Bilateral Inflammatory Optic Neuropathy Related to Graft versus Host Disease Following Allogeneic Bone Marrow Transplantation for Hodgkin Disease

Abstract

Graft versus host disease (GvHD) is a common and often troublesome complication of allogeneic bone marrow transplantation. Neurological complications usually involve the peripheral nervous system and muscle, but the central nervous system may be affected. When an optic neuropathy develops, it is often difficult to determine the cause quickly; infective complications and drug toxicity may have arisen, but an inflammatory disorder due to GvHD should also be considered, particularly since treatment with steroids and immune suppression may improve the outcome significantly. This brief case report shows how this may be the case and reviews our current understanding of the pathophysiology and treatment of the disorder within the nervous system.

• Graft versus host disease
• optic neuropathy
• optic neuritis

Declaration of interest: The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper.

Notes

Note: Figure 1 of this article is available in colour online at http://www.informahealthcare.com/oph