Spectral-domain optical coherence tomography findings in polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy suggest a type 1 neovascular growth pattern

PURPOSE To report spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) findings in polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy (PCV). PATIENTS AND METHODS Seventeen eyes of 15 consecutive patients diagnosed with PCV based on typical clinical and angiographic findings were imaged with macular SD-OCT including line scans passing through the polyps. RESULTS SD-OCT findings included typical and atypical retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) detachments and subretinal and intraretinal fluid in all eyes. In the areas corresponding to the polypoidal lesions, well-delineated round-oval, sub-RPE cavities were present and were adherent to the posterior surface of the detached RPE above Bruch membrane. No retinal or choroidal connections to the cavities were noted. CONCLUSION These SD-OCT findings document that the vascular lesions in PCV are not located in the inner choroid, but in the sub-RPE space, suggesting that PCV is a variant of type 1 choroidal neovascularization rather than a distinct clinical entity as initially thought.