Manage pattern dystrophy like AMD, surgeon says

Pattern dystrophy is a little-known maculopathy that is different from age-related macular degeneration but can be managed similarly, according to Michael L. Klein, MD.

Pattern dystrophy (PD) is a genetic disorder that can cause moderate vision loss in 50% of affected patients, according to the literature. PD is said to differ from AMD because material in the macula is “deposited in a pattern,” Dr. Klein said.

Patients affected with PD ranged in age from 30 to 91 years old. Younger patients with macular disease exhibited discrete pigment figures but still had good visual acuity (20/40 or better) in the unaffected eye. Middle-aged patients had less well defined atrophy, which was more extensive and confluent throughout the macula. Visual acuity in the unaffected eye tended to be worse than in younger patients, with five of 13 of the middle-aged patients having a VA of 20/40, Dr. Klein said. Patients older than 70 years had the most extensive signs of pattern dystrophy and also had the poorest visual acuity, three of these patients were legally blind.

Dr. Klein said that visual loss in PD is directly correlated to dystrophic progression to the macula. He said that surgeons should counsel patients on the risk of progressive vision loss, examine family members for similar symptoms, and offer AMD therapy as treatment in order to manage the disease effectively.

Dr. Klein will present more data on this topic at Hawaii 2005, The Royal Hawaiian Eye Meeting, to be held Jan. 16-21 on the island of Hawaii.