Association between external limiting membrane status and visual acuity in diabetic macular oedema.

Aim To evaluate the association between the foveal external limiting membrane (ELM) status and visual acuity (VA) in diabetic macular oedema (DMO). Methods We retrospectively reviewed the spectral domain optical coherence tomography images of 127 eyes from 127 patients with DMO and evaluated the correlation between the logarithm of the minimal angle of resolution (logMAR) VA and the statuses of the foveal ELM, inner segment/outer segment (IS/OS) and cone outer segment tips (COST); foveal macular thickness (FMT); and presence or absence of hard exudates (HE), serous retinal detachment (SRD) and vitreous adhesion. The integrity of the ELM, IS/OS, and COST was classified into three categories (absent, disrupted and complete). Results There was a strong correlation between VA and the statuses of the ELM (r=0.699, p 250 μm, there was a positive correlation between FMT and VA in eyes with FMT ≤250 μm (r=−0.601, p 250 μm (r=0.290, p Conclusions In DMO, the ELM status may be as closely related to VA as the IS/OS status.