Choroidal neovascularization in a patient with crohn's disease

Abstract

Purpose: To report a case of subfoveal choroidal neovascularization (CNV) in a patient with Crohn's disease (CD) and to discuss a possible association between these two conditions. Methods: This is an observational case report. Results: A 69-year-old male affected by CD was referred to our department because of sudden visual acuity drop in the left eye. A subfoveal CNV was diagnosed based on slit-lamp fundus biomicroscopy and fluorescein angiography. Color fundus photography, infrared autofluorescence and spectral-domain optical coherence tomography imaging of both eyes were also performed. Following six intravitreal ranibizumab injections, visual improvement was obtained with no related adverse events. Conclusion: We report a case of CNV as a possible rare extraintestinal manifestation of CD. The use of ranibizumab successfully impacted on CNV, while not affecting CD, which remained quiescent.