Multimodal Imaging of Laser-Induced Retinal-Choroidal Anastomosis Masquerading as Type 3 Macular Neovascularization

The use of laser to induce a retinal-choroidal anastomosis (RCA) through photomechanical and photothermal rupture of the retinal pigment epithelium/Bruch's membrane beneath a retinal vein has been performed in eyes with retinal vein occlusion to create an alternate pathway for retinal venous outflow. The authors document the multimodal imaging findings of a 64-year-old female with type 2 diabetes presenting with a parafoveal vascular lesion simulating type 3 macular neovascularization. A review of the medical history and the benign course of the lesion suggested its inadvertent origin from prior focal/grid laser to treat diabetic macular edema. [Ophthalmic Surg Lasers Imaging Retina. 2020;51:244-248.].