Familial exudative vitreoretinopathy (FEVR) is an inherited disorder characterized by the incomplete development of the retinal vasculature. Its clinical appearance varies considerably, even within families, with severely affected patients often registered as blind during infancy, whereas mildly affected patients with few or no visual problems may have such a small area of avascularity in their peripheral retina that it is visible only by fluorescein angiography. It is believed that this peripheral avascularity is the primary anomaly in FEVR and results from defective retinal angiogenesis. The sight-threatening features of the FEVR phenotype are considered secondary to retinal avascularity and develop because of the resulting retinal ischemia; they include the development of hyperpermeable blood vessels, neovascularization, vitreoretinal traction, retinal folds, and retinal detachments (summary by Poulter et al., 2010). In 31 Chinese pedigrees clinically diagnosed with FEVR, Rao et al. (2017) analyzed 6 FEVR-associated genes and identified mutations in 12 of the probands, including 5 (16.1%) in LRP5, 3 (9.7%) in NDP, 2 (6.5%) in FZD4, and 1 (3.2%) in TSPAN12. In addition, a mutation in the KIF11 gene (148760) was identified in a patient who also exhibited microcephaly (MCLMR; 152950). The authors noted that their detection rate did not exceed 50%, suggesting that other FEVR-associated genes remained to be discovered. Genetic Heterogeneity of Familial Exudative Vitreoretinopathy Also see EVR2 (305390), caused by mutation in the NDP gene (300658) on chromosome Xp11; EVR3 (605750), mapped to 11p13-p12; EVR4 (601813), caused by mutations in the LRP5 gene (603506) on 11q13.4; EVR5 (613310), caused by mutation in the TSPAN12 gene (613138) on 7q31; EVR6 (616468), caused by mutation in the ZNF408 gene (616454) on 11p11; and EVR7 (617572), caused by mutation in the CTNNB1 gene (116806) on chromosome 3p22.

Multiple cream-yellow colored hypopigmented lesions typically located at the level of the choroid or retinal pigment epithelium; ovoid, cream-colored with indistinct borders. They are between 50 and 1,500 micrometers in size with a characteristic nasal, radial distribution in the postequatorial fundus.

Retinitis pigmentosa-83 (RP83) is characterized by onset of night blindness in the first decade of life, with decreased central vision in the second decade of life in association with retinal degeneration. The retinal dystrophy is associated with cataract, and macular edema has also been reported in some patients (Holtan et al., 2019).

Mucopolysaccharidosis type X (MPS10) is an autosomal recessive childhood-onset disorder associated with disproportionate short-trunk short stature and skeletal, cardiac, and ophthalmologic abnormalities (Verheyen et al., 2022).

Knobloch syndrome-2 (KNO2) is characterized by severe vitreoretinal degeneration associated with occipital skull defects, ranging from mild encephalocele to abnormally pigmented hair. Developmental delay may be mild or severe (Antonarakis et al., 2022). For a general phenotypic description and discussion of genetic heterogeneity of Knobloch syndrome, see KNO1 (267750).