Faculty Bibliography

PURPOSE: To define the phenotypic characteristics of the bullous variant of central serous chorioretinopathy (CSC) using multimethod imaging. DESIGN: Retrospective, observational case series. PARTICIPANTS: Twenty-one eyes of 14 patients with bullous retinal detachment resulting from CSC (bullous CSC group) and 122 eyes of 84 patients with chronic CSC without bullous retinal detachment (nonbullous CSC group). METHODS: We performed a retrospective review of clinical and multimethod imaging data of patients who sought treatment from the authors with bullous retinal detachment resulting from CSC between January 2010 and November 2015. Multimethod imaging comprised color photography, fluorescein angiography, fundus autofluorescence, and high-resolution optical coherence tomography. Consecutive cases of chronic CSC without bullous retinal detachment, seen during the same period, comprised a comparative group. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Qualitative and quantitative characteristics of the choroid, retinal pigment epithelium, and retina were compared between the 2 groups. RESULTS: Mean age of the bullous CSC group was 53.8 years. There was no difference in age, visual acuity, corticosteroid use, or the proportion of white patients and men between the 2 groups (all P > 0.132). Peripheral nonperfusion occurred only in eyes with bullous retinal detachment (38% of cases). Retinal pigment epithelial tears were seen in 95% of eyes in the bullous group and none of the eyes in the nonbullous CSC group. The bullous CSC group demonstrated a greater number of pigment epithelial detachments (PEDs) and more eyes demonstrated PEDs with internal hyperreflectivity (both P < 0.016). Mean subfoveal choroidal thickness in the bullous CSC group (463.1+/-83.1 mum) was not different compared with that of the nonbullous CSC group (400.6+/-100.6 mum; P = 0.993). More eyes in the bullous CSC group demonstrated hyperreflectivity around large choroidal vessels and at the level of the choriocapillaris on OCT (P < 0.001). Retinal folds and subretinal fibrin were identified in a greater proportion of eyes in the bullous CSC group (both P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Bullous retinal detachment is a rare manifestation of chronic CSC and is characterized by a unique constellation of phenotypic and multimethod imaging features.

PURPOSE: To describe a series of patients exhibiting annular retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) lesions in the context of chronic central serous chorioretinopathy. Design; Retrospective comparative case series. METHODS: Consecutive patients with chronic central serous chorioretinopathy were identified from the clinical practices of 3 retina specialists. A subset of patients exhibiting annular RPE lesions on fundus autofluorescence was included for chart review and examination of multimodal imaging (study group). Patients with alternative etiologies for neurosensory detachment or pigment epitheliopathy were excluded. A second consecutive cohort of patients, with acute central serous chorioretinopathy, was also examined for the presence of annular lesions (comparative group). RESULTS: Sixty-seven patients with chronic central serous chorioretinopathy were identified. Fourteen eyes of 12 patients exhibited annular lesions (study eyes). Mean visual acuity of study eyes was 20/27 (logMAR 0.13, SD 0.11). Annular lesions were composed of hyperautofluorescent stellate lesions arranged in an open or closed ring with intervening foci of punctate hypoautofluorescence. Optical coherence tomography showed RPE hyperplasia at the perimeters of annular lesions with loss of ellipsoid reflectivity and preserved RPE at the lesion center. Annular lesions were confined to the posterior poles and appeared to have developed at the margins of chronic neurosensory detachment. Forty-three eyes of 30 patients with acute central serous chorioretinopathy comprised the comparative group and none of these eyes exhibited annular lesions. CONCLUSIONS: Annular lesions occur in up to a fifth of patients with chronic central serous chorioretinopathy but carry a relatively good visual prognosis. Curvilinear RPE figures and demarcation lines are seen in various retinal conditions but the characteristics of annular lesions described here suggest that they are specific to chronic central serous chorioretinopathy.

PURPOSE: To describe the natural course, visual outcomes and anatomic changes and provide histological correlates in eyes with intraretinal hyperreflective foci associated with acquired vitelliform lesions. DESIGN: Retrospective cohort study and imaging-histology correlation in a single donor eye. METHODS: Participants: Patients with intraretinal hyperreflective foci and acquired vitelliform lesions from two tertiary referral centers were evaluated from January 2002-January 2014. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The chronology of clinical and imaging features of retinal anatomic changes and the pattern of intraretinal hyperreflective foci migration were documented using spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (OCT). One donor eye with intraretinal hyperreflective foci was identified in a pathology archive by ex vivo OCT and was studied with high-resolution light and electron microscopic examination. RESULTS: Intraretinal hyperreflective foci were associated with acquired vitelliform lesions in 25 of 254 eyes (9.8%) with a strong female preponderance (86% of patients). Focal disruptions to the ellipsoid zone and external limiting membrane overlying the acquired vitelliform lesions were observed prior to the occurrence of intraretinal hyperreflective foci in 75% of cases. Histological evaluation showed that intraretinal hyperreflective foci represent cells of retinal pigment epithelium origin that are similar to those found in the vitelliform lesions themselves and contain lipofuscin granules, melanolipofuscin granules and melanosomes. The occurrence of intraretinal hyperreflective foci was not a significant determinant of final visual acuity (p=0.34), but development of outer retinal atrophy was significant (p=0.003). CONCLUSIONS: Intraretinal hyperreflective foci associated with acquired vitelliform lesions is of retinal pigment epithelium origin, and the natural course and functional changes are described.

PURPOSE: To report a posterior segment phenotypic manifestation of Coxsackie virus infection that has not been previously appreciated. METHODS: The clinical course and multimodal imaging findings, including spectral domain optical coherence tomography, fluorescein angiography, near infrared reflectance, and fundus autofluorescence of two patients with Coxsackie virus infections were documented. RESULTS: A neurosensory macular detachment was present in both patients on baseline examination. Fluorescein angiography demonstrated pooling within this lesion and spectral domain optical coherence tomography identified thickening of the retinal pigment epithelial band with variable degrees of attenuation of the ellipsoid zone and interdigitation zone. Fundus autofluorescence and near infrared reflectance imaging revealed multiple satellite lesions adjacent to the neurosensory detachment. These lesions were not seen on fluorescein angiography or color photography. Satellite lesions were hyporeflective on near infrared reflectance imaging and hyperautofluorescent on fundus autofluorescence imaging. The satellite lesions correlated with sites of ellipsoid disruption on spectral domain optical coherence tomography. Both patients were observed and their condition improved over the course of time. There was total resolution of satellite lesions, reconstitution of the ellipsoid zone and interdigitation zone, and return of retinal pigment epithelial thickness to the normal range. A bull's eye pattern of macular retinal pigment epithelial disturbance persisted on color and near infrared reflectance images, despite good visual acuity. CONCLUSION: Posterior segment Coxsackie virus infection may concurrently express the clinical characteristics of acute idiopathic maculopathy and multifocal retinitis. The visual prognosis in this variant is usually favorable. The multimodal imaging features that characterize this entity should be recognized to avoid confusion with other diseases that have a similar presentation.

PURPOSE: To assess the treatment response to mineralocorticoid antagonists in a pilot study of patients diagnosed with central serous chorioretinopathy using multimodal imaging. METHODS: This retrospective observational case series included 23 eyes of 14 patients with central serous chorioretinopathy treated by a single physician (L.A.Y.) with either spironolactone, eplerenone, or both consecutively over a 12-month period. Choroidal thickness, central macular thickness, and best-corrected visual acuity were measured and compared with baseline values. Twelve eyes of 11 patients demonstrated subretinal fluid before or during the initiated treatment course. Subretinal fluid was measured and compared with baseline values in this subgroup. RESULTS: In all eyes (n = 23), best-corrected visual acuity improved at 12 months of treatment; however, central macular thickness and choroidal thickness showed no improvement. In the subgroup with subretinal fluid (n = 12), subretinal fluid was significantly decreased at 6 months and 12 months of treatment; however, central macular thickness, choroidal thickness, and best-corrected visual acuity showed no significant change. CONCLUSION: Mineralocorticoid antagonists may improve best-corrected visual acuity and decrease subretinal fluid in patients with central serous chorioretinopathy, but do not affect the choroidal or macular thickness. This pilot study demonstrates that mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists may be effective in treating central serous chorioretinopathy but warrants consideration for future research within a randomized clinical trial.

PURPOSE: To evaluate and characterize multiple evanescent white dot syndrome abnormalities with modern multimodal imaging modalities. METHODS: This retrospective cohort study evaluated fundus photography, fluorescein angiography, indocyanine green angiography, optical coherence tomography, enhanced depth imaging optical coherence tomography, short-wavelength autofluorescence, and near-infrared autofluorescence. RESULTS: Thirty-four multiple evanescent white dot syndrome patients with mean age of 28.7 years were studied (range, 14-49 years). Twenty-six patients were women, and eight were men. Initial mean visual acuity was 0.41 logMAR. Final mean visual acuity was 0.03 logMAR. Fluorescein angiography shows a variable number of mid retinal early fluorescent dots distributed in a wreathlike pattern, which correlate to fundus photography, fundus autofluorescence, and indocyanine green angiography. Indocyanine green angiography imaging shows the dots and also hypofluorescent, deeper, and larger spots, which are occasionally confluent, demonstrating a large plaque of deep retinal hypofluorescence. Optical coherence tomography imaging shows multifocal debris centered at and around the ellipsoid layer, corresponding to the location of spots seen with photography, indocyanine green angiography, and fluorescein angiography. Protrusions of the hyperreflectant material from the ellipsoid layer toward the outer nuclear layer correspond to the location of dots seen with photography, indocyanine green angiography, and fluorescein angiography. CONCLUSION: Multimodal imaging analysis of the retina in patients with multiple evanescent white dot syndrome shows additional features that may help in the diagnosis of the disease and in further understanding its etiology. Multiple evanescent white dot syndrome is predominantly a disease of the outer retina, centered at the ellipsoid zone, but also involving the interdigitation zone and the outer nuclear layer.

Purpose To determine the rate of neovascularization (NV) in eyes with acquired vitelliform lesion (AVL) during and following vitelliform collapse. To correlate the optical coherence tomography (OCT) and histopathological characteristics of these neovascular membranes. Methods Retrospective cohort analysis of 112 patients with AVL. Patients that demonstrated evidence of vitelliform collapse, defined as a temporal reduction in the size of subretinal vitelliform material clinically, using OCT and fundus autofluorescence imaging, were included for further analysis. Clinical and OCT characteristics of neovascular membranes were determined. A correlation between OCT and histopathological characteristics of an eye that was clinically diagnosed as non-neovascular but demonstrated a type 1 membrane on post mortem examination was also performed. Results Twenty-six patients (16 males and 10 females) demonstrated evidence of vitelliform collapse, and 7 (26.9%) of these developed NV. 5 of these patients were diagnosed with NV following acute subretinal hemorrhage or exudation. Mean age of patients was 81.1 +/- 11.6 years, and mean period of follow up was 9.0 +/- 4.2 years. All neovascular membranes were type 1. Persistent OCT findings prior to the development of NV included: (1) Irregular elevation of the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) layer at the site of NV. (2) Separation of the RPE layer and Bruch's membrane (BrM) by a hyporeflective material containing punctate hyper-reflectivity (figure 1). Three patients had fluorescein angiography (FA) within 6 months preceding the diagnosis of neovascular disease that did not demonstrate leakage. Histopathologic examination demonstrated a fibrovascular scar and thick basal laminar deposit (BlamD) under the fovea with hemorrhage between the scar and BrM. These lesions correlated with the split RPE-BrM band on OCT images acquired 8 months before the patient's death (figure 2). Conclusions The rate of Type 1 NV during and following vitelliform collapse in AVLs is significant. In this subgroup of patients, neovascular membranes appear to remain dormant in the anatomic space between BrM and BLamD before the clinical signs of NV, including exudation and hemorrhage, become manifest. Interval review of these patients is therefore indicated as is a prospective study of this topic

BACKGROUND: We present a case of a combined hamartoma of the retina and retinal pigment epithelium associated with a subfoveal acquired vitelliform lesion induced by vitreomacular traction. The purpose of this report is to present a unifying hypothesis of these concurrent findings, as aided by multimodal imaging. CASE PRESENTATION: A 25-year-old white man presented with a 6-month history of a visual disturbance in his left eye. At presentation, ophthalmic assessment showed a combined hamartoma adjacent to his optic nerve that had caused marked corrugation within the inner retinal surface. An acquired vitelliform lesion was present in the macula with an associated epiretinal membrane as demonstrated on spectral-domain optical coherence tomography. Optical coherence tomography angiography corroborated the clinical diagnosis of combined hamartoma. CONCLUSIONS: We are not aware of previous cases of a combined hamartoma associated with an acquired vitelliform lesion. As previously proposed in acquired vitelliform lesions related to epiretinal membrane and vitreoretinal traction, we believe that macular tractional forces might interfere with retinal pigment epithelium phagocytosis of shed outer segments, leading to the occurrence of this acquired vitelliform lesion.

PURPOSE: To use volume-rendered optical coherence tomography angiography to investigate vascular proliferation in macular telangiectasia type 2 (MacTel2), extending beyond the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE). METHODS: Six eyes of four patients with MacTel2 with neovascularization proliferating external to the RPE confines were studied. Eyes were scanned using optical coherence tomography using split-spectrum amplitude-decorrelation techniques to derive flow information (RTVue XR; Optovue). These data were extracted and used to create volume rendered images of the area of vascular proliferation. RESULTS: Mean age was 66.2 years. There was demonstrable vascular proliferation in the sub-RPE space observable by both optical coherence tomography and optical coherence tomography angiography. Fibrovascular RPE detachments were identified in all eyes. The topographic distribution of abnormal vessels located below the plane of the deep retinal vascular plexus and above the RPE closely matched the pattern of hyperfluorescence and leakage on fluorescein angiography. Vessels under the RPE demonstrated different branching patterns and larger diameter lumens than those above the RPE, but anastomosis with the choroidal circulation was difficult to demonstrate. CONCLUSION: This study provides evidence that sub-RPE vascular proliferation may be a complication of MacTel2. Retinal pigment epithelium abnormalities are known to occur in MacTel2 and may provide a conduit for abnormal vessels in the subretinal space to proliferate into the sub-RPE compartment. The authors have no reason to exclude the possibility that the choroid contributes to the deep proliferation.

The clinical presentation of an intraocular nematode unusually affixed to the posterior lens capsule is described. A 64-year-old female patient presented with a 7-year history of gradually declining vision and enlarging central scotoma, but no inflammation. On follow-up 2 years later, vision had further declined and a non-motile, 8-mm nematode was seen affixed to the posterior lens capsule that remained unchanged through final follow-up. The patient disclosed having resided in Africa as a child. Systemic review revealed no evidence of extraocular involvement. Nematode carcasses may remain preserved in the human eye for extended periods without ongoing inflammation.