title: Retinopathy: an overlooked adverse effect of interferon-beta treatment of multiple sclerosis.
abstract: Interferon (IFN), which is an established maintaining therapy for multiple sclerosis (MS), has been reported various adverse effects. This paper describes a case of IFN-associated retinopathy, representing an overlooked adverse effect in MS. A 46-year-old woman with diabetes mellitus was diagnosed with MS and treated with IFNbeta-1b for three years. She displayed sudden defect of the visual field and ocular fundi showed retinal cotton wool spots indicating IFN-retinopathy, which resolved rapidly after IFN was discontinued. To evaluate the prevalence of retinopathy in MS, we performed fundoscopic examination on twenty MS patients treated with IFNbeta-1b in our hospital. However, none of the patients displayed retinopathy. Only four other cases of IFN- retinopathy in MS have been reported in the literature. Therefore, IFN-retinopathy may be uncommon in MS, but neurologist should be mindful of this adverse effect and regularly check the fundus, particularly in patients with possible risk factor, diabetes mellitus.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, School of Medicine, Keio University, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Masayuki
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ohira
authors.forename: Daisuke
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Ito
authors.forename: Toshihiko
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Shimizu
authors.forename: Mamoru
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Shibata
authors.forename: Hisao
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ohde
authors.forename: Norihiro
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Suzuki
mesh_terms: D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016899:Interferon-beta / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D008875:Middle Aged; D009103:Multiple Sclerosis / Q000150:complications / Q000188:drug therapy*; D012164:Retinal Diseases / Q000139:chemically induced* / Q000473:pathology*
chemical_list: D016899:Interferon-beta