Aqueous Humor Levels of Soluble Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor Receptor and Inflammatory Factors in Diabetic Macular Edema

Aqueous levels of soluble vascular endothelial growth factor receptor (sVEGFR) and inflammatory factors were measured in 35 patients (37 eyes) with diabetic macular edema (DME) receiving anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) therapy. Aqueous levels of growth factors (VEGF, placental growth factor [PlGF], and platelet-derived growth factor AA [PDGF-AA]), sVEGFR-1 and -2, soluble intercellular adhesion molecule 1, monocyte chemotactic protein (MCP)-1, interleukin (IL)-6, -8, -12, and -13, and interferon-inducible 10-kDa protein (IP-10) were significantly higher in the DME group than in the nondiabetic control group. The sVEGFR-2 level was significantly correlated with the neurosensory retinal thickness, as well as with the levels of growth factors (VEGF and PDGF-AA) and inflammatory factors (MCP-1, IL-6, and IL-8). Three growth factors (VEGF, PlGF, and PDGF-AA) were also significantly correlated with each other, as were sVEGFR-1 or -2 and the inflammatory factors (MCP-1, IL-6, IL-8, and IP-10). These findings suggest that sVEGFRs and growth/inflammatory factors have an important role in DME.