Evaluation of optical coherence tomography-angiography (OCT-a) findings in patients undergoing yag (yttrium-aluminum-garnet) laser capsulotomy

Purpose: To compare the findings of optical coherence tomography angiography (OCT-A) taken at different times before and after YAG laser capsulotomy in patients with posterior capsule opacity (PCO). Methods: The study included 30 eyes of 30 patients who applied to the Department of Ophthalmology, Faculty of Medicine, Gaziantep University between February and August 2023, and who had PCO and underwent YAG laser capsulotomy. All patients underwent a detailed eye examination including OCT-A. The OCT-A results at different times: before capsulotomy (preoperative), 1 hour after (postoperative 1 hour), 1 week after (postoperative 1 week), and 1 month after (postoperative 1 month) were evaluated. Results: When examining the vascular density (VD) values in the superficial and deep capillary plexus of the macula, significant differences were observed in all values except for the superficial perifoveal density (SPED) in the superficial layer (p<0.05). In the deep layer, significant differences were observed in the values of deep foveal density (DFD), deep perifoveal density (DPED), and deep perifoveal superior density (DPESD) (p<0.05). In optical disc OCT-A scans, a significant difference was detected in the average radial peripapillary capillary vessel density (RPKVD avg) values between different time scans (p<0.05). Conclusions: OCT-A can demonstrate changes in the retinal microvascular structure in PCO patients who have undergone YAG laser capsulotomy, and the follow-up of these patients can be conducted with OCT-A. Keywords: Posterior Capsule Opacity, YAG Laser Capsulotomy, Optical Coherence Tomography Angiograph