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Blogs by Robert E Blackwell
Optic Neuritis 3/27/2008 8:46:41 AM
Late Sunday night, while using my computer, I experienced a sudden loss of vision, along with a dimness of color, in my left eye. Believing it to be the result of overuse, I tried to spend Monday and Tuesday resting my eye in darkened surroundings. This did not change the situation, and yesterday an ophthalmologist gave me a preliminary diagnosis of optic neuritis. Optic neuritis is the inflammation of the optic nerve, caused by a variety of factors, most of which are related to multiple sclerosis.
From Wikipedia:
“In most cases, visual functions return to near normal within eight to ten weeks, but they may also advance to a complete and permanent state of visual loss. Therefore, systemic intravenous treatment with corticosteroids, which may quicken the healing of the optic nerve, is often recommended, but it does not have a significant effect on the visual acuity at one year, when compared against placebo. Intravenous corticosteroids have also been found to reduce the risk of developing MS in the following two years in those patients who have MRI lesions; but this effect disappears by the third year of follow up.”
So far, I have undergone an MRI of my brain to determine whether anything has developed there to help cause this condition. I will then see a neuro-ophthalmologist on April 4 and determine what treatment I will have, if any. At this point, I am grateful that I did not suffer a detached retina (which would require surgery) or develop macular degeneration (which isn’t curable). That said, my current reality is the loss of use of my left eye. Time and circumstance will determine whether that is permanent.
