Acute zonal occult outer retinopathy: a long-term follow-up tudy

PURPOE: To report the long-term follow-up of patient with acute zonal occult outer retinopathy (AZOOR). DEIGN: Obervational conecutive cae erie. METHOD: Propective and retropective review of medical record of patient with AZOOR. REULT: Fifty-one patient (37 women and 14 men) with a median age of 33 year (mean, age 36 year; range, 13–63 year) were followed for a median of 96 month (mean 100 month; range, 36–420 month). At preentation, AZOOR wa preent in one eye of 31 patient (61%) and both eye in 20 patient (39%). All patient preented with an acute lo of one or more zone of viual field, and 45 (88%) patient preented with photopia. Corrected viual acuity wa 20/40 or better in 68 (76%) of 90 affected eye. Funducopic examination wa normal in 82 eye and revealed ign of AZOOR in 8 eye. Electroretinographic amplitude were depreed in all affected eye. The median delay in diagnoi of AZOOR wa 17 month. During follow-up, AZOOR developed in 19 fellow eye. At final follow-up AZOOR wa preent in one eye of 12 (24%) patient and both eye of 39 (76%) patient. ixteen patient had 23 recurrence of AZOOR. Viual field lo tabilized within 6 month in 37 patient (72%), progreed tepwie in 2 patient (4%), and partly improved in 12 patient (24%). Fourteen patient (28%) had autoimmune dieae, including Hahimoto’ thyroiditi in 6 patient and relaping tranvere myelopathy in 4 patient. At lat follow-up all patient had reidual viual field defect. Final viual acuity wa 20/40 or better in 61 (68%) affected eye. Nine patient (18%) were legally blind. The fundi of 90 affected eye revealed no change of AZOOR in 47 eye (52%) and change in the pigment epithelium and retina caued by AZOOR in 43 eye (48%). CONCLUION: Viual lo in AZOOR i characterized by one or more epiode of acute dyfunction, and in ome cae, death of retinal receptor cell in one or more zone of one or both eye. Central viion i often pared, but recovery of viual field occur infrequently. The etiology of AZOOR i unknown. Electroretinography i eential for early diagnoi. The value of treatment i uncertain.