Capillary Dropout: A Novel Fluorescein Angiography Finding in Primary Vitreoretinal Lymphoma

Ocul Oncol Pathol. 2017 Nov;3(4):324-327. doi: 10.1159/000472152. Epub 2017 May 12.

Abstract

Tissue diagnosis with vitreous and/or retinal biopsy usually confirms the diagnosis of primary vitreoretinal lymphoma. Multiple imaging modalities like fundus fluorescein angiography, fundus autofluorescence, and optical coherence tomography have been used to support the diagnosis of vitreoretinal lymphoma. We report a case of a 74-year-old lady diagnosed with primary vitreoretinal lymphoma showing a novel fluorescein angiographic finding of capillary dropout. We hypothesize that this clinical finding on the fluorescein angiogram may be due to the occlusion of the retinal vasculature by the malignant tumor cells. This finding also suggests the possible intraocular invasion of the malignant lymphomatous cells into the inner retinal layers.

Keywords: Capillary dropout; Fluorescein angiography; Vitreoretinal lymphoma.