Vitelliform macular dystrophy is an irregular autosomal dominant eye disorder which can cause progressive vision loss. This disorder affects the retina, specifically cells in a small area near the center of the retina called the macula. The macula is responsible for sharp central vision, which is needed for detailed tasks such as reading, driving, and recognizing faces. The condition is characterized by yellow (or orange), slightly elevated, round structures similar to the yolk (Latin vitellus) of an egg. Genetics
Best disease is inherited in an autosomal dominant pattern, which means one copy of the altered gene in each cell is sufficient to cause the disorder. In most cases, an affected person has one parent with the condition. The inheritance pattern of adult-onset vitelliform macular dystrophy is definitively autosomal dominant. Many affected people, however, have no history of the disorder in their family and only a small number of affected families have been reported. This is because the penetrance of the condition is incomplete; therefore, it is possible for an individual to have a copy of the mutant allele and not display the VMD phenotype. The ratio of males to females is approximately 1:1. Pathophysiology
Mutations in the RDS and VMD2 genes cause vitelliform macular dystrophy. Mutations in the VMD2 gene are responsible for Best disease. Changes in either the VMD2 or RDS gene can cause the adult-onset form of vitelliform macular dystrophy; however, fewer than a quarter of cases result from mutations in these two genes. In most cases, the cause of the adult-onset form is unknown.
Researchers have described two forms of vitelliform macular dystrophy with similar features. The early-onset form (known as Best disease) usually appears in childhood. The disease received its name from a German ophthalmologist Friedrich Best who defined a pedigree living with various stages of the disease in 1905. The onset of symptoms and the severity of vision loss vary widely. The adult-onset form begins later, usually in middle age, and tends to cause relatively mild vision loss. The two forms of vitelliform macular dystrophy each have characteristic changes in the macula that can be detected during an eye examination. In the Best disease, the paraclinic evaluations such as fundus fluorescein angiography or indocyanine green angiography, along with baseline and final electrooculography (EOG) results, may shed the light on the progression of disease. References
Further reading
External links

Vitelliform macular dystrophy at NLM Genetics Home Reference
Bests disease - eMedicine.com
GeneReviews/NCBI/NIH/UW entry on Best Vitelliform Macular Dystrophy
NCBI Genetic Testing Registry