Purpose: To assess associations between visual acuity (VA) and the status of the photoreceptor inner segment-outer segment (IS-OS) junction in a subset of patients in the Standard Care vs COrticosteroid for REtinal Vein Occlusion (SCORE) Study.
Methodology: High-resolution time domain optical coherence tomography (OCT) scans of study eyes from a single site participating in the SCORE Study were evaluated. Integrity of the IS-OS junction in the central subfield was evaluated using a three-step scale: absent, abnormal or normal. Associations of the IS-OS status with ETDRS VA letter score and center point thickness (CPT) were investigated.
Results: Baseline OCTs of 42 eyes were evaluated. The IS-OS junction was absent in 30 (71%) and abnormal in 12 (29%). At month 12, the IS-OS junction was absent in 18 (43%), abnormal in 12 (28%), and normal in 12 (28%) eyes. At baseline, IS-OS status was significantly associated with CPT, but not with VA. At month 12, IS-OS status was significantly associated with CPT and VA, that is, absent or abnormal IS-OS was associated with increased CPT and worse VA. Change in IS-OS status was not associated with change in CPT (P=0.8). Worsening of IS-OS status was associated with loss of VA and improvement in IS-OS status to normal was associated with gain in VA (P=0.03).
Conclusion: In this data set with long-term follow-up of OCTs as part of the SCORE Study, there is a correlation between change in IS-OS status and VA. This supports further evaluation of outer retinal morphology in larger data sets.