Oral ingestion of fluorescein can be done in ambulatory pediatric clinics. We show that oral ultra-widefield fluorescein angiography is a non-invasive approach to rapidly diagnose and manage a diverse set of pediatric retinal vascular diseases.

UNASSIGNED: To compare clinical characteristics at presentation and outcomes of Coats disease between females and males.
UNASSIGNED: In this retrospective, consecutive case series we included all children diagnosed with Coats disease in a single tertiary referral center. Initial clinical presentation, treatment and outcomes were collected.
UNASSIGNED: A total of 158 children were included, of whom 29 (18.3%) were females and 11 (6.9%) had bilateral involvement. Age at diagnosis and disease stage were similar between females and males. Females had more bilateral involvement (p < 0.001) and tended to have a worse visual acuity at diagnosis (p = 0.05). At last follow-up, visual acuity and anatomical outcome after treatment were similar between genders.
UNASSIGNED: Female patients with Coats disease had more bilateral involvement and tended to have worse visual acuity at presentation. Clinical presentation and outcomes seemed to be similar between genders.

Endoscopic vitrectomy is a useful and unique adjunct to microincision vitreoretinal surgery. The optical properties of endoscopy allow for some clinically advantageous approaches that are not possible with regular microscope viewing systems, namely, the ability to both bypass optically signficant anterior segment opacities and directly visualize dificult-to-access retroirideal, retrolental, and anterior retinal structures in their natural anatomical configuration. The surgical benefits include improved surgical access to the pars plana, pars plicata, ciliary sulcus, ciliary body, and peripheral lens, along with unique access to anterior traction in complex pediatric anterior detachments, particularly in retinopathy of prematurity. This review will focus on the development and surgical utility of intraocular endoscopy, provide an update on its current uses in the era of microincision vitreoretinal surgery, and highligh its role in pediatric vitreoretinal diseases.

Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is an important mediator of the pathological neovascularization and vascular permeability of the eye. The increasing use of intravitreal therapies targeting VEGF has revolutionized the treatment of pediatric vitreoretinal diseases. In retinopathy of prematurity (ROP), the role of VEGF in pathogenesis has been well recognized and the use of anti-VEGF treatment in phase 2 ROP has demonstrated promising results, particularly in severe cases of posterior disease. This has made VEGF an established target in the treatment of pediatric retinal diseases known to have abnormal vascular activity. However, questions remain about late systemic and neurodevelopmental effects after anti-VEGF therapy for children because intravitreal injection of anti-VEGF may result in systemic circulation of anti-VEGF agent and a corresponding suppression of systemic VEGF. We do not currently know whether the short-term suppression of systemic VEGF affects long-term neurodevelopmental outcomes because VEGF is a vital supporting factor during neurodevelopment. This review article focuses on the evidence for the use of anti-VEGF treatment in certain pediatric ocular diseases, including ROP, Coats disease, and retinoblastoma. More extensive and prospective studies are warranted to further elucidate the role of anti-VEGF therapy in these diseases and illustrate how we can optimally use these agents in pediatric patients.