EFFECT OF DARK ADAPTATION AND BLEACHING ON BLUE LIGHT REFLECTANCE IMAGING IN MACULAR TELANGIECTASIA TYPE 2.

PURPOSE: In patients with macular telangiectasia Type 2, blue light reflectance imaging reveals an oval, parafoveal area in the macula that has increased reflectance compared with its surrounding. Here, we examine how dark adaptation and photobleaching can affect the blue light reflectance imaging pattern.

METHODS

Prospective study of patients with macular telangiectasia enrolled in the MacTel Natural History Observation Study. After dark adaptation, a sequence of images was obtained with a confocal scanning laser ophthalmoscope at 488 nm. Change of reflectance patterns was analyzed over time.

RESULTS

Eighteen eyes from 16 patients were analyzed. Initially, increased reflectivity in the parafoveal area resulted in higher gray values compared with the paramacular surrounding on blue light reflectance imaging. The difference between parafoveal and paramacular reflectance intensity decreased steadily during imaging, from 17.7 gray-value units (95% confidence interval: 12.1-23.2) down to 2.8 (95% confidence interval: -0.8 to 6.5) after around 30 seconds, and recovered after 5 minutes of dark adaptation.

CONCLUSION

A bleaching effect was evident in our study. Understanding these changes is important for both diagnosis and assessment of blue light reflectance phenotype in patients with macular telangiectasia and could also provide further insights into the pathophysiology of this disease.