Retinal Pigment Epithelium Sequelae Caused by Blunt Ocular Trauma: Incidence, Visual Outcome, and Associated Factors

Seong Joon Ahn,Byung Ro Lee,Se Joon Woo,Kyu Hyung Park

doi:10.1038/s41598-017-14659-4

Abstract

Vision loss can occur in eyes with blunt ocular trauma, but the causes have not been elucidated fully. We encountered cases of retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) sequelae following blunt ocular trauma associated with permanent vision loss in our cohort of patients with blunt ocular trauma. In this multicentre retrospective cohort study on 129 patients with retinal abnormalities caused by acute blunt ocular trauma, we investigated the incidence of RPE sequelae and evaluated associated factors and visual outcomes. RPE sequelae, which typically presented as hyperpigmentation within well-demarcated hypopigmented lesions, occurred in 29 (22.5%) patients within 1 month of trauma. Optical coherence tomography (OCT) revealed complete photoreceptor loss over the abnormal RPE. Final visual outcomes were significantly different between eyes with and without RPE sequelae. Logistic regression analysis revealed a significant association between the presence of subretinal fluid and RPE sequelae. In conclusion, RPE sequelae occurred in approximately 20% of patients with blunt ocular trauma and was associated with permanent photoreceptor defects and visual loss. Clinical evaluation using OCT may help predict RPE sequelae and visual outcomes in eyes with blunt trauma.

Highlights

We investigated the incidence of retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) sequelae among patients with retinal abnormalities caused by blunt trauma and evaluated the visual outcome of their eyes
This study showed that approximately 20% of patients with blunt ocular trauma and associated retinal abnormalities may have RPE sequelae
Evaluation of RPE sequelae is clinically important because they may be associated with persistent photoreceptor defects

Summary

Introduction

We investigated the incidence of RPE sequelae among patients with retinal abnormalities caused by blunt trauma and evaluated the visual outcome of their eyes. To identify predictive factors for the sequelae, we evaluated the baseline clinical factors associated with RPE sequelae. We further assessed morphologic changes in the retina over time by using spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) to provide structural bases for its clinical significance and explored findings associated with the development of RPE sequelae

Methods

Results

Conclusion