Signs and Symptoms of Optic Neuritis

Signs and Symptoms of Optic Neuritis


Optic neuritis is an inflammation, infection or demyelination of the optic nerve. This disease can be classified both ophthalmoscopically and etiologically. The diseases which belong of the type ophthalmoscopically are retro bulbar neuritis, papillitis and neuroretinitis among which papillitis is found abundantly in the persons who are affected by this disease. 

The usual types of diseases belongs to the category etiologically are demyelinating, Para infective, infective and auto immune. Retro bulbar neuritis refers to the affection of the posterior part of the optic nerve with no side swelling. Papillitis affects optic nerve head (hyperaemia & oedema of optic disc) as well as peripapillary flame shaped haemorrhages. Neuroretinitis can be characterised by papillitis with the inflammation of nerve fibre layer. It is rarely a manifestation of demyelination. 

This disease is sexually bio usually affects women between the ages of 20-40 years mean around 30 years mostly. This disease can be caused due to many causes which may finally leads to partial or total loss of the vision. It is reported that the main cause responsible for the outcome of this disease is multiple sclerosis.Infection (e.g. syphilis, Lyme disease, herpes zoster), autoimmune disorders (e.g. lupus, neurosarcoidosis, neuromyelitis optica), inflammatory bowel disease, drug induced (e.g. chloramphenicol, ethambutol, Isoniazid, streptomycin, quinine, penicillamine, Aminosalicylic acid, phenothiazine , phenylbutazone), vasculitis, B12 deficiency and diabetes may also lead a person to this disease.The clinical tests which help to diagnose this disease are Brain MRI, serological tests like ESR, Syphilis, anti-nuclear antibody, antineutropil cytoplasmic antibodies (ANCA), CSF analysis (Presence of oligoclonal band, elevated IgG level suggest MS. 

This disease can be treated by intravenous methylprednisone, oral methylprednisone, and oral prednisone.

Like other disease this disease also exhibits some unique signs as well symptoms too from which we can assume that the specific persons showing that symptoms is affected by this disease. Though symptoms vary from mild to severe but it can be found more or less in the body of the persons who are affected by this disease. 

Some symptoms which are mostly reported in the following in brief:
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  •      The major symptom of this disease is sudden partial or complete loss of the vision. This is occurred when the person is affected by this disease severely.
  • ·         Sometimes the vision of the affected person becomes foggy or blurred and feeling of pain comes from the affected eye. This type of vision might be described as blackened/disturbed.
  • ·         Colour vision is affected sometimes in the patients. They mostly cannot see the red colour properly as result of the loss of colour vision.
  • ·         Adult who are affected by this disease feel more pain finally leading into the damage of the proper vision where the children feel less pain after being affected by the same disease.
  • ·         Blurriness is one of most common symptom of this disease causing the hazy, unclear visibility which cannot be solved by providing any lens.
  • ·         Optic nerve becomes swollen in case of extensive optic neuritis or anterior papillitis.
  • ·         The inflammation of nerve fibre layer is occurred in case of neuroretinitis.

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