Neovascularization in Purtscher's retinopathy

Annie Chan, Douglas R Fredrick, Theodore Leng
Department of Ophthalmology, Byers Eye Institute at Stanford University, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA

Abstract: We report a case of neovascularization secondary to Purtscher's retinopathy that showed minimal improvement with photocoagulation treatment. A 14-year-old boy with a history of cerebellar medulloblastoma presented with blurry vision and floaters after being struck by a motor vehicle while riding his bike. At presentation, visual acuity was 20/400 in his right eye and counting fingers in his left eye. Fundus examination showed disk edema, retinal whitening, and retinal hemorrhages in both eyes. Optical coherence tomography demonstrated thinning of the temporal retina and disruption of the inner segment–outer segment junction of the photoreceptor layer in the right eye and thickening and edema of the nasal macula, as well as a central foveal hyper-reflectivity, in the left eye. At the initial visit, there was no ischemia or neovascularization (NV). One month later, the patient developed NV of the disk and ischemia in the mid-periphery of the left eye. The patient underwent treatment with pan-retinal photocoagulation. The NV regressed, but visual outcome remained poor at his 5-month follow-up visit.

Keywords: Purtscher's retinopathy, neovascularization, laser photocoagulation, disk edema