Untreated Acute Posterior Multifocal Placoid Pigment Epitheliopathy (APMPPE): a case series

BACKGROUND: Acute Posterior Multifocal Placoid Pigment Epitheliopathy (APMPPE) is a rare inflammatory eye disease that affects the Retinal Pigment Epithelium and outer retina. The purpose of this study was to describe its presentations, as well as its prognosis in a series of untreated patients. METHODS: Records of patients seen in the department of Ophthalmology at Cochin University Hospital, Paris, between April 2002 and June 2015 were retrospectively studied. Patients were included if they presented with the typical findings of APMPPE characterized by whitish or yellowish bilateral placoid lesions, a typical pattern of early hypofluorescence and late hyperfluorescence on fluorescein angiography. Only untreated patients who had been followed for at least 1 month were included. RESULTS: Out of 22 patients’ records with a diagnosis of APMPPE, 10 patients (9 women, 1 man), with a mean age of 24.5 ± 4.2 years, fulfilled the study criteria with a diagnosis of typical untreated APMPPE. Prodromal symptoms were reported in 7/10 patients. Macular lesions were observed in 18/20 eyes. Sub-retinal fluid was seen at presentation in 3 eyes. Initial mean BCVA was 0.56 ± 0.81 LogMAR [− 0.10 to 2.30]. In 9 out of 10 cases, the time interval between manifestations in the first affected eye and the fellow eye was less than 3 days. After 1 month, BCVA had improved to 0.05 ± 0.089 LogMAR [0–0.3], with a decimal BCVA ≥0.8 in 17/20 eyes. CONCLUSIONS: In these 10 cases of untreated APMPPE, a favorable outcome was observed.