[Treatment of retinal angiomatous proliferation (RAP). A retrospective study]

Abstract

Purpose: To assess the follow-up and response to treatment in patients with RAP.

Methods: A retrospective follow-up study of patients with RAP diagnosed between March 2002 and August 2005. Baseline and subsequent angiograms and optical coherence tomography results were reviewed and RAP classified according to the 3 stages described by Yannuzzi. The changes observed and the best visual acuity were assessed separately for each of the 4 different treatments used: Transpupillary thermotherapy (TTT), Photodynamic therapy (PDT), combined treatment with PDT and Intravitreal triamcinolone (IVT), and combined treatment with PDT, IVT and direct laser photocoagulation of the vascular intraretinal lesion (DLPh.).

Results: Fifteen eyes of 14 patients with RAP were studied (mean age, 77.5 years). The mean follow-up was 15.9 months and the mean number of treatments was 2.5. The final visual acuity was worse in 7 (46.7%), stable in 7 (46.7%) and better in 1 (6.6%). Visual acuity improvement, in regard to the treatment used, was: TTT group: 2 out of 14 (14.2%): PDT group: 1 out of 5 (20%); PDT + IVT group: 2 out of 5 (40%) and DLPh. + PDT + IVT group: 3 out of 5 (60%).

Conclusions: The final prognosis for RAP, in terms of visual acuity, was generally poor. However the best treatment was the combined treatment with DLPh + PDT + IVT, while the worst was TTT.