title: Evolution of idiopathic epiretinal membrane studied by optical coherence tomography.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To study the evolution of idiopathic epiretinal membrane (IERM) as examined by optical coherence tomography (OCT) in the 1-mm-diameter circle centered on the fovea.
  
  
  METHODS
  In a case series study 71 subjects (71 eyes) with idiopathic epiretinal membrane and macular thickness greater than 220-/+10 micro m were evaluated by OCT. The fellow healthy eye of 52 patients was used as the control group. The mean follow-up was 36 months. Measurements of macular thickness at baseline and at the final examination were performed. Best-corrected visual acuity was expressed as the number of letters read on the Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study chart.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Within the inner macular central circle of 1 mm diameter the thickness of the fovea increased by an average of 12.29% (p<0.001) during follow-up in the study group while in the control group the foveal thickness decreased by -0.44% (p=0.43). The mean increase of the fovea thickness was accompanied by a modest decrease of best-corrected visual acuity from a mean 43.26 letters at baseline to a mean 39.20 letters at the last examination (p<0.001).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In the study group the macular thickness increased during a mean follow-up period of 36 months. The average increase between the baseline and the final examination at the inner central circle of 1 mm diameter was 12.29%. Decrease of the macular thickness was not observed in any of the studied cases. The mean decrease of visual acuity was 9.4%. OCT also depicted with accuracy the changing morphology of the affected macula during the study period.
authors.affiliation: 2nd Department of Ophthalmology, University of Athens, Athens - Greece. george@hellasnet.gr
authors.forename: P G
authors.initials: PG
authors.lastname: Theodossiadis
authors.forename: V G
authors.initials: VG
authors.lastname: Grigoropoulos
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kyriaki
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Emfietzoglou
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Vergados
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Nikolaidis
authors.forename: G P
authors.initials: GP
authors.lastname: Theodossiadis
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D019773:Epiretinal Membrane / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008266:Macula Lutea / Q000503:physiopathology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D041623:Tomography, Optical Coherence / Q000379:methods*; D014792:Visual Acuity / Q000502:physiology