Abstract
Purpose: :
1) To report on the long term course and natural history of patients with enlarged blind spot syndrome, and 2) To characterize the multifocal electroretinogram (mfERG) findings in patients with Enlarged Blind Spot Syndrome.
Methods: :
An observational consecutive case series of patients with Enlarged Blind Spot Syndrome was performed. Study patients had acute visual field loss, blind spot enlargement, minimal fundus changes, and reduction in waveform amplitudes on mfERG. Patients were seen over a 14 year period (1996 to 2010).
Results: :
65 patients diagnosed with Enlarged Blind Spot Syndrome were included in the study. There were 47 females and 18 males, with an average age of 40 years, and with the majority of patients (85%) having unilateral disease on presentation. Follow up data was available for 32 patients, with an average follow up of 2.8 years. Visual acuity remained stable in the majority of patients (88%). Visual fields remained stable or improved in the majority of patients (92%). Involvement of the contra lateral eye occurred in 2 of 25 patients with an initial presentation of unilateral disease. There was a strong correspondence between mfERG findings and visual field defects spatially and temporally.
Conclusions: :
Central acuity is not commonly affected in Enlarged Blind Spot Syndrome, and patients generally retain good vision. Visual field loss may progress in a small percentage of patients. The mfERG correlates well with disease activity.
Keywords: electroretinography: clinical • neuro-ophthalmology: diagnosis • clinical (human) or epidemiologic studies: natural history