Optic Nerve Assessment Using 7-Tesla Magnetic Resonance Imaging.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to correlate high-resolution magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and histologic findings in a case of juxtapapillary choroidal melanoma with clinical evidence of optic nerve invasion.

METHODS: With institutional review board approval, an enucleated globe with choroidal melanoma and optic nerve invasion was imaged using a 7-tesla MRI followed by histopathologic evaluation.

RESULTS: Optical coherence tomography, B-scan ultrasonography, and 1.5-tesla MRI of the orbit (1-mm sections) could not detect optic disc invasion. Ex vivo, 7-tesla MRI detected optic nerve invasion, which correlated with histopathologic features.

CONCLUSIONS: Our case demonstrates the potential to document the existence of optic nerve invasion in the presence of an intraocular tumor, a feature that has a major bearing on decision making, particularly for consideration of enucleation.