Recurrent RPE Microrips in a Case of Vascularised Pigment Epithelial Detachment

Abstract

Microrips of the RPE are an infrequent finding in vascularised pigment epithelial detachments (PEDs). Fluorescein angiography revealed that they are identical to the leaks seen in central serous chorioretinopathy (CSC); it has been hypothesised that both may be caused by hydrostatic forces generating a mechanical disruption of the RPE. We report a case of vascularised PED that was complicated by repeated subretinal haemorrhages and presented recurrent microrips of the RPE, which is a finding never described before according to our knowledge. In this case, a very high protein concentration in the subretinal space, due to prolonged bleeding from the neovascular membrane, might have damaged the RPE and reduced the choroidal suction, as believed for CSC. It might also have increased the intraluminal pressure in the PED, finally determining the passage of fluid through the microrips, which have been hypothesised to be RPE defects. These observations represent further speculation about the pathogenesis and the unique angiographic pattern of the leaks in CSC and of RPE microrips.