ABSTRACT
The authors presented a case of a woman, 78, with anterior ischaemic optic neuropathy--presumed Horton's disease. During 3 weeks before the patient was referred to the clinic, she had complained of strong head-, jaw- and ear-ache, bad general feeling and decreased appetite. At this time the patient was examined by a neurologist, a laryngologist and an internist, who did not find any pathology. The aim of this paper is to take into consideration the importance of early diagnosis in acute ischaemic optic neuropathy, especially that of arteritic etiology, which very often leads to blindness. This disastrous course could be avoided by early applied steroid therapy.
Subject(s)
Ischemia/diagnosis , Optic Nerve Diseases/diagnosis , Optic Nerve/blood supply , Aged , Blindness/prevention & control , Female , Fluorescein Angiography , Giant Cell Arteritis , Humans , Ischemia/drug therapy , Optic Nerve Diseases/drug therapyABSTRACT
Prophylactic retinal photocoagulation (in order to prevent the retinal detachment) was performed in the Ophthalmological Department of Medical School in Poznan in the period 1980-1984 and 1987-1988 in 114 eyes, in the Ophthalmological Department in Halle in the period 1982-1983 in 160 eyes. Qualified for coagulation were following changes: holes in the upper quadrants, tears, lattice-like degeneration and vitreoretinal adhesions in the fellow-eye, in high myopia, in aphakia, in cases with subjective symptoms (flashes) or in cases with suspected family history (familial incidence of retinal detachment). In our material the percentage of retinal detachment in the fellow-eye amounted 3.5 p.c. In the Poznan Department in spite of performed prophylactic intervention retinal detachment occurred in 3 eyes, in Halle in 7.
