Vascular Tumors Mimicking Retinal Hemorrhage
Vascular tumors may arise within the retina or behind it in choroidal tissue and are often accompanied by retinal hemorrhage. The most common listed tumors are hemangioma, benign, and hemangiosarcoma, malignant; hemangiomatosis may occur in cats. Hemangiosarcoma is most commonly described as metastatic from a highly vascularized primary organ such as the spleen, liver, or heart. Hemangiomatosis is described as a systemic neoplastic disorder involving proliferative lesions in blood-vessel walls in many organs and destruction of blood cells, with a very poor prognosis.
Treatment
Retinal hemorrhage is readily visible by indirect ophthalmoscopy, but identification of a vascular tumor may require retinal ultrasonography or optical coherence tomography. A complete blood count, serum biochemistry, urinalysis, thoracic radiography, echocardiography, and abdominal ultrasonography are used to search for the primary tumor. Successful treatment of the primary disorder is important for limiting spread of hemangioma or hemangiosarcoma. Feline hemangiomatosis is described as having an extremely poor prognosis and high short-term mortality.
Hemangiomatosis in a cat. A) Fundus photograph suggests massive retinal hemorrhage. B) Optical coherence tomography demonstrates that the retinal lesions are vascular masses infiltrating the retinal tissue.
Red metastatic mass in the subretinal-choroidal space causing retinal hemorrhage. Histopathology identified hemangiosarcoma in the globe and in splenic and hepatic biopsy samples. The source notes that ocular metastases are rare but should remain a differential diagnosis for any intraocular mass.
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Adapted from the Atlas of Ocular Diseases in Dogs and Cats by Dr. Siniša D. Grozdanić and colleagues. © Animal Eye Consultants of Iowa. The text and clinical images on this page are original content from the authors' own clinical practice and research, and may not be reproduced, distributed, or repurposed without permission.
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