) with corticosteroids (visual acuity, P = 0.13; foveal threshold, P = 0.59; mean deviation, P = 0.66). Conclusions: Subretinal fluid is found in a high proportion of cases of NAAION. Visual function remained largely stable from presentation in this cohort. Corticosteroid intake at presentation did not influence visual recovery or timing of the resorption of tissue edema. Our findings do not support treatment of NAAION with corticosteroids with or without evidence of subretinal fluid acutely. With regard to pathogenesis, we propose that the volume of transudate generated at the OD is the critical factor rather than dysfunction of retinal mechanisms subserving reabsorption. Financial Disclosure(s): Proprietary or commercial disclosure may be found in the Footnotes and Disclosures at the end of this article. Ophthalmology 2023;130:1191-1200 (c) 2023 by the American Academy of Ophthalmology

Automated summary

The purpose of this study was to investigate the frequency and characteristics of intraretinal and subretinal fluid in nonarteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (NAAION) and its influence on visual deficit and optic nerve fiber/ganglion cell loss. The study found that subretinal fluid is found in a high proportion of NAAION cases, but visual function remains largely stable after onset, and corticosteroid intake at presentation does not affect visual recovery or the timing of tissue edema absorption.