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Drusen

  • Living reference work entry
  • First Online:
Encyclopedia of Ophthalmology

  • 14 Accesses

Synonyms

Druse – singular form

Definition

Drusen are discrete whitish-yellow deposits of abnormal material located deep to the retina between the basal lamina of the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) and Bruch’s membrane. Varying widely in number, size, and shape, drusen can be confined to the macula region or involve large portions of the retina. The presence of drusen is suggestive of age-related macular degeneration although other diseases such as familial dominant drusen or basil laminar drusen also can be associated with drusen.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Ophthalmology, Eye Institute – Medical College of WI, 925 N. 87th Street, 53226, Milwaukee, WI, USA

    Kimberly E. Stepien

  2. Oxford Eye Hospital, WC1N 1EH, London, UK

    Susan Downes

Authors
  1. Kimberly E. Stepien
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  2. Susan Downes
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Kimberly E. Stepien .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Dept of Ophthal & Optometry,AKH, Medical University of Wien Dept of Ophthal & Optometry,AKH, Wien, Austria

    Ursula Schmidt-Erfurth

  2. Department of Ophthalmology, Goethe University of Frankfurt am Main Department of Ophthalmology, Frankfurt am Main, Germany

    Thomas Kohnen

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© 2012 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg

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Stepien, K.E., Downes, S. (2012). Drusen. In: Schmidt-Erfurth, U., Kohnen, T. (eds) Encyclopedia of Ophthalmology. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-35951-4_82-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-35951-4_82-4

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-642-35951-4

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference MedicineReference Module Medicine

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