Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 21, 2025
Efficient and Consistent Generation of Retinal Pigment Epithelium/Choroid Flatmounts from Human Eyes for Histological Analysis
Published on: October 28, 2022
Color Doppler imaging characteristics of RPE neoplasms: A study of 17 cases
Nan Zhou1, Wenli Yang1, Wenbin Wei1
1Beijing Tongren Eye Center, Beijing Key Laboratory of Intraocular Tumor Diagnosis and Treatment, Medical Artificial Intelligence Research and Verification Laboratory of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, Beijing Tongren Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China.
Purpose:
To report the color Doppler imaging (CDI) features of 17 patients with retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) neoplasms.
Design:
Retrospective, observational case series.
Participants:
Seventeen patients with RPE adenoma/adenocarcinoma.
Methods:
Contrast-enhanced color Doppler ultrasonography (CDU) was performed in 16 patients with RPE adenoma and in one patient with adenocarcinoma.
Result:
All 17 RPE neoplasms showed well-defined margins. An oval mass was observed in 11 tumors, a lenticular-shaped mass in four tumors, and a flat mass in two tumors. On CDI, RPE lesions showed homogeneous reflectivity of moderate intensity with no choroidal excavation. After the contrast-enhanced administration of sulfur hexafluoride, mild enhancement was identified in six tumors and moderate enhancement in 11 tumors. In all 17 RPE neoplasms, contrast-enhanced CDU time-intensity curves (TICs) exhibited fast fill-in and slow washout-shaped curves with the dominant vessel within RPE lesions. A "black-linear" sign (defined as a low signal intensity-linear zone located between the tumor and enhanced choroid on CDI) was noted in all 17 patients with RPE neoplasms.
Conclusions:
This preliminary study noted a "black-linear" sign on CDI of RPE lesions for the first time. The novel sign may be a diagnostic characteristic of RPE neoplasms and may help to distinguish this rare entity from uveal melanomas (UMs).
