Compressive Optic Neuropathy
Compressive Optic Neuropathy
Compressive optic neuropathy occurs when your optic (vision) nerve has been damaged from compression by tumours – such as meningioma (usually non-cancerous tumour that develops in the membranes surrounding the brain and spinal cord), pituitary adenoma (non-cancerous tumours in the pituitary gland that don’t grow beyond the skull), craniopharyngioma (non-cancerous tumours of embryonic structures around the pituitary gland) – or by orbital inflammatory conditions such as thyroid eye disease.
Symptoms of compressive optic neuropathy include:
- Blurred vision
- Decreased colour perception
- Eye pressure
- Partial or complete loss of vision
If you have a tumour, inflammation caused by a medical condition like thyroid disease, you are at an increased risk for developing compressive optic neuropathy. Pituitary tumours are one fairly common cause of compressive optic neuropathy.
Tests
Comprehensive Exam – Your doctor will conduct a thorough physical examination of your eyes – as well as gather a complete health history – to determine if you have compressive optic neuropathy.
Imaging Your doctor may recommend you undergo magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) or computerized tomography (CT) scan to confirm the damage to your optic nerve.
Optical coherence tomography: The test measures the thickness of the cell layers and nerve fibres that make up the optic nerves to check for optic nerve damage.
Visual field A visual field test assesses both central and peripheral vision.
Treatments
Corticosteroids Your doctor may prescribe corticosteroid medication to help reduce inflammation associated with compressive optic neuropathy.
Surgery Your ophthalmologist may recommend you undergo surgery to relieve your symptoms related to this condition. Known as orbital decompression, this surgery involves removing the tumour that is causing the compression and decreasing pressure on the nerve.
Radiation Therapy If a malignant (cancerous) lesion has caused the nerve damage, you may need to undergo radiation therapy to reduce the lesion.