Structure-function Association Between Contrast Sensitivity Function and Optical Coherence Tomography Features in Patients with Idiopathic Epiretinal Membrane.

PURPOSE: Investigate the structure-function relationships between epiretinal membrane (ERM) stage, tractional abnormalities, and the gap area between the ERM and the retinal surface, in relation to visual acuity and quantitative contrast sensitivity function (qCSF) in patients with idiopathic epiretinal membrane.

METHODS

This was a retrospective, cross-sectional study involving 111 participants diagnosed with idiopathic epiretinal membrane (iERM). All patients underwent a comprehensive ophthalmological examination, optical coherence tomography imaging (SD-OCT) using the SPECTRALIS® Heidelberg system, and contrast sensitivity (CS) testing utilizing the qCSF method.

RESULTS

Progressive stages of ERM were associated with declines in both CS and visual acuity (β*=-0.45 to -0.19, p<0.02), with CS showing a more pronounced reduction than visual acuity, especially between controls and stage 1. Ectopic inner foveal layer (EIFL) thickness exhibited a similar pattern of decline in both visual acuity (β*=0.42, p<0.001) and CS (β*= -0.46 to -0.18, all p <0.02). In contrast, SUKIMA showed no significant association with any of the visual measurements assessed. Among the tractional abnormalities, the cotton ball sign correlated with diminished vision, particularly reflected by a notable drop in CS at the highest spatial frequencies tested with reduced CS at 12 cpd (β*=-0.44, p=0.02) and 18 cpd (β*=-0.46, p=0.02).

CONCLUSION

qCSF testing is particularly important for assessing visual function in ERM development, especially in the early stages.