Neurosciences News

LIVERPOOL, England — An anti-epilepsy drug awaiting regulatory approval in the United States appeared to cause visual field defects in more than 40% of patients, a long-term study here found. Patients with epilepsy who were prescribed vigabatrin had a high incidence of asymptomatic visual field defects, according to the study.

PHILADELPHIA — New, simple and noninvasive tests for spotting and diagnosing ocular myasthenia can be performed in your office, according to a neuro-ophthalmologist in practice here.

ROCHESTER, Minn. — Orbital radiotherapy demonstrated no benefit in patients with mild or moderately severe Graves' ophthalmopathy in a study conducted here. The study appears in the September issue of Ophthalmology.

“The immune reaction from Graves’ disease results in the accumulation of activated T-cell lymphocytes within the orbital tissues,” said Jonathan J. Dutton, MD, PhD, an ocular ophthalmic plastic and reconstructive surgeon in private practice here. A variety of cytotoxic TH-1 type cytokine profiles, such as IL-2, interferon gamma and tissue necrosis factor alpha, are also released. “These cytokine profiles mediate the immune reaction that we see in the orbit,” he said.

Two recent studies suggest new treatment patterns for optic neuritis. Community ophthalmologists should be aware of the implications of these studies.

SAN DIEGO — The involuntary orienting of attention to sound enhances early perceptual processing of visual stimuli, according to a study that evaluated the effect of hearing on people’s sight.

MONT TREMBLANT, Quebec — An externally adjustable valve can deliver programmable shunting for pseudotumor cerebri patients, said Valerie A. Purvin, MD.

MONT TREMBLANT, Quebec — Observation of abnormal pupil movements can help diagnose the aberrant nerve regeneration that causes misdirection syndromes, said Randy H. Kardon, MD, PhD.

Ophthalmologists and neurologists may have changed their use of steroids to treat optic neuritis without fully understanding the results of the most definitive clinical trial on the subject to date.

IOWA CITY, Iowa — Multifocal electroretinogram (MERG) is extremely useful in distinguishing retinal visual loss from non-retinal visual loss, eliminating the need for neuro-imaging in many cases.