Usefulness of indocyanine green angiography to depict the distant retinal vascular anomalies associated with branch retinal vein occlusion causing serous macular detachment.

PURPOSE: To report the usefulness of indocyanine green angiography (ICGA) to depict the retinal vascular anomalies associated with distant branch retinal vein occlusion resulting in serous retinal detachment at the macula.

METHODS

This was a retrospective, case series of 6 patients (6 eyes) with serous retinal detachments. Fluorescein angiography and ICGA showed that those 6 eyes had a distant branch retinal vein occlusion. The characteristics in ophthalmic examinations such as fundus appearance, fluorescein angiography, ICGA, optical coherence tomography, and clinical courses were evaluated.

RESULTS

In addition to serous retinal detachments, five eyes exhibited hard exudates around the macula. Fluorescein angiography and ICGA clearly showed the vessel occlusion; however, no apparent abnormalities appeared in the macular area in any of the eyes. In four eyes, early-phase ICGA depicted the retinal vascular anomalies within the area of venous occlusion and those were seen as hyperfluorescent patches on late-phase ICGA. In two eyes, punctate hyperfluorescent spots were seen in the area of venous occlusion on late-phase ICGA. Optical coherence tomography depicted a serous retinal detachment at the macula and retinal swelling in the outer nuclear layer from the macula to the hyperfluorescent abnormalities on ICGA. The macular serous retinal detachments were resolved within 3 months after laser photocoagulation was applied to the hyperfluorescent areas on ICGA.

CONCLUSION

Leakage from subsequent vascular anomalies after branch retinal vein occlusion can cause submacular fluid. Indocyanine green angiography is useful for detecting the causative vascular regions of the fluid.