Peripheral vitreochorioretinal dystrophy in patients with various types of myopia

Background. Over the past decade, there has been an increase in myopia prevalence in the world; in many countries it is considered as epidemic. In case of an unfavorable course, myopia becomes the cause of retinal pathology, which in severe cases leads to an irreversible decrease in corrected visual acuity and to visual impairment that occurs at working age.

Purpose. To analyze the relationship between the occurrence of peripheral vitreochorioretinal dystrophy (PVCD) in patients with myopia depending on its type: refractive and axial.

Material and methods. A retrospective cohort analysis involved 304 patients (608 eyes) of 13 to 70 years old with acquired myopia: mild (19.40%), moderate (42.93%) and high (37.67%). In all cases, myopia was complicated by PVCD. All patients were divided into 2 groups according to the type of myopia: refractive and axial myopia. Biometric data (LENSTAR LS 900) and keratometry (“Huvitz”, South Korea) were used as criteria for patient selection.

Results. The distribution of patients showed that PVCD most often occurs in the group of patients with axial myopia of moderate (44.48%) and high (39.70%) degrees. In the group of patients with mild axial myopia, the incidence was 15.80%. A clear correlation was noted between the development of PVCD and the axial elongation.

In contrast, in patients with refractive myopia, the incidence of PVCD was two times higher in case of mild myopia (50.00%) than in cases of moderate (29.69%) and high myopia (20.31%) put together.

Conclusion. The study revealed that PVCD is almost 8,5 times more likely to occur in case of axial myopia than in case of refractive myopia. A possible cause of PVCD development in case of axial myopia is an increase in the axial length, while in case of refractive myopia its possible cause is the increase in the eyeball's transverse size. Regardless of the type of myopia and its degree, the study of the periphery of the retina is an essential element of diagnostics for timely detection of PVCD and monitoring the progression of axial myopia is an important criterion for its prevention.

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