Patterns of Autofluorescence in Common Genotypes of Retinitis Pigmentosa

Abstract

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether different forms of retinitis pigmentosa (RP) could be distinguished from one another using fundus autofluorescence (FAF) imaging. PATIENTS AND METHODS: The National Institutes of Health EyeGene database was used to gather FAF images from 31 patients with RP, which were separated into 11 groups based on the RP-associated gene that was mutated. Investigators reviewed the images for patterns of autofluorescence (AF) and recorded qualitative observations. RESULTS: Four patterns of AF were noted within the macula, including central foveal hyper AF, a perifoveal hyper AF ring, a macular hyper AF ring, and a bull's-eye pattern of AF. Four patterns of AF were noted outside of the macula, including a mid-peripheral hyper AF ring, extramacular spots of hyper AF, patches of hypo AF, and diffuse hypo AF in the periphery. Double hyper AF rings were present in RHO , RPGR , USH2A , and NR2E3 -linked RP. CONCLUSIONS: Similar patterns of AF were seen in different forms of RP, and AF failed to distinguish different genotypes. [ Ophthalmic Surg Lasers Imaging Retina . 2021;52:426–431.]