This article is more than 5 years old. Information may no longer be current.
Pediatric nystagmus with optic nerve head pallor may indicate intracranial disease
Click Here to Manage Email Alerts
Childhood nystagmus alone was not linked to intracranial pathology but was a risk factor for intracranial disease when accompanied by temporal optic nerve head pallor, according to a study.
“The optic nerve head should be carefully assessed for signs of pallor in young children with nystagmus and, if present, brain MRI should be performed. Otherwise, isolated early childhood nystagmus is unlikely to be associated with intracranial pathology,” the study authors said.
The retrospective review included 26 patients with nystagmus who had brain MRI performed prior to 6 years of age. In all patients, nystagmus was noted by 1.6 years of age.
Nystagmus was clinically bilateral in 22 patients (85%) and clinically unilateral in four patients (15%). Seventeen patients (65%) had horizontal pendular nystagmus, five (19%) had horizontal jerk nystagmus, two (8%) had vertical pendular nystagmus, one (4%) had downbeat nystagmus and one (4%) had torsional nystagmus.
Clinical type of nystagmus did not predict intracranial pathology in the study population.
Three patients (12%) had significant MRI findings and were also noted to have temporal optic nerve head pallor.
“Although most young children with apparently isolated nystagmus and no optic nerve head pallor do not harbor intracranial or systemic disease, all such children require careful pediatric evaluation because accompanying non-ocular signs and symptoms can suggest rare systemic diseases in which nystagmus can occur,” the authors said.
Click Here to Manage Email Alerts