EJO
ISSN 1120-6721
European Journal of Ophthalmology
2018, Vol. 28(3) 306–310
© The Author(s) 2017
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DOI: 10.5301/ejo.5001074
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ORIGINAL RESEARCH ARTICLE
(VA) loss of 3 lines within 3 years and a fnal VA of less than
20/200 in 53% of cases (1).
Currently, there is no standard treatment for SMH associ-
ated with nAMD. Many treatment optons for SMH have been
reported, including intravitreal (IV) ant-vascular endothelial
growth factor (VEGF) agent; pneumatc displacement (PD),
either with (5, 6) or without IV tssue plasminogen actvator
(tPA) (7, 8); IV injecton of tPA, gas, and ant-VEGF agent (9,
10); surgical removal of hematoma, with (11) or without (12)
removal of the choroidal neovascular membrane (CNVM);
pars plana vitrectomy (PPV) with tPA-assisted PD (11, 13); and
subretnal tPA and an ant-VEGF agent (14, 15).
In clinical practce, tPA and ant-VEGF are generally co-ap-
plied with PD. The in vivo compatbility of co-applied tPA and
ant-VEGF is not exactly known, and IV gas in the facedown posi-
ton may decrease the amount of drugs that reach the target ts-
sue. Therefore, we have been implementng sequental use of
IV tPA, PD, and IV ant-VEGF treatment for SMH since June 2014.
In this study, we aimed to report our results for sequen-
tal IV tPA, PD, and IV ant-VEGF treatment in patents with
nAMD-related SMH. Our results may be helpful for further
studies.
Sequental tssue plasminogen actvator,
pneumatc displacement, and ant-VEGF
treatment for submacular hemorrhage
Handan Bardak, Yavuz Bardak, Yeşim Erçalık, Burak Erdem, Gökhan Arslan, Semrin Timlioglu
Department of Ophthalmology, Haydarpasa Numune Training and Research Hospital, Istanbul - Turkey
Introducton
Submacular hemorrhage (SMH) is a common manifes-
taton of neovascular age-related macular degeneraton
(nAMD) and may cause sudden and severe decrease of vision
(1). The visual prognosis is poor in nAMD-related SMH (2) due
to retnal damage. The retnal damage is caused by underly-
ing neovascular degeneratve processes (2), iron toxicity (3),
difusion barriers, and clot retracton (4). The natural history
of the conditon is characterized by an expected visual acuity
ABSTRACT
Purpose: To report the results of our sequental intravitreal (IV) tssue plasminogen actvator (tPA), pneumatc
displacement (PD), and IV ant-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) treatment in patents with neovascular
age-related macular degeneraton (nAMD)-related submacular hemorrhage (SMH).
Methods: A total of 16 eyes of 16 patents with SMH of less than 15 days duraton were included in this retrospec-
tve pilot study. The tPA was applied on the day of diagnosis, and PD was performed the following day. Patents
received 3 consecutve monthly IV injectons of ranibizumab startng from 15 days afer PD. During the follow-ups,
additonal ranibizumab treatment was performed if persistent macular or recurrent subretnal or intraretnal fuid
hemorrhage was observed.
Results: The mean central retnal thickness was 489 ± 92 μm (311-621 μm) at the tme of diagnosis, 324 ± 56 μm
(209-409 μm) at the frst month, 262 ± 48 μm (197-364 μm) at 3 months, 248 ± 40 μm (190-334 μm) at 6 months,
and 253 ± 41 μm (192-356 μm) at the last control (p<0.01). The mean best-corrected visual acuity was 2.08 ± 0.79
logMAR (0.7-3.0 logMAR) at baseline, 1.41 ± 0.70 logMAR (0.56-2.50 logMAR) at the frst month, 1.21 ± 0.66 log-
MAR (0.3-2.0 logMAR) at 3 months, 1.14 ± 0.77 logMAR (0.2-2.50 logMAR) at 6 months, and 1.09 ± 0.73 logMAR
(0.3-2.50 logMAR) at the last follow-up (p<0.01).
Conclusions: Sequental IV tPA, PD, and IV ant-VEGF treatments for SMH in patents with nAMD is efectve.
However, further studies are needed to establish the best treatment algorithm for SMH in patents with nAMD.
Keywords: Ant-vascular endothelial growth factor, Neovascular age-related macular degeneraton, Pneumatc
displacement, Submacular hemorrhage, Tissue plasminogen actvator
Accepted: October 16, 2017
Published online: November 4, 2017
Corresponding author:
Dr. Handan Bardak
Department of Ophthalmology
Haydarpasa Numune Training and Research Hospital
Uskudar
34668 Istanbul, Turkey
handanbardak@yahoo.com.tr