Predictive capacity of baseline hyperreflective dots on the intravitreal dexamethasone implant (Ozurdex®) outcomes in diabetic macular edema: a multicenter study.

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the predictive capacity of the baseline hyperreflective dots (HRDs) on the functional and anatomical response in patients with diabetic macular edema (DME). Additionally, we assessed the impact of the intravitreal dexamethasone (DEX) implant on the functional and anatomic outcomes. Retrospective, multicenter study. The number of HRDs was graded in four different stages: [A] none HRDs; [B] few, 1-10 HRDs; [C] moderate, 11-20 HRDs; and [D] many, ≥ 21 HRDs. For statistical purposes, groups A and B were combined [scarce HRDs (S-HRDs)] and group D was renamed as [abundant HRDs (A-HRDs)]. The primary endpoints were the mean change in best corrected visual acuity (BCVA) and central macular thickness (CMT) according to baseline HRD stage. One hundred eyes from one hundred patients were included in the study. Mean BCVA significantly improved from 52.9 (50.0 to 55.8) letters ETDRS at baseline to 57.2 (54.0 to 60.4) letters at month 6, p = 0.0039. There were no significant differences between the S-HRDs and A-HRD study groups in BCVA. As compared to baseline, CMT reduction was 106.3 (59.8 to 152.7) μm and 94.2 (34.7 to 153.7) μm in S-HRDs and A-HRD groups, respectively (p < 0.0001 each, respectively). Twenty-three (65.7%) and 18 (62.1%) eyes achieved a CMT reduction ≥ 10% in the S-HRD and A-HRD groups, respectively, p = 0.7640. DEX implant significantly reduced the presence of outer nuclear layer (ONL) disruptions (p = 0.0010). The number of HRDs did not influence either functional or anatomic outcomes. DEX implant significantly decreases the number of eyes with ONL disruptions, which might improve retinal integrity.