Comparative value of retinal structural features versus systemic inflammatory and renal indicators in predicting short-term anti-VEGF response in diabetic macular edema: focus on OCT biomarkers

Our comparative analysis confirms that baseline retinal structural integrity assessed by OCT-specifically disorganization of the inner retinal layers and disruption of the EZ/ELM-shows stronger predictive value for short-term anti-VEGF response in DME compared to systemic inflammatory indicators. The developed prediction model demonstrates good discriminative performance, though its clinical application requires further validation in larger cohorts. These findings support the prioritization of OCT imaging in DME management.