To determine the clinical outcome of anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (anti-VEGF) and photodynamic therapy (PDT) for circumscribed choroidal hemangioma (CCH) with serous retinal detachment.

The medical records of patients having CCH with serous retinal detachment in macula were retrospectively reviewed. CCH and serous retinal detachment were evaluated via fundus photography, optical coherence tomography, indocyanine green angiography, and ultrasonography.

A total of 9 eyes were enrolled in this study. The average follow-up period was 19.2 months. The mean visual acuity was 0.51 ± 0.52 (logMAR) and the mean maximum diameter and thickness of the tumor were 6,154.4 ± 2,019.9 µm and 2,224.4 ± 862.1 µm, respectively. Of the 6 eyes receiving anti-VEGF (mean number of injections: 3.16) as the first treatment for serous retinal detachment, 5 had sustained or recurred intraretinal/subretinal fluid (IRF/SRF) and needed additional PDT and transpupillary thermotherapy. In the 3 eyes that received PDT (mean number of treatments: 1.3) as an initial treatment, IRF/SRF was completely resolved. Finally, 8 eyes achieved complete resolution of SRF and IRF; however visual recovery was limited.

PDT, even with a small number of treatments, can alleviate IRF/SRF in CCH, while anti-VEGF did not.