Asymmetry of focal ERG in human macular region

Abstract

Electroretinograms (ERGs) were elicited by hemicircular (half-disc) stimuli to the upper, lower, temporal and nasal maculas of 26 normal subjects, and the amplitudes and implicit times of the ERGs from opposing macular regions were compared. The amplitudes of a-wave, b-wave and oscillatory potentials (OPs) were significantly larger in the upper macular region than in the lower macular region (P less than 0.05). The amplitudes of a- and b-waves did not differ significantly between temporal and nasal macular regions, but OPs showed enormous asymmetry, with significantly larger amplitudes in the temporal retina than in the nasal retina (P less than 0.001). The implicit times of a-waves, b-waves and OPs did not differ significantly between upper and lower retina, or between temporal and nasal retina. These findings aided analysis of the ERG of a patient with a retinal defect.