Association Between the Types of Posterior Staphyloma and Their Risk Factors in Pathological Myopia

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship of posterior staphyloma (PS) types in pathological myopia (PM) with age, best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), spherical equivalent (SE), axial length (AL), and myopic retinoschisis (MRS) using three-dimensional magnetic resonance imaging (3D-MRI) and optical coherence tomography (OCT).

This retrospective, cross-sectional study included 108 eyes of 59 patients with PM from the Henan Eye Institute, China. We classified the PS types based on current international classification criteria and analyzed the risk factors (age, AL, MRS, and BCVA).

Most of the patients with bilateral PM had the same PS type (80.43%) in both eyes. Complex PS was more common in elderly patients than in younger patients (P < 0.05). Eyes with wide macular PS had a longer AL (P = 0.012) and worse BCVA (P = 0.049) than those with other PS types. MRS was always comorbid with PS (93.33%), and macular PS was the most common (82.14%).

Complex PS is associated with patient age. PS is related to MRS, and these changes observed by 3D-MRI and OCT affect the prognosis of visual acuity. The 3D-MRI scans shows changes in the eye shape and PS efficiently.

In patients with PM, 3D-MRI can guide the planning of posterior scleral reinforcement.