Visual Prognostic Factors in Eyes with Subretinal Fluid Associated with Branch Retinal Vein Occlusion

We investigated whether foveal ellipsoid zone (EZ) status affects visual prognosis in eyes with subretinal fluid (SRF) associated with branch retinal vein occlusion (BRVO). We included 38 eyes retrospectively and classified those with or without a continuous EZ on the SRF of the central foveola on the vertical optical coherence tomography (OCT) image at the initial visit as intact (n = 26) and disruptive EZ (n = 12) groups, respectively. In addition, we classified the intact EZ eyes into clear (n = 15) and blurred (n = 11) EZ groups according to whether EZ on the SRF was observed distinctly or not. Multiple regression analyses showed that baseline EZ status significantly correlated (p = 0.0028) with the 12-months logarithm of the minimum angle of resolution (logMAR) best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), indicating that baseline intact EZ significantly improves visual prognosis. The 12-months logMAR BCVA of the intact EZ group was significantly better (p < 0.001) than that of the disruptive EZ group, and did not differ significantly between the clear and blurred EZ groups. Thus, baseline foveal EZ status on vertical OCT images can be a novel biomarker for visual prognosis in eyes with SRF associated with BRVO.

Automated summary

We investigated the impact of foveal ellipsoid zone (EZ) status on visual prognosis in eyes with subretinal fluid (SRF) associated with branch retinal vein occlusion (BRVO). We found that baseline intact EZ significantly improved visual prognosis, as its status correlated with the 12-month best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA). The visual acuity of eyes with intact EZ was significantly better than those with disrupted EZ, indicating that foveal EZ status on vertical OCT images can be a novel biomarker for visual prognosis in BRVO-related SRF eyes.