TY - JOUR
T1 - Mechanisms of macular edema
AU - Haydinger, Cameron D.
AU - Ferreira, Lisia Barros
AU - Williams, Keryn A.
AU - Smith, Justine R.
PY - 2023/3/7
Y1 - 2023/3/7
N2 - Macular edema is the pathological accumulation of fluid in the central retina. It is a complication of many retinal diseases, including diabetic retinopathy, retinal vascular occlusions and uveitis, among others. Macular edema causes decreased visual acuity and, when chronic or refractory, can cause severe and permanent visual impairment and blindness. In most instances, it develops due to dysregulation of the blood-retinal barrier which permits infiltration of the retinal tissue by proteins and other solutes that are normally retained in the blood. The increase in osmotic pressure in the tissue drives fluid accumulation. Current treatments include vascular endothelial growth factor blockers, corticosteroids, and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. These treatments target vasoactive and inflammatory mediators that cause disruption to the blood-retinal barrier. In this review, a clinical overview of macular edema is provided, mechanisms of disease are discussed, highlighting processes targeted by current treatments, and areas of opportunity for future research are identified.
AB - Macular edema is the pathological accumulation of fluid in the central retina. It is a complication of many retinal diseases, including diabetic retinopathy, retinal vascular occlusions and uveitis, among others. Macular edema causes decreased visual acuity and, when chronic or refractory, can cause severe and permanent visual impairment and blindness. In most instances, it develops due to dysregulation of the blood-retinal barrier which permits infiltration of the retinal tissue by proteins and other solutes that are normally retained in the blood. The increase in osmotic pressure in the tissue drives fluid accumulation. Current treatments include vascular endothelial growth factor blockers, corticosteroids, and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. These treatments target vasoactive and inflammatory mediators that cause disruption to the blood-retinal barrier. In this review, a clinical overview of macular edema is provided, mechanisms of disease are discussed, highlighting processes targeted by current treatments, and areas of opportunity for future research are identified.
KW - diabetic retinopathy
KW - human
KW - macula
KW - macular edema
KW - retina
KW - retinal vein occlusion
KW - uveitis
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85150372871&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.3389/fmed.2023.1128811
DO - 10.3389/fmed.2023.1128811
M3 - Review article
AN - SCOPUS:85150372871
SN - 2296-858X
VL - 10
JO - Frontiers in Medicine
JF - Frontiers in Medicine
M1 - 1128811
ER -