Optic neuritis vs neuropathy

[dannig]

Has anyone been told they have optic neuropathy not neuritis?????

[drsdonthelp]

I know this is an old thread but I have ischemic optic neuropathy and have always questioned it. My doc. told me that with ION it does not get better, maybe worse or stay stable. Just this week, I had my eye test done and it appears the vision in my right eye seems to be alittle bit better that it has been in the past 3 years.I am glad to hear that, but it also gets my wheels turning.

I was wondering if anyone one else has been dx'd with ION instead of optic neuritis, and what was the age of dx? I was 36 when i was dx'd with having it, from what I know, this is normally dx'd in people age 50 or older

I also have nystagmus in the same eye of the optc nerve damage.


Thanks, Pam

[Rena705]

Apparently there are two separate types of Optic Neuropathy and they are differentiated by the two names...Ischemic Optic Neuropathy and Demylinating Optic Neuropathy which we generally refer to as Optic Neuritis.  I am not sure that calling it Demylinating Optic Neuropathy would be correct as other have said the "itis" refers to inflammation and "pathy" refers to damage or death to a tissue in the body.  The following is what I was able to find but I would ask your neuro about his choice of terminology to clear this up.

Ischemic optic neuropathy is damage of the optic nerve caused by a blockage of its blood supply.

Blockage can occur with or without inflammation of the arteries (typically in association with a disorder called temporal arteritis)
Vision may suddenly deteriorate.
People with temporal arteritis may have pain when combing their hair and when chewing, generalized muscle aches and pains, fatigue, or a combination.
Blood tests and sometimes removal of a piece of the artery (biopsy) are done to diagnose temporal arteritis.
Temporal arteritis is treated with corticosteroids.

The clinical presentation of DEMYLINATING OPTIC NEUROPATHY varies. Patients frequently present to the office with an acute loss of vision. The natural history of MS-related vision loss is rapidly progressive acuity loss for a period of 10 days, which then stabilizes and improves. Additional ocular signs include eye pain, tenderness of the globe, dyschromatopsia, decreased brightness sense, decreased color perception, a relative afferent pupillary defect, assorted visual field defects (altitudinal and central/cecocentral), phosphenes upon eye movement and optic disc swelling with or without vitreous cells. Often, the optic nerve is normal in appearance and the dysfunction is considered retrobulbar

Hugs,
Rena

[paocao]

I have been dx'd with optic neuropathy recently. I was told it was the loss of blood supply to the optic nerve.
So far, it plays out when I get too warm, such as in the shower or drying me hair , cooking or being outside when it is hot.
My vision in my right eye diminishes  fast and experience a strange pain, along with blank areas.
Left eye gets foggy too.
I also have neuropathy in my leg and back.
My doctor also ran a serum B12 blood test  on me, along with a MRI of the brain and orbits.
Contrast and VEP was done the other day.
I am just waiting to hear....

[jensequitur]

Me neither... but 'neuropathy' is disorder in a part of the body.  Neuritis is a specific kind of disorder involving inflammation, as Vizlagal said.

[vizslagal]

I would think by the difference of the terminology that optic neuropathy means optic nerve damage/death and neuritis means inflamation/irritation of the optic nerve.  I am not a medicle expert and I am only asserting an opinion.

[santana8]

This is a good question. I have wondered about the difference in the two terms myself! Hopefully someone will come along with the answer to this!

~Santana~