Retinal detachment associated with coloboma of the choroid.

This article deals briefly with the embryology of choroidal coloboma, the changes found in 13 persons with colobomas, and some details of the management of 7 cases of retinal detachment observed in eyes with choroidal coloboma. Our material is compiled from the records of the Retina Service of the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary and the Retina Associates between 1947 and 1959. Coloboma of the choroid is often associated with other pathologic changes in the eye, such as microphthalmos, high myopia, glaucoma, cataract, and phthisis bulbi, so that in many cases the visual function is impaired. Retinal detachment is a real hazard to colobomatous eyes. A brief survey of the literature indicates that observation of this condition is not very rare.1,2,3 The special problems it presents in examination and treatment are discussed in this article. Developmental Pathology of Choroidal Coloboma During normal development the fetal fissure becomes closed by fusion