PURPOSE: To describe the clinical findings and course in four patients with
acute annular outer retinopathy.
METHODS: Four patients were evaluated during the course of acute annular ou
ter retinopathy, and the historical and clinical findings were retrospectiv
ely collected.
RESULTS: Four healthy patients developed the acute onset of visual field lo
ss associated with a localized, white annular outer retinopathy, All patien
ts were caucasian; two were women, aged 29 and 32 years, and two were men,
aged 71 and 79 years. The mean follow-up was 3.9 years (range, 1 to 6 years
). On presentation, four eyes had an irregular, incomplete, peripapillary,
annular band of gray-white, deep retinal opacification with visual acuities
that varied from 20/25 without foveal involvement to counting fingers with
foveal involvement, Laboratory serologies were unremarkable. Two patients
did not receive any treatment, and two received varying courses of oral cor
ticosteroids with subjective improve ment, Of the four eyes, two eyes devel
oped ophthalmoscopic sequelae, one eye did not, and one had evidence of ret
inal pigment epithelial damage and narrowing of the retinal vessels on pres
entation.
CONCLUSIONS: These four cases of acute annular outer retinopathy expand our
knowledge of this disorder. Acute annular outer retinopathy may be a disti
nct entity or it may represent a variant of acute zonal occult outer retino
pathy. As more cases are recognized, the characteristic features of the dis
ease spectrum, the etiology, and treatment options may be better elucidated
. (C) 2000 by Elsevier Science Inc. All rights reserved.