TY - JOUR
T1 - Longitudinal study of retinal structure, vascular, and neuronal function in patientswith relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis
T2 - 1-year follow-up
AU - Chen, Qi
AU - Jiang, Hong
AU - Delgado, Silvia
AU - Hernandez, Jeffrey
AU - Alba, Diego Eduardo
AU - Gregori, Giovanni
AU - Rammohan, Kottil W.
AU - Porciatti, Vittorio
AU - Wang, Jianhua
N1 - Funding Information:
Supported by the National Multiple Sclerosis Society (RG-1506-04890), NIH Center Grant P30 EY014801, and a Grant from Research to Prevent Blindness (R.P.B.).
Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 The Authors.
PY - 2021
Y1 - 2021
N2 - Objective: The purpose of this study was to quantify retinal structural, vascular, and functional changes in patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) over 1 year. Methods: Eighty-eight eyes of 44 patients with RRMS underwent assessments of low contrast letter acuity (LCLA), retinal ganglion cell function detected by the steady-state pattern electroretinogram (PERG), axonal micro structural integrity measured as birefringence, intraretinal layer thicknesses by ultra-high-resolution optical coherence tomography (OCT), volumetric vessel density (VVD) by OCT angiography, and retinal tissue perfusion (RTP) by the Retinal Function Imager (RFI). All measurements were performed at baseline and 1-year follow-up. The impacts of disease activities and a history of optic neuritis (ON) were analyzed. Results: Compared to baseline, there were no significant differences in all variables (P > 0.05), except for the axonal birefringence and RTP. The birefringence’s of the retinal fiber layer at the temporal and superior quadrants was significantly decreased (P < 0.05), whereas RTP was significantly increased (P < 0.05). In the subgroup with ON, significantly longer PERG latency and decreased VVD were observed at follow-up (P < 0.05). In patients with improved LCLA, significantly increased RTP and decreased VVD (P < 0.05) were also observed. Conclusions: This is the first longitudinal study that assessed the RTP and VVD, along with other retinal structural and functional parameters in MS. The recovery of retinal vascular function occurred with the improved LCLA, suggesting that these measurements may be associated with disease progression. Translational Relevance: The retinal micro vascular changes could be potential biomarkers for monitoring therapeutic efficacy in MS.
AB - Objective: The purpose of this study was to quantify retinal structural, vascular, and functional changes in patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) over 1 year. Methods: Eighty-eight eyes of 44 patients with RRMS underwent assessments of low contrast letter acuity (LCLA), retinal ganglion cell function detected by the steady-state pattern electroretinogram (PERG), axonal micro structural integrity measured as birefringence, intraretinal layer thicknesses by ultra-high-resolution optical coherence tomography (OCT), volumetric vessel density (VVD) by OCT angiography, and retinal tissue perfusion (RTP) by the Retinal Function Imager (RFI). All measurements were performed at baseline and 1-year follow-up. The impacts of disease activities and a history of optic neuritis (ON) were analyzed. Results: Compared to baseline, there were no significant differences in all variables (P > 0.05), except for the axonal birefringence and RTP. The birefringence’s of the retinal fiber layer at the temporal and superior quadrants was significantly decreased (P < 0.05), whereas RTP was significantly increased (P < 0.05). In the subgroup with ON, significantly longer PERG latency and decreased VVD were observed at follow-up (P < 0.05). In patients with improved LCLA, significantly increased RTP and decreased VVD (P < 0.05) were also observed. Conclusions: This is the first longitudinal study that assessed the RTP and VVD, along with other retinal structural and functional parameters in MS. The recovery of retinal vascular function occurred with the improved LCLA, suggesting that these measurements may be associated with disease progression. Translational Relevance: The retinal micro vascular changes could be potential biomarkers for monitoring therapeutic efficacy in MS.
KW - Low contrast letter acuity
KW - Multiple sclerosis
KW - Retinal ganglion cell
KW - Retinal nerve fiber layer
KW - Retinal tissue perfusion
KW - Volumetric vessel density
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U2 - 10.1167/tvst.10.6.6
DO - 10.1167/tvst.10.6.6
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85106661373
VL - 10
JO - Translational Vision Science and Technology
JF - Translational Vision Science and Technology
SN - 2164-2591
IS - 6
M1 - 6
ER -