Clinicopathological correlation of drusen deposits in 353 eyes with normal aging
| Histopathology of drusen deposits | Grading | Number of eyes | Clinical appearance | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Group 1 | Group 2 | ||||||
| None | — | 80 (58%) | 96 (45%) | normal, no drusen | |||
| <30 μm only (subclinical) | <1/2 RPE cell high | 29 | 53 | normal, no drusen | |||
| 1/2–1 RPE cell high | 5 | 28 | normal, no drusen | ||||
| At least one 30–63 μm | few 1–2 per section | 15 | 24 | occasional small hard drusen | |||
| moderate <10 per section | 5 | — | scattered small hard drusen | ||||
| At least one >63 μm | few 1–2 per section | 3 | 6 | occasional large hard drusen or drusen cluster | |||
| moderate <10 per section | 2 | 5 | scattered small hard drusen +occasional large hard drusen (hard cluster derived drusen) | ||||
| significant >10 per section | 2 | masses of small hard drusen +hard or soft distinct drusen | |||||
| Total with drusen deposits | 59 (42%) | 118 (55%) | |||||
↵Grading: the number of drusen deposits seen on light microscopic serial sections was graded as few (0–2 per section), moderate (<10 per section), or significant (>10 per section).