Publications by authors named "Hikaru Ota"

This study aimed to evaluate the changes in cytokine levels in the aqueous humor and factors of treatment resistance following intravitreal faricimab injection in treatment-naïve patients with neovascular age-related macular degeneration. A total of 32 eyes were analyzed before and after a single faricimab injection. Although the best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) showed no significant improvement, the mean central retinal thickness decreased significantly by 73.

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Purpose: To examine the changes in aqueous humor cytokine levels and clinical outcomes of switching from aflibercept to faricimab in eyes with neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD).

Methods: Fifty-four eyes of 54 patients with AMD undergoing treatment with aflibercept under a treat-and-extend (TAE) regimen were switched to faricimab and studied prospectively. Best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA; in logarithm of the minimum angle of resolution), central retinal thickness (CRT), central choroidal thickness (CCT), and exudative status were analyzed using optical coherence tomography.

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Article Synopsis
  • The study evaluates the effectiveness of swept-source optical coherence tomography angiography (SS-OCTA) in distinguishing various macular diseases without using indocyanine green angiography (ICGA).
  • It involves a review of 63 eyes from patients with treatment-naive neovascular age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and finds that SS-OCTA accurately identifies conditions like nonpolypoidal macular neovascularization (MNV) and polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy (PCV) with high sensitivity and specificity.
  • The results suggest that SS-OCTA can be a viable alternative to ICGA for diagnosing these macular diseases, offering a reliable method for ophthalmologists to make decisions.
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Purpose: This study evaluated the long-term outcomes of eyes with neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD) treated with aflibercept according to a treat-and-extend (T&E) regimen for up to 5 years. Methods This retrospective study included 112 eyes of 111 patients with nAMD who received aflibercept according to the T&E regimen. The patients received 3 monthly injections of aflibercept followed by a T&E regimen for at least 12 months.

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Purpose: To assess the effects of half-dose photodynamic therapy (PDT) combined with an intravitreous aflibercept (IVA) injection for pachychoroid neovasculopathy (PNV) and its predictive factors.

Methods: Clinical information of 43 patients (43 eyes) with PNV obtained before and 6 months after treatment with half-dose PDT combined with IVA was retrospectively analyzed. Patients were categorized into the sufficient (25 eyes, 58.

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Aggregates of amphiphilic molecules can be used as drug carriers, for which the properties can be modified by mixing with other molecules such as cholesterol. It is important to understand the effects of such additives on the properties because they directly define the material functions. In this work, we investigated the effect of cholesterol on the formation and hydrophobicity of aggregates of sorbitan surfactants.

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Purpose: To examine the morphologic changes in macular neovascularization (MNV) secondary to age-related macular degeneration after 2 years of aflibercept treatment under a treat-and-extend (T&E) regimen.

Methods: This retrospective study analyzed the medical records for 26 eyes of 25 patients diagnosed with treatment-naive neovascular age-related macular degeneration and treated with aflibercept under a treat-and-extend regimen for 2 years. The areas of the MNV and vascular structures were assessed using swept-source optical coherence tomography angiography at baseline and after 2 years of treatment.

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Purpose: To assess the effects of half-dose photodynamic therapy on subretinal fluid and macular neovascularization (MNV) using optical coherence tomography angiography in patients with chronic central serous chorioretinopathy.

Methods: Clinical information on 168 patients (168 eyes) with chronic central serous chorioretinopathy obtained before and 6 months after treatment with half-dose photodynamic therapy was retrospectively analyzed. Patients were categorized into a success (145 eyes) or failure (23 eyes) group based on the absence or presence of subretinal fluid, respectively, and clinical data were compared between them.

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Article Synopsis
  • The study examined how the outer and inner parts of the macular retina shift toward the optic disc after surgery for epiretinal membranes (ERM), specifically focusing on the impact of internal limiting membrane (ILM) peeling.
  • It involved a retrospective analysis of 45 eyes from 43 patients and compared them to 38 normal eyes using advanced imaging techniques to track changes in the foveal avascular zone (FAZ) area and its position.
  • Findings revealed that the inner retinal structure (C-FAZ) moved significantly more toward the optic disc post-surgery than the outer structure (foveal bulge), and changes in the FAZ area were influenced by its initial size but not by the extent of retinal displacement
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This retrospective study aimed to evaluate choroidal hemodynamics after half-dose photodynamic therapy (PDT) for central serous chorioretinopathy (CSC) and the effects of smoking using laser speckle flowgraphy. This study included 29 eyes of 29 patients treated with half-dose PDT for CSC, who were followed-up for at least 6 months. The mean blur rate (MBR) in the PDT irradiation area (whole area), the pachyvessel (PV) area, non-PV (NPV) area, and filling delay (FD) area were assessed at baseline and 1, 3, and 6 months post-PDT, respectively.

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Purpose: To examine the 16-week outcomes of switching to brolucizumab in eyes with neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD) refractory to aflibercept.

Study Design: Retrospective observational study.

Methods: Data of eyes with nAMD who switched to brolucizumab because of resistance to aflibercept were collected.

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