Combined treatment of transluminal Nd:YAG laser embolysis and hyperbaric oxygen for branch retinal artery occlusion

Objective: To describe the clinical efficiency of transluminal Nd:YAG laser embolysis (TYE) and hyperbaric oxygen (HBO) as an off-label combined treatment for branch retinal artery occlusion (BRAO) with visible emboli. Methods: A 77-year-old woman had a history of seeing a “shadow” in the lower visual field of the left eye for three days. Platelet-fibrin embolus at the arterial bifurcation was disintegrated by TYE technique and the patient was referred to HBO treatment for 20 sessions. Results: One week after treatment, best-corrected visual acuity improved to 0.8 while a good arterial blood flow in the affected branch was seen. Platelet fibrin plaques had disappeared at fundus, and the pale appearance in the retina had decreased. Conclusions: TYE and HBO combination treatment may be an effective and feasible treatment for restoration of blood flow and vision in BRAO cases caused by visible platelet-fibrin emboli.