Open AccessAdditive Value of a Face-to-Face Visit to Virtual Remote Decision in Patients with Neovascular Age-Related Macular Degeneration
Author(s) -
Dana Zvi,
Dinah Zur,
Shula Schwartz,
Shai Cohen,
Avi Saranga,
Anat Loewenstein,
Michaella Goldstein
Publication year - 2022
Publication title -
ophthalmologica
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.639
H-Index - 60
eISSN - 1423-0267
pISSN - 0030-3755
DOI - 10.1159/000522273
Subject(s) - macular degeneration , medicine , population , ophthalmology , choroidal neovascularization , fundus (uterus) , cohort , visual acuity , retrospective cohort study , optometry , environmental health
The increasing high prevalence of neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nvAMD) in the aging population combined with the need for frequent monitoring and treatment for many years, especially in the COVID19 era, raises the need to establish an effective, reliable and safe follow up and treatment model. This study evaluates the difference in treatment decisions comparing between the gold standard face-to-face clinical examination and virtual evaluation approach based only on visual acuity (VA) and optical coherence tomography (OCT) scans without clinical fundoscopic examination in neovascular age-related macular degeneration patients.Methods: Single center retrospective cohort study who compared an original ‘face-to-face’ visit treatment decision regarding the need for anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (anti-VEGF) drug, interval, and treatment regimen based on routine VA, spectral domain -OCT imaging and dilated fundus examination (DFE) to two ‘virtual’ treatment decisions based on evaluation of OCT scans and previous medical records before and after revealing VA data on the same nvAMD patients eyes.Results: 169 eyes of 114 patients were included in the study. 49 patients (43%) suffered from bilateral nvAMD and had both eyes included in the study. Agreement between the “face-to-face visit treatment decision” and “virtual treatment decision” was noted in 74.6% and 71.6% eyes before and after revealing the patient’s visual acuity in the study visit, respectively. Conclusions: Virtual evaluation results in similar treatment decisions for nvAMD patients compared to standard face-to-face clinical examination.