Optical coherence tomography in the diagnosis of retinal alterations in the presence of pigmented choroidal tumors

Optical coherence tomography (OCT) was used to examine 33 patients (33 eyes) with choroidal melanoma and 39 patients (39 eyes) with choroidal nevus. The magnitude of changes in the retina and its pigment epithelium above the pigmented choroidal neoplasms was found to be largely in proportion to their sizes. When primarily detected, choroidal melanomas had larger sizes and were significantly more frequently attended by neuroepithelial detachment, retinal edema, and evident impairments in the normal architectonics of the retina and its pigment epithelium above the tumor, neuroepithelial detachment in the foveal area, and these tumors tended to show a higher rate of pigment epithelial detachments above the tumor and foveal edema. However, in the presence of small neoplasm sizes (from 1 mm, but less than 2 mm), the patients with choroidal melanomas were observed to have more frequently neuroepithelial detachment and to tend to have a higher rate of retinal edema above the tumor.