Objective: To investigate the clinical manifestation and follow-up of melanocytoma of the optic disc.
Methods: Retrospective case series study was taken to study the clinical data of the cases with melanocytoma of the optic disc at Peking Union Medical College Hospital from 1978 to 2007. The examination included direct and indirect ophthalmoscopy, fundus photography, fundus fluorescein angiography (FFA), fundus indocyanine green angiography (ICGA), optical coherence tomography (OCT) and B-scan. The clinical manifestation and the outcome in follow-up period were analyzed.
Results: Ten cases aged 31-58 years (mean 43 years) were included in this study. Among them, 9 cases were male, 1 case was female. All cases were unilateral involved, 5 cases were right eye, 5 cases were left eye. The distribution of the visual acuity was follows: light perception in 2 eyes, 20/200 in one eye, 20/20 or above in 7 eyes. The tumor mass at the optic disc with extensive serous detachment of retina was detected on B-scan in one eye. The benign melanocytoma was diagnosed by vitreous fine needle biopsy for this eye. In other case, the tumor was found to be enlarged, visual field defect deteriorated, pigment granules appeared in the vitreous adjacent to the tumor during on year follow-up period. On the patient request, enucleation was performed to rule out the malignancy of the tumor. Pathologic study showed that the tumor cells were active, but benign state. The tumor size and visual acuity in other eight eyes remained stable in the follow-up period with one to 18 years (mean 3.5 years). On FFA and ICGA, bilateral choroidal nevi were found in one eye.
Conclusions: Melanocytoma of the optic disc is a benign tumor that rarely causes visual impairment. However, visual acuity may be impaired due to enlargement of the tumor or necrosis in tumor. It is important to follow-up every case with melanocytoma of the optic disc as long as possible.