This study aims to evaluate the impact of widefield OCTA-guided selective photocoagulation on the progression of diabetic retinopathy (DR) by comparing the control of non-perfusion (NP) areas, DR grading, and management of other DR lesions. The study is designed as a parallel randomized controlled trial. From February 2025 to August 2026, 30 diabetic patients attending the Ophthalmology Department of Sichuan Provincial People's Hospital will be enrolled. Using a simple randomization method, one eye of each patient will be assigned to the intervention group, while the contralateral eye will serve as the control, resulting in 30 eyes in each group. The intervention group will undergo OCTA-guided selective photocoagulation, specifically using a grid pattern (3x3) of spot laser applied once to the NP area, extending one spot diameter beyond the NP boundary. Each session will last 10-20 minutes. The control group will receive no treatment. The study will compare changes in NP area, DR grading progression, and control of other DR lesions at 3, 6, 9, and 12 months between the two groups.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
SINGLE
Enrollment
30
The patient's eyes were first scanned using the Topcon OCTA (five-field montage) with a 24×20mm and a 6×6mm scan range. After enrollment, the patient underwent treatment on the same day in the retinal laser room. The laser treatment was performed by the same ophthalmologist. After obtaining baseline fundus images, the treating ophthalmologist overlaid the OCTA images onto the fundus images using retinal vessel alignment to guide targeted photocoagulation of the retinal non-perfusion (NP) areas under OCTA guidance. The specific photocoagulation method involved applying a grid pattern of spot laser (3×3) to the NP area once, with the treatment area extending beyond the NP boundary by one laser spot diameter. The total procedure duration was 10-20 minutes.
Sichuan Academy of Medical Sciences & Sichuan Provincial People's Hospital
Chengdu, Sichuan, China
The area size of NP (in PD units) in two groups of eyes at 0, 3, 6, 9, and 12 months
Time frame: From enrollment to reexamination at 0,3,6,9, and 12 months
The number of microaneurysms, intraretinal microvascular abnormalities (IRMA) in both groups of eyes at 0, 3, 6, 9, and 12 months
Time frame: From enrollment to reexamination at 0,3,6,9, and 12 months
The number of neovascularization (NV) in both groups of eyes at 0, 3, 6, 9, and 12 months
Time frame: From enrollment to reexamination at 0,3,6,9, and 12 months
Area of foveal avascular zone (FAZ) at 0, 3, 6, 9, and 12 months in two groups of eyes
Time frame: From enrollment to reexamination at 0,3,6,9, and 12 months
DR grading at 0, 3, 6, 9, and 12 months in two groups of eyes
Time frame: From enrollment to reexamination at 0,3,6,9, and 12 months
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