Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2022 Jun 1;63(6):14.
doi: 10.1167/iovs.63.6.14.

Exploring Reticular Pseudodrusen Extent and Impact on Mesopic Visual Sensitivity in Intermediate Age-Related Macular Degeneration

Himeesh Kumar  1   2 , Robyn H Guymer  1   2 , Lauren A B Hodgson  1 , Xavier Hadoux  1   2 , Zhichao Wu  1   2
Affiliations

Exploring Reticular Pseudodrusen Extent and Impact on Mesopic Visual Sensitivity in Intermediate Age-Related Macular Degeneration

Himeesh Kumar et al. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. .

Abstract

Purpose: To explore the impact of the extent of reticular pseudodrusen (RPD) on mesopic visual sensitivity in individuals with intermediate age-related macular degeneration (AMD).

Methods: In total, 570 eyes from 285 participants with bilateral large drusen underwent microperimetry testing to assess the visual sensitivity of the central 3.6-mm region and multimodal imaging to determine the extent of RPD in the central 20° × 20° region (at the eye level). Mean visual sensitivity within five sectors in the central 3.6-mm region sampled on microperimetry and the extent of RPD in these sectors were derived. Linear mixed models were used to examine the association between the extent of RPD on overall mean visual sensitivity and sector-based mean sensitivity.

Results: An increasing extent of RPD at the eye level and within sectors was associated with a significant reduction in overall and sector-based mean sensitivity, respectively (P < 0.001 for both). However, when both RPD parameters were considered together in a multivariable model, only an increasing extent of RPD at the eye level (P < 0.001) and not within each sector (P = 0.178) was independently associated with reduced sector-based mean sensitivity.

Conclusions: Mesopic visual sensitivity is generally reduced in eyes with large drusen and coexistent RPD compared to eyes without RPD, with greater reductions with an increasing extent of RPD. However, reduced sector-based visual sensitivities are explained by the overall extent of RPD present, rather than their extent within the sector itself. These findings suggest that there are generalized pathogenic changes in eyes with RPD accounting for the observed mesopic visual dysfunction.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Disclosure: H. Kumar, None; R.H. Guymer, Bayer (F), Novartis (F), Roche Genentech (F), Apellis (F); L.A.B. Hodgson, None; X. Hadoux, None; Z. Wu, None

Figures

Figure.
Figure.
(A) Microperimetry testing stimulus pattern used to sample the central 3.6-mm diameter region of the macula divided into five sectors. (B) Extent of RPD seen on combined NIR and OCT imaging annotated (in yellow) on the NIR image. Red line indicates the level of the B-scan in C. (C) Example of RPD lesions seen on the OCT B-scan (location indicated by red line on the NIR image in B) with RPD lesions (white arrows) and drusen (red arrow).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Wu Z, Ayton LN, Luu CD, Baird PN, Guymer RH.. Reticular pseudodrusen in intermediate age-related macular degeneration: prevalence, detection, clinical, environmental and genetic associations. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2016; 57: 1310–1316. - PubMed
    1. Gabrielle P-H, Seydou A, Arnould L, et al. .. Subretinal drusenoid deposits in the elderly in a population-based study (the Montrachet Study). Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2019; 60: 4838–4848. - PubMed
    1. Wu Z, Fletcher EL, Kumar H, Greferath U, Guymer RH.. Reticular pseudodrusen: a critical phenotype in age-related macular degeneration. Prog Retin Eye Res. 2021; 88: 101017. - PubMed
    1. Zhou Q, Shaffer J, Ying G-s.. Pseudodrusen in the fellow eye of patients with unilateral neovascular age-related macular degeneration: a meta-analysis. PLoS One. 2016; 11: e0149030. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Finger RP, Wu Z, Luu CD, et al. .. Reticular pseudodrusen: a risk factor for geographic atrophy in fellow eyes of individuals with unilateral choroidal neovascularization. Ophthalmology. 2014; 121: 1252–1256. - PMC - PubMed

Publication types