Alterations of the foveal central bouquet associated with cystoid macular edema.

OBJECTIVE: The central bouquet (CB) of the fovea comprises a dense array of cone photoreceptors intertwined with Muller cells. The aim of this investigation was to study visual outcomes and structural alterations in the foveal CB associated with cystoid macular edema (CME) of different etiologies. DESIGN: Retrospective case series. PARTICIPANTS AND METHODS: This study analyzed eyes with various etiologies of CME, including diabetic macular edema, central retinal vein occlusion (CRVO), pseudophakic or Irvine-Gass (IG) syndrome, uveitis, and retinitis pigmentosa using spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT). SD-OCT was used to classify the CB alterations as either (1) thickened hyper-reflectivity associated with indistinct ellipsoid zone (EZ), or (2) subretinal fluid with intact EZ. Comparisons were made using the Students t test and Fisher's exact test. RESULTS: The total cohort consisted of 61 eyes from 61 patients with various etiologies of CME. CB alterations were observed in 91% of uveitis eyes, 82% of CRVO eyes and 50% of IG eyes. Presence of CB alteration correlated with greater central macular thickness (p=0.0020), horizontal extent of edema (p=0.0042), and worse baseline visual acuity (p=0.0195). Type 2 CB alterations were associated with worse logMAR vision compared with type 1 at baseline and final examinations (p=0.0002, p=0.0470). CONCLUSIONS: CB alterations were noted in the majority of eyes with CME from CRVO, uveitis, and IG. The association observed between CB alterations and central macular thickness suggests that these alterations may develop as a result of mechanical stress of Muller cells on the CB.