Choroidal microvascular proliferation secondary to diabetes mellitus

Abstract

// Rui Hua 1 , Qing Li 2 , Ian Yat Hin Wong 2 , Hong Ning 1 and Hailin Wang 3 1 Department of Ophthalmology, First Hospital of China Medical University, Shenyang, China 2 Department of Ophthalmology, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China 3 Department of Ophthalmology, The Fourth Hospital of People, Shenyang, China Correspondence to: Hong Ning, email: // Hailin Wang, email: // Keywords : microangiopathy; proliferative diabetic choroidopathy; choroidal neovasculation; fluorescein angiography; indocyanine green angiography; Pathology Section Received : August 25, 2016 Accepted : December 02, 2016 Published : December 19, 2016 Abstract Diabetes is a common endocrine disorder associated with peripheral microvascular diseases such as proliferative retinal microangiopathy (or diabetic retinopathy), which may lead to blindness. Unfortunately, diabetic microvascular abnormalities in the choroid are underestimated in clinical practice. Recent literature has revealed that the severity of diabetic retinopathy is aggravated by choroidopathy resulting from hyperglycemia. Here, we introduce a case of diabetic retinopathy with choroidal neovascularization membrane but without signs of retinal microvascular proliferation or drusen. We investigated the pathogenesis of choroidal microvascular proliferation secondary to diabetes. We postulate that choroidal neovascularization is an intraocular microvascular complication of diabetes mellitus. Intravitreal anti-vascular endothelial growth factor therapy may be a treatment option for microvascular proliferation in both retina and choroids.