Hyperreflective ganglion cell layer band in a large cohort of non‐syndromic retinitis pigmentosa: Frequency and clinical correlations.

Purpose Methods Results Conclusions Recently, an ‘hyperreflective ganglion cell layer band’ (HGB) has been described on spectral‐domain optical coherence tomography (SD‐OCT) in a subset of patients with retinitis pigmentosa (RP). This study aims to validate and describe the frequency of HGB in a large cohort of Portuguese patients with RP.This single‐centre, cross‐sectional cohort study included consecutive patients with a genetic diagnosis of RP. SD‐OCT images were reviewed to identify the presence of the HGB and other retinal comorbidities. The HGB was defined as a continuous hyperreflective band within the thickness of the ganglion cell layer (GCL). We built mixed‐effects regression models, accounting for inter‐eye correlations, to investigate features predictive of visual acuity. Subsequently, a reduced model was fitted.A total of 398 eyes from 201 patients were included. HGB was identified in 69 (17.3%) eyes from 39 (19.4%) patients. Patients presenting with the HGB were significantly younger at diagnosis and at symptom onset. Median BCVA [ETDRS (IQR)] was 65 (29) letters in eyes with the HGB and 70 (21) letters in eyes without HGB (p < 0.001). In both the full and reduced mixed‐effects models, the presence of HGB and macular hole (MH) was significantly associated with worse BCVA.This study validates the recent description of HGB within the GCL in a subset of patients with RP. Eyes with HGB demonstrated significantly worse BCVA compared to those without HGB, suggesting that the presence of HGB may serve as an SD‐OCT biomarker of worse visual prognosis in these patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]