Abstract
Membranes growing on the anterior surface of the retina were recognized clinically in the 19th century; most were associated with diabetes mellitus. When retinal detachment or vitreous hemorrhage complicated preretinal membranes, the prognosis for vision was poor. There was limited information about the morphology of diabetic retinal changes and preretinal membranes well into the 20th century. Early major contributors to the anatomic pathology of diabetic retinopathy were Arthur Ballantyne, a Scottish ophthalmologist, and Norman Ashton, a pathologist at Moorfields Hospital. The vascularized preretinal membranes in diabetes became the prototype for ischemic retinopathies. Other types of preretinal membranes existed, including those without vessels. Insight into their pathogenesis gained momentum after the development of vitrectomy, when tissue could be removed surgically for therapeutic purposes. The photograph gallery includes the pathology of proliferative diabetic retinopathy, various epiretinal membranes with and without pigment, and an epiretinal membrane with silicone oil.
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