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Demographics and quality of life effects of normobaric oxygen on cohort of patients with retinal vein occlusions

PURPOSE: This study examined the effects of normobaric oxygen in patients diagnosed with either a Central Retinal Vein Occlusion (CRVO) or Branched Retinal Vein Occlusion (BRVO) who had previously undergone treatment via Anti-VEGF or PRP treatment. The investigation looked into the changes in Macular Thickness (MT) and Visual Acuity (VA).
METHODS: This pilot study analyzed patient data from Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (Boston, MA) that had been diagnosed with Retinal Vein Occlusions. The patients were brought in and given 3 hours of normobaric oxygen via an oxygen concentrator with imaging and vision checked both before and after the therapy.
RESULTS: Eighty-eight percent of our patients in this pilot study saw a decrease in macular thickness after 3-hour oxygen therapy. The mean change in Maximal Macular Thickness was a decrease of 7.1% which was statistically significant when compared to healthy eyes (p<0.001). Additionally, 44% of patients saw an increase in visual acuity, the primary measure of vision. Visual acuity showed a statistically significant change when compared to changes in healthy eyes (p=0.015). No statistical significance was found in the testing of contrast sensitivity nor intraocular pressure.
CONCLUSION: Our study showed improvement in central macular thickness and quality of life for individuals using noninvasive normobaric hyperoxia as a treatment for retinal vein occlusions. However, further research is needed to improve the impact of the study and a full randomized control trial should be implemented to further understand the potential impacts of a noninvasive normobaric hyperoxia treatment as a means to alleviate symptoms in retinal vein occlusions. In addition, in the future oxygen supplementation in conjunction with periodic injections of Anti- VEGF could be investigated as a treatment regimen with potential benefits beyond individual therapy. / 2020-06-17T00:00:00Z

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:bu.edu/oai:open.bu.edu:2144/36695
Date17 June 2019
CreatorsMinturn, Robert
ContributorsArroyo, Jorge
Source SetsBoston University
Languageen_US
Detected LanguageEnglish
TypeThesis/Dissertation
RightsAttribution 4.0 International, http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

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