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Christina Gerth, MD; Robert J. Zawadzki, PhD; John S. Werner, PhD; Elise Héon, MD

Arch Ophthalmol. 2008;126(6):807-811.

Objective  To investigate the retinal microstructure and lamination of patients affected with X-linked retinoschisis (XLRS) using high-resolution imaging modalities.

Methods  Patients diagnosed as having XLRS underwent assessment. Visual function testing included visual acuity, color vision, and full-field electroretinography. We used a high-resolution Fourier-domain optical coherence tomography (FD-OCT) system (4.5-µm axial resolution; 9 frames/s; 1000 A-scans per frame) combined with a handheld scanner. Macular image evaluation included schisis localization and retinal layer integrity.

Results  Six patients with XLRS and identified mutations in the XLRS1 gene underwent testing. Visual acuity ranged from 0.2 to 1.6 logMAR (logarithm of the minimum angle of resolution). Results of FD-OCT revealed foveal schisis extending from the outer to the inner plexiform layer in 4 of 6 patients. Bullous foveal schisis was associated with younger age. All patients showed extrafoveal schisis within the outer and inner nuclear and ganglion cell layer, alone or in combination. Photoreceptor outer and inner segment layers were disrupted and irregular in all patients.

Conclusions  Retinal dystrophy in XLRS is reflected by morphological changes within the inner and outer retinal layers. Disturbed foveal photoreceptor integrity was identified in all patients. Retinal layer abnormalities correlated with age but did not appear to correlate with visual acuity or genotypic variation.

Author Affiliations: Department of Ophthalmology and Vision Sciences, The Hospital for Sick Children and University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada (Drs Gerth and Héon); and Vision Science and Advanced Retinal Imaging Laboratory, Department of Ophthalmology and Vision Science, University of California, Davis (Drs Zawadzki and Werner).