New research suggests that short axial length increases the likelihood of fellow-eye idiopathic macular hole, and that measuring this parameter in unilateral cases may help identify patients at higher risk.
The five-year prospective follow-up study, published in The Journal of Ophthalmology,1 followed 100 unilateral idiopathic macular hole patients and age- and sex-matched controls.
The researchers prospectively observed the incidence of macular hole in the fellow eye over the five-year period, then compared the mean axial length between fellow eyes that developed new macular holes against those that did not.
Among patients with unilateral idiopathic macular hole, those who experienced fellow-eye occurrence over a five-year period had a significantly shorter mean axial length than patients who didn’t develop macular hole in their other eye (21.42 mm vs 22.98 mm).
“Because axial length is routinely measured and easily obtainable in clinical practice, it may serve as a practical parameter for identifying high-risk patients and guiding follow-up intervals,” study authors concluded.
“Regular OCT (optical coherence tomography) surveillance should be considered for patients with short axial length in the fellow eye.”
“Because axial length is routinely measured and easily obtainable in clinical practice, it may serve as a practical parameter for identifying high-risk patients”
Reference
- Singh AJ, Muqit MM, Woon WH. Is axial length a risk factor for idiopathic macular hole formation? Int Ophthalmol. 2012 Aug;32(4):393-6. doi: 10.1007/s10792-012-9568-7.
