Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2025 Apr 17;55(3):652-657.
doi: 10.55730/1300-0144.6012. eCollection 2025.

Short-term efficacy and safety of nondamaging retinal laser therapy for retinitis pigmentosa-associated cystoid macular edema

Seda Çevik Kaya  1 , Mehmet Çitirik  1 , Mevlüt Yilmaz  1 , Eyüpcan Şensoy  1
Affiliations

Short-term efficacy and safety of nondamaging retinal laser therapy for retinitis pigmentosa-associated cystoid macular edema

Seda Çevik Kaya et al. Turk J Med Sci. .

Abstract

Background/aim: To evaluate the short-term efficacy and safety of nondamaging retinal laser therapy (NRT) for retinitis pigmentosa-associated cystoid macular edema (RP-CME) and analyze anatomical and functional outcomes.

Materials and methods: A retrospective case series of 40 eyes from 30 patients with RP-CME was conducted. The patients underwent NRT using a PASCAL laser system with endpoint management (EpM) software. Central macular thickness (CMT) and best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) were assessed at baseline and 2 months posttreatment. Long-term follow-up data, including recurrence rates were also reviewed.

Results: At the 2-month follow-up, NRT significantly reduced mean CMT by 79.7 μm (p < 0.001) and improved BCVA by 0.10 LogMAR (p < 0.001). Complete resolution of CME was observed in 30% of the eyes, while 52.5% experienced recurrence within 6 months. Unilateral cases exhibited greater CMT reductions than bilateral cases (p < 0.05). No retinal damage from the laser was observed. The long-term sustainability of these effects remains unclear, and repeated treatments have not yet been assessed.

Conclusion: NRT is a safe and effective short-term treatment for RP-CME, achieving significant anatomical and functional improvements without evidence of retinal damage. However, the high recurrence rate and absence of long-term data warrant further investigation. Future studies should explore repeated treatments, genetic subtypes, and correlations with the ellipsoid zone integrity.

Keywords: Retinitis pigmentosa; central macular thickness; cystoid macular edema; micropulse laser; nondamaging retinal laser therapy; visual acuity.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of interest: The authors declare that there are no conflicts of interest related to this work.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Association between baseline and posttreatment BCVA and CMT. Scatter plots showing the relationship between baseline and 2-month posttreatment central macular thickness (CMT) (left) and best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) (right) after nondamaging retinal laser therapy (NRT). The data demonstrate that outcomes are influenced by baseline anatomical and functional status.
Figure 2
Figure 2
OCT imaging of a case with significant CMT reduction after NRT. (Example 1). Spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) images of a representative patient before and 2 months after NRT. (a) Baseline OCT showing significant cystoid macular edema with CMT of 456 μm. (b) Posttreatment OCT showing substantial resolution of cystoid spaces and a CMT reduction of 298 μm.
Figure 3
Figure 3
OCT imaging of a case with moderate CMT reduction after NRT. (Example 2). (a) Baseline OCT showing CME with a central macular thickness of 418 μm. (b) Posttreatment OCT demonstrating partial resolution of cystoid spaces, with a 254 μm reduction in CMT.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Hartong DT, Berson EL, Dryja TP. Retinitis pigmentosa. Lancet. 2006;368(9549):1795–1809. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(06)69740-7. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Makiyama Y, Oishi A, Otani A, Ogino K, Nakagawa S, et al. Prevalence and spatial distribution of cystoid spaces in retinitis pigmentosa: investigation with spectral domain optical coherence tomography. Retina. 2014;34(5):981–988. doi: 10.1097/IAE.0000000000000010. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Liu G, Liu X, Li H, Du Q, Wang F. Optical coherence tomographic analysis of retina in retinitis pigmentosa patients. Ophthalmic Research. 2016;56(3):111–122. doi: 10.1159/000445063. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Hajali M, Fishman GA, Anderson RJ. The prevalence of cystoid macular oedema in retinitis pigmentosa patients determined by optical coherence tomography. British Journal of Ophthalmology. 2008;92(8):1065–1068. doi: 10.1136/bjo.2008.138560. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Kitahata S, Gocho K, Motozawa N, Yokota S, Yamamoto M, et al. Evaluation of photoreceptor features in retinitis pigmentosa with cystoid macular edema by using an adaptive optics fundus camera. Public Library of Science ONE. 2024;19(1):e0296493. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0296493. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources