advertisement
Ischemic optic neuropathy is a rare cause of blindness reported most commonly in association with collagen-vascular diseases, infectious processes, and systemic hypotension related to massive exsanguinating hemorrhage. The authors report what they believe to be the first case of posterior ischemic optic neuropathy due to perioperative hypotension in a patient who had a penetrating thoracoabdominal injury with massive hemorrhage, severe hypotension, massive microcapillary circulatory leak, multiple system organ failure, and acute respiratory distress syndrome. Although the incidence of postoperative visual loss is low (-0.002%), awareness of this entity must be raised within the trauma surgical community.
J.A. Asensio, MD, Department of Surgery, University of Southern California School of Medicine and the Los Angeles County/USC Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90033-4525, USA.
10 Differential diagnosis e.g. anterior and posterior ischemic optic neuropathy