Acute Onset Visual Loss in the Emergency Department: A Case Series

Anurag Aggarwal; Siddharth Anand; Bhavna Gupta; Peeyuusha A Duppala

doi:10.5005/njem-11015-0030

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Acute Onset Visual Loss in the Emergency Department: A Case Series

Anurag Aggarwal, Siddharth Anand, Bhavna Gupta, Peeyuusha A Duppala

Keywords : Acute onset, Case report, Emergency medicine, Visual loss

Citation Information : Aggarwal A, Anand S, Gupta B, Duppala PA. Acute Onset Visual Loss in the Emergency Department: A Case Series. 2024; 2 (1):15-17.

DOI: 10.5005/njem-11015-0030

License: CC BY-NC 4.0

Published Online: 26-06-2024

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Abstract

Acute-onset visual loss is a distressing symptom encountered in emergency departments (EDs) worldwide, presenting a diagnostic challenge due to its diverse aetiologies and potential for irreversible visual impairment. We present a series of four cases illustrating different aetiologies of acute visual loss and their diagnostic and therapeutic approaches. The cases include a 73-year-old female with vertigo and previous blindness in one eye, diagnosed with a cerebrovascular event; a 19-year-old male presenting with psychogenic blindness secondary to stress; a 32-year-old female with progressive visual loss due to idiopathic intracranial hypertension; and a 61-year-old female presented with blurring of vision since last 1 day, which later progressed to bilateral complete vision loss. These cases highlight the importance of comprehensive assessment, including neuroimaging, ophthalmological evaluation, and psychiatric assessment, to optimise outcomes in patients presenting with acute visual loss in the ED setting.

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