Posterior Segment
Central Serous Chorioretinopathy
Also known as: central serous chorioretinopathy, central serous retinopathy, CSR, CSCR, central serous maculopathy, serous macular detachment, subretinal fluid
Filed as: Soon
Source-cited from the record's own evidence list. Clinical content programme led by Dr Ankit Mathur, PhD, Grad Cert Ocu Thera, B.S. Optom. How the clinical content is governed
Clinical decision support only
Overview
Central serous chorioretinopathy is a macular disorder with serous neurosensory retinal detachment, often seen in adults with central blur, metamorphopsia, or micropsia. Optometry role is recognition, OCT documentation where available, risk-factor review, safety-netting, and referral when chronic, recurrent, visually significant, occupationally important, or atypical.
Recognition
Symptoms: what patients report
- Central blur, distortion, micropsia, or a grey central patch.
- Symptoms are usually painless and monocular.
- Colour or contrast changes may be reported.
- A mild hyperopic shift.
Signs: what the examination shows
- Macular OCT may show hyporeflective subretinal fluid beneath the neurosensory retina.
- Fundus view may show a subtle round or oval serous macular elevation.
- No widespread retinal haemorrhage or vascular occlusion pattern should be present in typical cases.
What OptoGuide™ covers for central serous chorioretinopathy
- Pattern reasoning: what this combination of findings points to, and its differentiators
- Don't-miss risks and escalation triggers
- Management tiers with linked New Zealand therapeutics
- Referral urgency, specialty, and letter drafting
Sources
- Central Serous Chorioretinopathy — EyeWiki
- Choroidal Melanoma Masquerading as Central Serous Chorioretinopathy. Negretti GS, Kalafatis NE, Shields JA, Shields CL. Ophthalmology. Retina. 2023;7(2):171-177.
- Interventions for Central Serous Chorioretinopathy: A Network Meta-Analysis. Lange CA, Qureshi R, Pauleikhoff L. The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. 2025;6:CD011841.
- Central serous retinopathy. Tarabishy AB, Ahn E, Mandell BF, Lowder CY. Arthritis Care & Research. 2011;63(8):1075-82.
- Optometry Australia — A Diagnostic Guide to Posterior Eye Disease, Chairside Reference Pack (Centre for Eye Health), Version 2.0, 2026: Pachychoroid Disease Spectrum
- Optometry Australia — A Diagnostic Guide to Posterior Eye Disease, Chairside Reference Pack (Centre for Eye Health), Version 2.0, 2026: Optic Nerve Head Anomalies
- Referral Pathway for AMD Management (17 April 2024). Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Ophthalmologists.
- Corticosteroids and central serous chorioretinopathy. Carvalho-Recchia CA, Yannuzzi LA, Negrão S, et al. Ophthalmology. 2002;109(10):1834-1837.
- Unintentional secondary exogenous corticosteroid exposure and central serous chorioretinopathy. Thinda S, Lam K, Park SS. Eye. 2015;29(4):577-579.
Standard texts: Kanski's Clinical Ophthalmology: A Systematic Approach, The Wills Eye Manual, Oxford Handbook of Ophthalmology, Oxford American Handbook of Ophthalmology, Signs in Ophthalmology: Causes & Differential Diagnosis.