Optometry Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Optometry, including details on myopia, optometric practice, therapy.

Optic disc drusen: Complications and management.

Aumiller MS

Wilmington Veterans Administration Medical Center, Wilmington, Delaware.

BACKGROUND: Disc drusen have been found clinically in 0.3% of the population with up to 91% presenting bilaterally. Disc drusen gradually change in their ophthalmoscopic appearance throughout a patient's lifespan. This case highlights the possible ocular complications of disc drusen and the complexity in their treatment because of the risk of visual acuity loss. CASE REPORT: A 43-year-old patient with documented bilateral buried disc drusen presented without symptoms for a routine examination. A subretinal neovascular membrane (SNVM) one quarter of a disc diameter in size with an adjacent subretinal hemorrhage was observed in the right eye with a small subretinal hemorrhage in the fellow eye. The patient was evaluated by a retinologist who deferred photocoagulation of the SNVM considering its nasal disc location. CONCLUSIONS: Diagnosing disc drusen is critical because of the serious pathology they can mimic, including disc edema. Although typically benign, patients with disc drusen should be monitored on a regular basis to rule out ocular complications, which can be potentially sight threatening.

Published 8 January 2007 in Optometry, 78(1): 10-6.
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