This healthy 8YO female was born blind in her left eye. Vision was 20/20 in her normal OD and no light perception OS.
Pseudocolor SLO imaging shows a markedly enlarged optic disc with surrounding chorioretinal scarring. Numerous retinal vessels extend outwards from the disc, and extensive fibrotic tissue obscures the disc details. This tissue is markedly elevated and hyperreflective on OCT scanning.
Learning Points:
Morning glory syndrome is a typically unilateral congenital anomalous disc malformation that presents with an enlarged, colobomatous-appearing disc with an increased number of retinal vessels that radiate outwards. The center of the nerve is typically covered by glial tissue. In our patient’s case, this tissue is so extensive that it obscures the disc coloboma.
This abnormality is named for its striking resemblance to the Morning Glory flower. Visual prognosis is usually poor. The condition can be associated with serous macular detachment. Neuroimaging should be considered to rule out transsphenoidal encephalocele and intracranial carotid artery dysgenesis. Fortunately, our patient’s neurologic imaging was negative.
