Acute macular neuroretinopathy (AMN) following COVID-19 vaccination

• Main Authors: Daniela Drüke, Uwe Pleyer, Hans Hoerauf, Nicolas Feltgen, Sebastian Bemme
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier 2021-12-01
• Series: American Journal of Ophthalmology Case Reports
• Subjects: AMN; COVID-19 vaccine vaxzevria; EZ disruption; IZ disruption; Paracentral scotomas
• Online Access: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2451993621002164

Purpose: To describe a case of acute macular neuroretinopathy (AMN) in a 23-year-old Caucasian female after a COVID-19 vaccination (Vaxzevira). Observations: Our patient perceived visual symptoms in both eyes one day after COVID-19 vaccination. Hyporeflective petalloid shaped perifoveal lesions appeared in infrared reflectance (IR) imaging, and Spectral domain-optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) revealed structural alterations of outer retinal layers that resulted in persistent disruption of the ellipsoid zone (EZ) and the interdigitation zone (IZ). Conclusions and importance: We report a novel association between AMN and COVID-19 vaccination. In addition to a febrile infection and oral contraception, previous vaccination should also be considered a potential risk factor for AMN.