Clinical Features of Fundus Tessellation and Its Relationship with Myopia: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Introduction: This study aims to assess the existing literature on fundus tessellation (FT), focusing on its prevalence, associated factors, distribution, and progression. Methods: Systemic methods were employed to search and gather published literature on FT from databases such as the National Library of Medicine (PubMed), Web of Science (WOS), and Elsevier on July 1, 2023. The quality of the studies was evaluated using the Newcastle–Ottawa Scale (NOS) and the Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) criteria. A meta-analysis was conducted to compare tessellated and normal fundus with respect to age, gender, axial length, and spherical equivalent. Results: The systematic review included 23 articles, encompassing a total of 3053 eyes in the meta-analysis. The prevalence of FT varied from 43.00 to 94.35%. The severity of FT was significantly associated with older age, male sex, lower body weight index, longer axial length, larger peripapillary atrophy, thinner choroid, thinner sclera, and larger corneal radius of curvature, suggesting a potential progression pattern. Notably, FT was observed predominantly in the macular and peripapillary regions. The meta-analysis revealed that tessellated fundus tended to be associated with older age (mean difference [MD] 4.76, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.71–7.80, P < 0.01), longer axial length (MD 0.86, 95% CI 0.70–1.02, P < 0.01), and a lower spherical equivalent (MD − 1.16, 95% CI − 1.68 to 0.65, P < 0.01) compared to normal fundus. However, there was no significant difference in the proportion of males between individuals with tessellated and normal fundus (odds ratio [OR] 1.12, 95% CI 0.89–1.42, P = 0.32). Conclusions: Overall, this systematic review and meta-analysis shed light on the prevalence, characteristics, and factors associated with FT, offering valuable insights for clinicians and researchers in the field of ophthalmology. Study Registration: The study protocol was registered on the International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews (PROSPERO) (CRD42023442486).