Unilateral, recurrent exudative retinal detachment in association with pansinusitis

AIM To report a patient with unilateral exudative retinal detachment due to pansinusitis. METHODS Case report. RESULTS A 65-year-old woman with a two-month history of blurred vision, red eye and lid swelling in her left eye was referred to us. Her best-corrected visual acuity was 20/20 in the right eye and 20/200 in the left. Conjunctival vessels were engorged in the OS. Funduscopy revealed a 360° exudative detachment in OS and computerized tomography (CT) imaging revealed pansinusitis. Systemic antibiotic treatment was employed and exudative detachment regressed. However, exudative detachment remitted as soon as antibiotic treatment ceased. Finally she underwent sinus surgery and decompression of the orbita. Her visual acuity improved to 20/100 just two days after the surgery, stabilized at 20/30 and no further recurrences occured during the follow-up of 10 months. CONCLUSION Since exudative retinal detachment usually accompanies systemic inflammatory or neoplastic diseases, systemic screening and collaboration with other disciplines are mandatory. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of a case that developed exudative retinal detachment due to pansinusitis and only recovered after decompression surgery.