Sibel COŞKUN AKDEMİR, Mehtap ARSLANTURK EREN
Retina-Vitreus - 2026;35(1):53-58
Purpose: Assessment of the effects of COVID-19 pandemic- related treatment interruption on visual and anatomical outcomes in patients with neovascular age-related macular degeneration (AMD).Methods: Patients with neovascular AMD were included in this retrospective study. The patients were divided into two groups: Group 1 (patients with a follow-up period of 6 months or less before the pandemic) and Group 2 (patients with a follow-up period of longer than 6 months before the pandemic). After the COVID-19 pandemic, the groups were evaluated in terms of reduction in best corrected visual acuity (BCVA) and increase in central macular thickness (CMT).Results: 66 eyes of 59 patients with AMD were included in this study (n=40 in Group 1, n=26 in Group 2). The mean BCVA change between the last visit before the COVID-19 pandemic and the first visit after the COVID-19 pandemic was logMAR 0.7+/-0.32 in Group 1 and logMAR 0.2+/-0.05 in Group 2. The mean CMT change between the last visit before the COVID-19 pandemic and the first visit after the COVID-19 pandemic was 174+/-94 mum in Group 1 and 68+/-36 mum in Group 2. There was a significant difference between groups in terms of BCVA reduction and CMT increase (p<0.001).Conclusion: The treatment interruption associated with the COVID-19 pandemic had a lesser impact on the anatomical and visual outcomes in more stable neovascular AMD patients.
