Optic disc edema with aphakic cystoid maculopathy masquerading as ischemic optic neuropathy

Abstract

Two patients with visual loss after cataract extraction were found to have prominent pallid optic disc edema, peripapillary hemorrhage, and cystoid maculopathy. A diagnosis of anterior ischemic optic neuropathy, with coincidental aphakic cystoid macular edema, was initially considered. The clinical course, however, favored a diagnosis of visual loss secondary to maculopathy. In both cases, fluorescein angiography disclosed leakage of fluorescein dye from macula, optic disc, and peripapillary foci. Fluorescein angiography and stereo color photographs of 51 patients with aphakic cystoid maculopathy were reviewed to determine the incidence of optic disc edema. Although optic disc swelling was rarely recognized on fundus photography, optic disc hyperfluorescence was observed in 75% of cases.