Severe acute syphilitic posterior placoid chorioretinitis with complete spontaneous resolution: The natural course.

PURPOSE: We report on a case of unilateral acute syphilitic posterior placoid chorioretinitis (ASPPC) with spontaneous resolution of the lesions, and discuss the role of an altered versus adequate immune response as the major pathogenic factor.

METHODS: We describe a case of acute loss of visual acuity (VA) in the left eye (LE) in a 55-year-old healthy man.

RESULTS: The patient presented with VA of 20/20 in the right eye (RE) and hand movements in the LE. Fundoscopy revealed a large yellowish placoid macular lesion with subretinal fluid in the LE, with no abnormalities detected in the RE. Fluorescein angiography showed early hypofluorescence with late staining in the affected area. The clinical findings progressed fast during the first week, with extension of the initial lesion outside the temporal retinal vascular arcades and the appearance of new lesions in the same eye. The patient abandoned the clinic for two weeks with no treatment. When observed again, VA of the LE had recovered to 20/20 and the lesions had completely resolved. Venereal disease research laboratory (VDRL) and fluorescent treponemal antibody absorption (FTA-ABS) tests results were positive and HIV antibody test titers negative. The diagnosis of ASPPC in the left eye was made. The patient accepted treatment with penicillin G only 45 days after the initial presentation. AV remained stable at 20/20 both eyes and no relapses of the lesions were observed during this period without therapy. The patient was followed for 3 months after treatment. He remained asymptomatic and the ophthalmic examination was unremarkable.

CONCLUSIONS: The pathogenesis of ASPPC is still not understood. Our case showed a sequential pattern of the chorioretinal lesions, with initial aggravation and complete posterior spontaneous resolution, showing the natural course of the disease. These findings suggest the presence of an adequate ocular immune response in patients with ASPPC, not supporting the initially proposed hypothesis of the importance of a modified immune response as the major pathogenic factor.