Isolated ocular ischemic syndrome with no cerebral involvement in common carotid artery occlusion.
OBJECTIVE
The ocular ischemic syndrome (OIS) is sometimes a complication of common carotid artery (CCA) occlusion causing complete interruption of blood flow through both the internal and external carotid arteries we investigated a single case of an isolated OIS that remained undiagnosed for two years, because the underlying CCA pathology caused no cerebral involvement.


METHODS
A 57-year-old man presented with subacute painful visual loss in the right eye in a setting of hypertension, smoking and coronary artery disease. RESULTS. Neurological examination, a brain CT and MRI scan were all normal. Extensive laboratory work-up excluded small artery disease, inflammatory arteritis or cardiac causes of retinal embolism. Ophthalmologic evaluation and fluorescein angiography gave findings consistent with OIS, while vascular ultrasound evaluation and aortic arch angiography verified right CCA occlusion accompanied by an extensive collateral network.


CONCLUSIONS
Had this patient been referred sooner for a simple carotid artery work-up, both the CCA occlusion and the OIS could probably had been prevented.
B Department of Neurology, Aristotelian University, School of Medicine, AHEPA Hospital, Thessaloniki, Greece.
D
D
Karacostas
C
C
Terzidou
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Voutas
J
J
Rafou
N
N
Artemis
N
N
Georgiadis
D001013:Aorta, Thoracic / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D017536:Carotid Artery, Common / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology*; D016893:Carotid Stenosis / Q000150:complications* / Q000175:diagnosis; D005123:Eye / Q000098:blood supply*; D005451:Fluorescein Angiography; D005654:Fundus Oculi; D006801:Humans; D007511:Ischemia / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011859:Radiography; D013577:Syndrome; D014792:Visual Acuity