Optic Neuritis

 

• Pain with eye movement is very common in the affected eye (often mild ache)

• Younger age at onset (<45 most often)

• Decreased visual acuity often, which worsens over 4-10 days, then stabilizes for several days-weeks, then improves with or without high dose steroid treatment

• Abnormal MRI showing inflammation in the optic nerve and/or brain

• Normal optic nerve or mild swelling on examination that typically lasts 6 weeks

• Visual acuity often returns to normal, or close to normal, but many patients notice decreased brightness and red color intensity long term

• Lab work (blood tests) help rule out other causes of optic neuritis

• Treatment with high dose steroids speed up the recovery of vision by several weeks, but do not improve vision in the long run