A randomised prospective study of outpatient haemodilution for central retinal vein obstruction.
OBJECTIVE
Central retinal vein obstruction (CRVO) has significant visual morbidity. We prospectively evaluated an outpatient haemodilution (HD) regimen for CRVO.


METHODS
We recruited 59 patients with CRVO of less than three months' duration and visual acuity (VA) worse than or equal to 6/9.5. Thirty patients underwent HD (packed cell volume of <0.35, 12 weeks); there were 29 controls and follow-up was for six months.


RESULTS
Incidence rates for VA improvement (P = 0.708) and rubeosis iridis (P = 0.619) between the two groups were not different. The incidence rate of VA deterioration was 5.315 times higher with HD (P = 0.035, Cox Proportional analysis).


CONCLUSIONS
This data does not support the previous studies on haemodilution.
Moorfields Eye Hospital, London.
A P
AP
Luckie
J J
JJ
Wroblewski
P
P
Hamilton
A C
AC
Bird
M
M
Sanders
N
N
Slater
W
W
Green
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006438:Hemodilution / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010045:Outpatients; D011379:Prognosis; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012169:Retinal Vein / Q000503:physiopathology; D012170:Retinal Vein Occlusion / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy*; D014792:Visual Acuity