Acute annular outer retinopathy: initial insights into clinical course variations with multimodal imaging

Area of Science:

• Ophthalmology
• Retinal Diseases
• Medical Imaging

Background:

• Acute annular outer retinopathy (AAOR) is a rare condition affecting the outer retina.
• Understanding its clinical course and imaging characteristics is crucial for diagnosis.

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe the clinical course of AAOR.
• To present initial multimodal imaging (MMI) findings in AAOR.

Main Methods:

• Observational case series of nine patients (12 eyes) with AAOR.
• Review of clinical records and MMI (fundus photography, OCT, AF, OCTA).

Main Results:

• AAOR identified in young myopic individuals (18-39 years).
• Three stages observed: acute progressive, stationary, and atrophic.
• MMI showed characteristic changes including annular band, ellipsoid zone loss, choroidal thickness variations, and foveal avascular zone enlargement.

Conclusions:

• AAOR typically affects young, unilaterally involved, myopic individuals.
• MMI findings are key to recognizing and understanding the variations in AAOR's clinical course.