Transient cortical blindness in a child.
A previously healthy 3-year-old girl with minor head injury developed a transient cortical blindness lasting approximately two hours. There were no objective findings on examination, but the child complained of loss of vision. She was evaluated with a computed tomography scan of the head, which was normal, and then was admitted for observation. The child regained her eyesight and had no further neurological problems. Various theories include either vasospasm or localized cerebral edema as being responsible for the transient nature of the cortical blindness. CT scans have not been diagnostic, while EEGs have shown absence of alpha waves in the occipital lobes. Prognosis in the pediatric age group is excellent with no reports of persistent visual loss.
D001766:Blindness / Q000209:etiology*; D002675:Child, Preschool; D006259:Craniocerebral Trauma / Q000150:complications*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D011379:Prognosis; D013997:Time Factors; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed