Optical coherence tomography of cystoid macular edema associated with retinitis pigmentosa

PURPOSE: To detect cystoid macular edema in consecutive eyes with retinitis pigmentosa by means of optical coherence tomography and to study the corre lation between cross-sectional structures and angiographic findings in cyst oid macular edema. METHODS: In a prospective study, cross-sectional images through the fovea w ere evaluated by means of optical coherence tomography in 89 phakic eyes of 46 patients with retinitis pigmentosa. Eyes showing cystoid appearance in the macula in the optical coherence tomographic images were further studied with measurement of the dimensions of cystoid lesions and with a fluoresce in angiogram either at 18 minutes after dye injection or later. RESULTS: Cystoid lesions were observed in the macula in optical coherence t omographic images in 12 eyes in six (13%) of 46 patients. In these eyes, th e width of total area of the cystoid lesions was positively correlated with the grade of fluorescein angiogram (Spearman rank cor relation coefficient , r = .629; P = .029), but the thickness of the neurosensory retina at the center of the fovea was not. Among three variables for grading cystoid macu lar edema, consisting of angiographic grade, thick ness of the neurosensory retina at the center of the fovea, and width of total area of the cystoid lesions, only the last measure was significantly correlated with best-corre cted visual acuity (Pearson correlation coefficient, r - .693; P = .012), CONCLUSION: Cystoid macular edema in eyes With retinitis pigmentosa could e asily be detected with the use of optical coherence tomography independent of the angiographic degree of dye leakage. The size of cystoid lesions demo nstrated in the optical coherence tomographic images, especially the thickn ess of the neurosensory retina at the center of the fovea, was nor necessar ily correlated with the angiographic grading of dye leakage. Measurement of the width of total area of the cystoid lesions in the optical coherence to mographic images is significantly correlated with the loss of visual acuity , (C) 1999 by Elsevier Science Inc. All rights reserved.