Assessing the Cone Photoreceptor Mosaic in Eyes with Pseudodrusen and Soft Drusen In Vivo Using Adaptive Optics Imaging

The pseudodrusen in these eyes correlated with subretinal deposition of material in multiple imaging modalities. Reduced visibility of cones overlying SDD in the AO images can be because of several possible causes, including a change in their orientation, an alteration of their cellular architecture, or absence of the cones themselves. All of these explanations imply that decreased cone photoreceptor function is possible, suggesting that eyes with pseudodrusen appearance may experience decreased retinal function in age-related macular degeneration independent of choroidal neovascularization or retinal pigment epithelial atrophy.