title: Retinal sensitivity loss and structural disturbance in areas of capillary nonperfusion of eyes with diabetic retinopathy.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To assess light sensitivity and morphologic changes of capillary nonperfused areas in diabetic retinopathy.
  
  
  METHODS
  Prospective, observational cross-sectional study.
  
  
  METHODS
  Seventeen consecutive patients (20 eyes) with areas of capillary nonperfusion resulting from severe nonproliferative or proliferative diabetic retinopathy were included in the study. All eyes underwent fluorescent angiography and fundus-related microperimetry. Nonperfused areas of the retina were scanned with optical coherence tomography (OCT).
  
  
  RESULTS
  In all 20 diabetic eyes, areas of capillary nonperfusion detected by fluorescein angiography were associated with the loss of retinal sensitivity. At the edges of the nonperfused area, retinal sensitivity tended to be reduced. The OCT images suggested a structural disturbance of the inner retina and high-reflectivity deposition located between the outer segments of photoreceptor and the retinal pigment epithelium corresponding to the areas of capillary nonperfusion.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Areas of capillary nonperfusion resulting from severe nonproliferative or proliferative diabetic retinopathy show morphologic changes of the retinal structure, which may lead to a loss of sensitivity.
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto, Japan.
authors.forename: Noriyuki
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Unoki
authors.forename: Kazuaki
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Nishijima
authors.forename: Atsushi
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sakamoto
authors.forename: Mihori
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kita
authors.forename: Daisuke
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Watanabe
authors.forename: Masanori
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hangai
authors.forename: Tetsushi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kimura
authors.forename: Naoaki
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Kawagoe
authors.forename: Masahumi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ohta
authors.forename: Nagahisa
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Yoshimura
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002196:Capillaries / Q000473:pathology; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003930:Diabetic Retinopathy / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000503:physiopathology*; D005260:Female; D005451:Fluorescein Angiography; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D020795:Photophobia / Q000503:physiopathology*; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012160:Retina / Q000503:physiopathology*; D012171:Retinal Vessels / Q000473:pathology*; D041623:Tomography, Optical Coherence; D058609:Visual Field Tests; D014794:Visual Fields