Progressive zonal outer retinitis

We examined an immunocompetent patient with uniocular acute progressive outer retinitis. The retinitis was curvilinear in shape, showed progressive enlargement, and appeared to be altered by treatment with intravenous acyclovir. When regressed, the affected area of retina appeared atrophic and, at one-year follow-up, demonstrated intraretinal pigment migration with retinal pigment epithelial atrophy and atrophy of the choriocapillaris. Although visual acuity was unaffected, a dense scotoma was recorded on field testing. The response to acyclovir implicates the herpesvirus family, and acyclovir or another antiherpetic agent should be considered for such cases.