Factors associated with foveoschisis and foveal detachment without macular hole in high myopia.

PURPOSE: To investigate the associated factors of foveoschisis and foveal detachment without macular hole in highly myopic eyes.

METHODS: A cross-sectional study of 124 eyes of 68 highly myopic patients was performed. The patients underwent complete ocular examination, fundus photography, and optical coherence tomography (OCT).

RESULTS: Of the 124 eyes, 10 (8%, 10/124) had foveoschisis or foveal detachment without a macular hole on OCT examination. On the basis of univariate analysis, six variables were associated with the pathologic changes, including age over 40 years (P=0.018), spherical equivalent over 10 D (P=0.042), axial length over 31 mm (P=0.001), macular chorioretinal atrophy (P=0.00003), posterior staphyloma (P=0.0003), and vitreoretinal interface factors, including epiretinal membrane, posterior vitreoschisis, and vitreomacular traction (P=0.00002). In the multivariate analysis, three factors were independently associated with foveoschisis and foveal detachment without macular hole in high myopia: axial length, macular chorioretinal atrophy, and vitreoretinal interface factors.

CONCLUSIONS: Foveoschisis and foveal detachment without macular hole are sight-threatening disorders in highly myopic eyes. Axial length, macular chorioretinal atrophy, and vitreoretinal interface factors were independently associated with these pathological conditions. Thus, both intraocular and outer ocular wall factors play important roles and merit further study.