The optic neuritis and its causes by age

We know optic neuritis as the inflammation of the optic nerve that can occur in the anterior portion of the nerve and visible in the back of the eye (anterior optic neuritis) or in the thickness of the optic nerve (posterior optic neuritis).

There are multiple causes that can cause optic neuritis , depending on the age or type of neuritis. In children, the causes par excellence are viral processes or as a side effect of vaccines. In young people, on the other hand, multiple sclerosis is the most frequent cause, while in the adult population there are usually local optic nerve infarcts and in a small percentage, it is due to systemic vasculitis .

In many cases, however, optic neuritis are idiopathic, that is, we do not know the cause or causes that trigger it.

Although in many cases the existence of optic neuritis can go completely unnoticed, the most common symptoms are a decrease in sudden vision or a defect in vision of the visual field. Other symptoms such as pain with eye movements or chewing, weight loss or anorexia can alert us can alert us of the presence of this condition.

Treatment of optic neuritis

The main thing to deal with is to know the causes. In cases of infectious neuritis, it must be treated with antibiotics. When they are related to multiple sclerosis or arteritic processes, the indicated treatment is by corticoids , while non-arteritic ischemic optic neuritis, there is no specific treatment, although platelet antiaggregation is recommended to avoid other thrombotic phenomena.

The risk is present in those patients who need treatment with corticosteroids at high doses and in very slow descending patterns: there is a risk of reappearance of the symptoms and blindness of the patient.

More about optic neuritis: https://www.topdoctors.es/diccionario-medico/neuritis-optica