Intrafamilial heterogeneity of congenital optic disc pit maculopathy

Long-term outcomes of autologous platelet treatment for optic disc pit maculopathy

PURPOSE

Optic disc pits (ODPs) are rare congenital cavitary abnormalities of the optic nerve head, which can lead to serous macular detachments. The aim of this study was to evaluate the long-term efficacy of pars plana vitrectomy (PPV) combined with autologous platelet concentrate (APC) for the treatment of optic disc pit maculopathy (ODP-M).

METHODS

A retrospective analysis was performed on eleven eyes of ten patients with ODP-M, who received PPV combined with APC. Nine eyes operated primary, four of which had a repeat surgery also with injection of APC and two eyes underwent a rescue surgery, after they have been operated in another eye center without APC. Morphological and functional results were the main outcome parameters, determined by optical coherence tomography (OCT) and best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), respectively.

RESULTS

The mean duration of visual loss before surgery was 4.7 ± 3.89 months (range 0-12 months). The mean BCVA increased significantly from 0.82 ± 0.33 logMAR (range 0.4-1.3) preoperatively to 0.51 ± 0.36 logMAR (range 0-1.2) at the last examination (p = 0.0022). A significant morphological improvement was also noticed with decrease of the mean foveal thickness from 935.82 ± 248.48 µm (range 559-1400 µm) preoperatively to 226.45 ± 76.09 µm (range 110-344 µm) at the final examination (p < 0.0001). The patients were followed-up for a mean 65.36 ± 48.81 months (range 1-144 months). Two eyes developed postoperatively a retinal detachment. Cataract surgery was performed in 5 eyes during the follow-up period.

CONCLUSION

Our study demonstrated that PPV with APC can improve functional and morphological outcomes, both as a primary and a rescue therapy, without any recurrence over a long follow-up period. To the best of our knowledge, this was the longest observation period regarding the use of APC in treatment of ODP-M.

Familial Optic Disc Pits in 2 Father-Son Pairs: Clinical Features and Genetic Analysis

Congenital optic disc pits (ODPs) are well-circumscribed depressions within the optic disc. Thought to arise from anomalous closure of the optic fissure during embryonic development, they are now considered to lie on a broader spectrum of congenital optic disc anomaly (CODA). An increasing number of reports describe clustering of these cases within families, suggesting that inherited genetic elements play a role in disease predisposition. Here, we highlight the clinical features of 2 sets of father-son pairs affected with ODPs and provide preliminary molecular genetic analysis. Subjects underwent complete ophthalmological examination and imaging. In addition, whole-exome sequencing was carried out following informed consent. The resulting datasets were examined for potentially causal genetic variants, both in genes already known to be linked to CODA as well as those likely to lie in the same or similar genetic pathways. In this instance, no unambiguously causal variants were identified. This case series highlights the familial inheritance of ODPs, adding to the existing body of literature supporting an underlying genetic cause for this rare clinical entity. The inclusion here of specific molecular findings raises the hope that the genetic pathophysiology underlying rare entities like ODPs might be clarified in the future by the addition of similarly molecular-documented reports.

New Observations regarding the Assessment of Cilioretinal Arteries Coexistence with Optic Disc Pit

Purpose: To investigate the coexistence of cilioretinal arteries (CRAs) with optic disc pit (ODP), and to delineate the characteristics of CRAs related to their number, location of their emergence and their association with the size of ODP. Methods: 47 patients (49 eyes) with ODP were diagnosed and followed-up between 1997 and 2017, using slit-lamp biomicroscopy, color fundus photographs, fluorescein angiography and indocyanine green angiography. The presence of CRAs was recorded in association with the size of the ODP, along with their number and location of emergence. The fellow normal eyes of patients were also analyzed. Results: 42 out of 49 eyes with ODP (85.7%) presented CRAs. In 35 out of 42 eyes (83.3%) CRAs emerged from the pit, either from bottom or from its margin. In 7.1% of cases, CRAs were emerged outside the ODP, while in 9.6% of cases, the type of CRA emergence could be characterized as mixed. The number of CRAs, that ranged from 1 to 4, was positively associated with ODP size. In the fellow normal eyes, CRAs was found in 22.2% of cases, difference which was significant compared to patients with ODP. Conclusion: Based on the high percentage of CRAs coexistence with ODP and the excessive frequency of their emergence from ODP (83.3%), it is supported that ODP as a developmental disorder could go along with further anatomic peculiarities, that also include the presence of multiple CRAs.

Optic disk pits and optic disk pit maculopathy: A review

Optic disk pit, one of the optic disk cavitary anomalies, is generally congenital and unilateral and occurs equally in males and females. Optic disk pit maculopathy is characterized by intraretinal and subretinal fluid at the macula, causing visual deterioration. The origin of the macular fluid and the mechanism of transition to the subretinal space in optic disk pit maculopathy pathophysiology are not yet fully understood. With the evolution of imaging modalities, especially optic coherence tomography, our knowledge of this disorder continues to increase. Although many different treatments have been tried, there is no consensus on the most effective.