The Hull City midfielder, who joined on a club-record fee of £13 million (R215 million) from Tottenham in 2016, suffered the injury after a clash of heads with Chelsea captain Gary Cahill in a Premier League fixture in January last year.
And after an extended spell on the sidelines, Mason released an official statement on his decision to prematurely hang up his boots after only 139 league appearances.
"I have worked tirelessly in order to be able to return to the pitch. Unfortunately, having taken expert medical advice I now have no option but to retire due to the risks involved given the nature of my injury.
"I am and always will be eternally grateful for the incredible network of people around me who have helped me to recover from what was a life-threatening injury in January 2017."