Choroidal Vascular Changes in Toxemia of Pregnancy

Twenty-seven patients with toxemia of pregnancy were examined during a postpartum period of two days to eight months. Five of these manifested abnormal photographic and angiographic findings including disk and retinal edema, retinal striae, deep retinal yellow-white focal lesions, choroidal nonfilling, leakage of dye from the optic disk and deep retinal lesions, and retinal pigment epithelial window defects. The location and configuration of the leakage correlated with the defects seen on color photography. The normal retinal, and predominantly abnormal choroidal vascular patterns provide evidence implicating choroidal vascular insufficiency as the primary basis for secondary retinal detachments seen in toxemia of pregnancy.