title: Repetitive transorbital alternating current stimulation in optic neuropathy.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Visual field defects after optic nerve damage typically show a limited capacity for spontaneous and treatment-induced recovery.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  Repetitive transorbital alternating current stimulation (rtACS) was applied to the damaged optic nerve to evaluate visual functions after stimulation.
  
  
  METHODS
  A 27-years-old male patient suffering left optic nerve atrophy with nearly complete loss of vision 11 years after atypical traumatic damage was treated transorbitally with biphasic 10-15 pulse trains of rtACS (10-30 Hz, < 600 μA, 30-40 min daily for 10 days) which produced phosphenes.
  
  
  RESULTS
  After rtACS treatment detection ability of super-threshold stimuli increased from 3.44% to 17.75% and mean perimetric threshold from 0 dB to 2.21 dB at final diagnostics.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This improvement of vision may be due to increased neuronal synchronization, possibly involving strengthening of synaptic transmission along the central visual pathway.
authors.affiliation: Otto-von-Guericke University of Magdeburg, Medical Faculty, Institute of Medical Psychology, Magdeburg, Germany. Carolin.Gall@med.ovgu.de
authors.forename: Carolin
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Gall
authors.forename: Anton B
authors.initials: AB
authors.lastname: Fedorov
authors.forename: Lisa
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Ernst
authors.forename: Antonia
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Borrmann
authors.forename: Bernhard A
authors.initials: BA
authors.lastname: Sabel
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001284:Atrophy; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009900:Optic Nerve / Q000473:pathology; D020221:Optic Nerve Injuries / Q000150:complications* / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy*; D009915:Orbit; D010719:Phosphenes; D004561:Transcutaneous Electric Nerve Stimulation / Q000379:methods; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014794:Visual Fields