Optical coherence tomography biomarkers to distinguish diabetic macular edema from pseudophakic cystoid macular edema using machine learning algorithms

Idan Hecht*, Asaf Bar, Lior Rokach, Romi Noy Achiron, Marion R. Munk, Marion R. Munk, Marion R. Munk, Wolfgang Huf, Zvia Burgansky-Eliash, Asaf Achiron

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

14 Scopus citations

Abstract

Purpose: In diabetic patients presenting with macular edema (ME) shortly after cataract surgery, identifying the underlying pathology can be challenging and influence management. Our aim was to develop a simple clinical classifier able to confirm a diabetic etiology using few spectral domain optical coherence tomography parameters. Methods: We analyzed spectral domain optical coherence tomography data of 153 patients with either pseudophakic cystoid ME (n = 57), diabetic ME (n = 86), or "mixed"(n = 10). We used advanced machine learning algorithms to develop a predictive classifier using the smallest number of parameters. Results: Most differentiating were the existence of hard exudates, hyperreflective foci, subretinal fluid, ME pattern, and the location of cysts within retinal layers. Using only 3 to 6 spectral domain optical coherence tomography parameters, we achieved a sensitivity of 94% to 98%, specificity of 94% to 95%, and an area under the curve of 0.937 to 0.987 (depending on the method) for confirming a diabetic etiology. A simple decision flowchart achieved a sensitivity of 96%, a specificity of 95%, and an area under the curve of 0.937. Conclusion: Confirming a diabetic etiology for edema in cases with uncertainty between diabetic cystoid ME and pseudophakic ME was possible using few spectral domain optical coherence tomography parameters with high accuracy. We propose a clinical decision flowchart for cases with uncertainty, which may support the decision for intravitreal injections rather than topical treatment.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)2283-2291
Number of pages9
JournalRetina
Volume39
Issue number12
DOIs
StatePublished - Dec 2019

Funding

FundersFunder number
Bayer

    Keywords

    • Diabetic macular edema
    • Optical coherence tomography
    • Pseudophakic cystoid macular edema

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