title: Clinical variations in assessment of bull's-eye maculopathy.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the phenotypic variation in bull's-eye maculopathy and seek possible correlations between functional loss and clinical appearance.
  
  
  METHODS
  From January 1, 1999, to September 30, 2000, we prospectively examined patients with bull's-eye lesions. Age of onset, duration of symptoms, visual acuity, clinical appearance, and autofluorescence images were recorded, the area of atrophy measured, and electrophysiologic investigations performed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Forty-seven patients, including 6 sibling pairs, met the study entry criteria. On the basis of autofluorescence imaging, 3 distinct groups were identified. Group 1 showed a distinct ring of increased autofluorescence surrounding an area of decreased autofluorescence. In group 2, the ring of increased autofluorescence was not present. Group 3 displayed a speckled appearance within the affected area. All patients had evidence of central sparing in an area of centrally increased autofluorescence. There was significant correlation with the age of onset, visual acuity, and duration of disease. Electrophysiologic tests revealed that 28 patients had macular dysfunction only, 14 had cone-rod dystrophy, 3 had rod-cone dystrophy, and only 2 (monozygotic twins) had cone dystrophy. The correlation between electrophysiologic and autofluorescence data was poor. The sibling pairs had concordant autofluorescence appearance, but electrophysiologic grouping differed in 2 pairs.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Bull's-eye maculopathy represents a heterogeneous group of disorders. The clinical appearance was not helpful in assessing the degree of retinal dysfunction. The difference in qualitative characteristics of functional loss between siblings implies that these attributes do not necessarily reflect the influence of the primary mutation.
authors: Moorfields Eye Hospital, City Road, London EC1V 2PD, England.
authors: Malaika M
authors: MM
authors: Kurz-Levin
authors: Anthony S
authors: AS
authors: Halfyard
authors: Catey
authors: C
authors: Bunce
authors: Alan C
authors: AC
authors: Bird
authors: Graham E
authors: GE
authors: Holder
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017668:Age of Onset; D001284:Atrophy; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004585:Electrooculography; D004596:Electroretinography; D005260:Female; D005453:Fluorescence; D006801:Humans; D008266:Macula Lutea / Q000473:pathology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010641:Phenotype; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012164:Retinal Diseases / Q000473:pathology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D014792:Visual Acuity