Necrotising herpetic retinopathies: a review and progressive outer retinal necrosis case report

Necrotising retinopathies can be visually devastating. Most often associated with the viral family Herpesviridae and seen in both immune-competent and immunocompromised hosts, possible complications of necrotising retinopathies include progressive retinal necrosis with or without macular involvement, optic neuropathy and ultimately, secondary retinal detachment. Examples include progressive outer retinal necrosis, acute retinal necrosis and cytomegaloviral retinitis. If diagnosed early and treated aggressively, visual complications can be prevented; however, there is no current consensus on the most appropriate antiviral regimen for each of the different varieties of necrotising herpetic retinopathy. This paper reviews aspects of varieties of necrotising herpetic retinopathy, including pathophysiology, treatment and diagnostic testing.