Fundus autofluorescence imaging in multifocal choroiditis: beyond the spots

Area of Science:

• Ophthalmology
• Medical Imaging

Background:

• Multifocal choroiditis (MFC) and punctate inner choroidopathy (PIC) are inflammatory eye conditions.
• Assessing the full extent of retinal involvement in MFC/PIC can be challenging with standard clinical examination.

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe fundus autofluorescence (FAF) imaging.
• To correlate FAF findings with spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) in clinically noninvolved retinal areas of MFC/PIC patients.

Main Methods:

• Multimodal imaging was used in six patients with MFC or PIC.
• Techniques included fluorescein angiography, FAF imaging, indocyanine green angiography, and SD-OCT.

Main Results:

• FAF imaging revealed diffuse hyperautofluorescent plaques in clinically noninvolved peripapillary and posterior pole areas in all patients.
• SD-OCT showed severe disruption of the inner segment/outer segment junction in these areas.
• Findings improved with corticosteroid treatment.

Conclusions:

• FAF imaging detects extensive pathology beyond clinically apparent lesions in MFC/PIC.
• FAF findings correlate with anatomical disruption of the photoreceptor-retinal pigment epithelium complex.