Comments and Conclusions
- High myopia results in a substantial percentage of legal blindness in many developed countries3,4; In France it is the 5th leading cause of blindness.6
- High Myopia (defined as over 8D) occurs in 27% to 33% of all myopic eyes, corresponding to a prevalence of 1.7% to 2% in the general population of the United States.3,4
- Choroidal Neovascularization is a sight threatening complication that occurs in 5% to 10% of patients with high myopia.4 It may cause irreversible deterioration of central vision, especially if untreated in a timely fashion.
- Based on the natural history of myopic CNV, the visual prognosis generally is poor and many untreated patients lose vision.2
- High myopia is associated with progressive and excessive elongation of the eyeball, which may be accompanied by degenerative changes in the sclera, choroid, Bruch’s membrane, retinal pigment epithelium, and neural retina.3,4
- As a result of excessive eyeball elongation, various funduscopic changes within the posterior staphyloma develop in highly myopic eyes.3,4
- Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) has an important role in regulating angiogenesis and cell proliferation and is related to the formation and regression of CNV.2
- A fairly recent development in treating CNV in high myopia is the use of anti-angiogenesis agents that inhibit the action of VEGF.2