OCT Angiography Use in Pregnancy: Branch Retinal Artery Occlusion Associated with Patent Foramen Ovale – A Case Report and Multimodal Analysis

Abstract

This case report is a multimodal analysis of a pregnant patient with branch retinal artery occlusion (BRAO) associated to patent foramen ovale (PFO). A 28-year-old woman presented at the clinic 20 h after an acute, painless black spot appearance in the inferior temporal visual field of the right eye (OD). At that time, she was 18 weeks pregnant and had no report of complications in her previous pregnancy. Best-corrected visual acuity was 1.0 in both eyes. Color fundus photo, perimetry, and OCT angiography were required. The results clearly showed an embolus in the superior nasal retinal arteriole, associated with a pallor in the distal retina. Patient was referred to a cardiologist and a transcranial Doppler with contrast indicated a right-to-left intracardiac shunt, confirmed by the presence of a PFO at the transesophageal echocardiography. Thrombophilic conditions were excluded. Enoxaparin 1 mg/kg was started and kept until the delivery. Now, a PFO surgical closure is on schedule. This case highlights the noteworthiness of considering PFO as a source of embolism for BRAO in young patients, the capability of OCTA as a dye-free method for use in pregnancy and emphasizes the importance of systemic evaluation in patients with BRAO.