Torpedo Maculopathy: Case Series of an Underdiagnosed and Rare Condition Using Multimodal Imaging

Background

Torpedo maculopathy (TM) is a rare congenital anomaly firstly reported by Roseman and Gass in 1992 as a solitary hypopigmented nevus of the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) [1]. It typically presents as a well-defined, flat, bullet-shaped lesion, located temporal to the macula and pointing towards it [2]. In the vast majority of cases, this anomaly is unilateral, asymptomatic, and nonprogressive and most of the time, the lesion is discovered incidentally and remains benign over time, although rare cases of neovascularization have been described [3].

Despite its specific characteristics, this disease is sometimes misdiagnosed and referred to retina centers for further assessment. In the era of multimodal imaging, it is important to find the key diagnostic feature to help clinicians recognize this benign lesion and avoid unnecessary investigations. In this study, the authors present a retrospective series of five patients with TM with systematic analysis of lesions on color fundus photography, fundus short wavelength autofluorescence (FAF), SD-OCT, and OCTA aiming to improve its early recognition.

Publication History

Received: 22 October 2023

Accepted: 02 January 2024

Accepted Manuscript online:
04 January 2024

Article published online:
26 March 2024

• References

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