Artikel
Fundus perimetry in the long-term follow-up of Stargardt's disease
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Autoren
Veröffentlicht: | 22. September 2004 |
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Gliederung
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Objective
To assess and evaluate functional changes in fundus perimetry during the long-term follow-up of patients with Stargardt's disease.
Methods
Fundus perimetry with the Scanning Laser Ophthalmoscope was performed in 35 eyes of 18 patients with Stargardt's macular dystrophy over a mean follow-up period of 4 years (1 to 9 years). Static threshold perimetry with a 4-2-1 staircase strategy and Goldmann III stimuli was carried out with an average number of 60 stimuli. The depth and size of the scotomas as well as the stability and location of fixation (preferred retinal locus, PRL) during perimetry were analyzed for each examination. The results were compared intraindividually in relation to the first exam.
Results
During the baseline perimetric exam 31 eyes (89%) showed an absolute central scotoma measuring 4.5cm2 in average. During follow-up this central scotoma increased by 3.2cm2 in average while there was no significant change in scotoma depth. Regarding the area and stability of fixation the mean number of patients already used an extrafoveal PRL for fixation at the beginning of the follow-up. The mean deviation around the PRL was 0.84 degrees. During follow-up stability of fixation did not change significantly while the PRL remained at the upper border of the scotoma and moved upwards according to the increasing scotoma size. Visual acuity remained stable over the follow-up at an average of 20/100.
Conclusions
Fundus perimetry represents an effective device to evaluate functional changes in the follow-up of patients with Stargardt's disease. Although visual acuity showed only minor changes, an enlargement of the central scotoma and a movement of the PRL were observed during follow-up.