Multi-mode imaging features of retinal arterial macroaneurysms

Objective To observe the clinical characteristics of multi-mode images of retinal arterial macroaneurysms and provide reference for the accurate diagnostic. Methods The clinic data of 24 patients (25 eyes) with retinal arterial macroaneurysms who were diagnosed in the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University from August 2012 to May 2016 were retrospectively analyzed.All patients received ophthalmologic examinations including visual acuity, fundus photography, and fundus fluorescein angiography (FFA). The patients who could not be diagnosed by fundus photography and FFA underwent indocyanine green angiography (ICGA) and spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) examinations.The visual acuity of the three types of retinal arterial macroaneurysms and the diameters of retinal arterial macroaneurysms based on FFA images was analyzed. Results A single macroaneurysm appeared in all the 25 eyes.Retinal arterial macroaneurysms of 22 eyes were on temporal artery branches and those of 3 eyes were on the nasal artery branches.Sixteen retinal arterial macroaneurysms were determined as hemorrhagic type, 2 were exudative type and the other 7 were quiescent type.The difference of vision acuity in the three types of retinal arterial macroaneurysms was significantly different (χ2=15.117, P=0.001). Retinal arterial macroaneurysms of 20 eyes could be clearly exhibited by FFA, and the retinal arterial macroaneurysms in other 5 eyes which were concealed due to bleeding were displayed by ICGA and OCT.The average diameter of retinal arterial macroaneurysms and normal arteries were (330.65±43.09)μm and (134.70±10.74)μm, respectively, showing a significant difference (t=21.034, P=0.000) and a positive correlation between them (r=0.867, P=0.000). Conclusions Most retinal arterial macroaneurysms can be diagnosed by FFA, moreover, both ICGA and OCT can provide necessary supplement for the concealed retinal arterial macroaneurysms.The larger the diameter of the normal artery is, the larger the diameter of the corresponding retinal arterial macroaneurysms is.The typing of retinal arterial macroaneurysms can offer basis for the evaluation of management. Key words: Retinal artery; Macroaneurysm/diagnosis; Clinical characteristics; Fluorescein angiography; Optical coherence tomography