title: Optic neuritis: historical aspects.
abstract: Optic nerve disorders were not reliably diagnosed until the late nineteenth century when ophthalmoscopy became part of the ophthalmic examination. By the early 1900's, all of the salient clinical features of optic neuritis and its relationship to "systemic sclerosis" were recognized, but there was much controversy and misunderstanding about its differential diagnosis, pathogenesis, and possible treatment. During the twentieth century, physicians began to distinguish optic neuritis from infectious, hereditary, toxic, nutritional, and ischemic optic neuropathies. The development of magnetic resonance imaging and the results from recent clinical trials have enhanced our understanding of the relationship between optic neuritis and multiple sclerosis. The next decade holds the promise of further elaborating the pathogenesis and treatment of optic neuritis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology and Neurology, Scheie Eye Institute, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, USA. nickvolp@mail.med.upenn.edu
authors.forename: N J
authors.initials: NJ
authors.lastname: Volpe
mesh_terms: D049672:History, 19th Century; D049673:History, 20th Century; D006801:Humans; D009885:Ophthalmology / Q000266:history; D009902:Optic Neuritis / Q000266:history*