The Difficulty of Diagnosing Invasive Aspergillosis Initially Manifesting as Optic Neuropathy.

BACKGROUND: Invasive aspergillosis is often fatal. Here, we report a patient with invasive aspergillosis primarily involving the optic nerve diagnosed on autopsy. CASE PRESENTATION: A 77-year-old female with underlying diabetes mellitus, hyperlipidemia, and hypertension presented with disc swelling of the left eye. Although mini-pulse steroid therapy improved visual acuity (VA) of the left eye, it abruptly decreased to no light perception within a month, followed by a decrease in VA of the right eye to 0.5. At referral, VA was 0.3 in the right eye, and there was no light perception in the left eye. RESULTS: Fundus examination revealed optic disc swelling of both eyes. Goldmann perimetry showed irregular visual field defects, whereas magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), general, and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) examinations revealed no distinct abnormalities. We suspected anterior ischemic optic neuropathy and invasive optic neuropathy. As with the left eye, steroid pulse therapy temporarily improved VA of the right eye and then decreased to 0.2. Additional anticoagulant therapy did not improve VA. Concurrent to therapy, the patient became febrile with depressed consciousness. Repeat MRI identified suspected midbrain infarction, and CSF examination indicated cerebral meningitis. In spite of administering transfusions and antibiotics, she died on hospital day 40. Autopsy revealed large amounts of Aspergillus hyphae mainly localized in the dura mater of the optic nerve and destruction of the cerebral artery wall, suggesting an etiology of subarachnoid hemorrhage. CONCLUSIONS: When examining refractory and persistent disc swelling, we should rule out fungal infections of the optic nerve.

Vasculitis with superior ophthalmic vein thrombosis compatible with neuro-neutrophilic disease.

PURPOSE: To present a unique case of neuro-neutrophilic disease with inflammation and thrombosis of the superior ophthalmic vein (SOV). OBSERVATIONS: A 43-year-old Japanese man with past histories of oculomotor paralysis, auditory disorder, ischemic enteritis, and recurrent oral ulceration was referred to our hospital because of blurred vision in his right eye. Ophthalmic examination revealed decreased best corrected visual acuity and central scotoma in his right eye. Orbit magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) revealed an enlarged SOV in the right eye, with Gadolinium (Gd) enhancement in the wall of the vein but not inside the vein, indicating thrombosis. Multiple Gd-enhanced hyperintense lesions were also observed in the juxtacortical area of the brain. We diagnosed the patient with vasculitis in the right SOV that was adversely affecting the optic nerve. We ruled out systemic thrombophilia, infections, and malignancy by systemic examinations. The human leukocyte antigen (HLA) typing was Cw1-, B54-, B61-, A2-, A24-, and DR4-positive and B51-negative. We treated the patient with systemic steroid and anticoagulant therapy. After three courses of steroid pulse therapy, his symptoms and the MRI findings of the right SOV and brain improved; therefore, we decided to discontinue the anticoagulant therapy. One month after anticoagulant cessation, MRI revealed recurrence of the thrombus and enlargement of the right SOV despite the lack of vision worsening. We restarted the anticoagulant therapy while continuing the oral prednisolone treatment. At the final visit, 14 months after the onset of the disease, the patient was still receiving oral anticoagulation with warfarin potassium and prednisolone (5 mg/day). His symptoms and the right eye's visual function remained normal with a mildly enlarged SOV; there was less Gd enhancement and no brain lesions on MRI. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPORTANCE: We treated a unique case of possible neuro-neutrophilic disease that presented visual disturbances due to right SOV inflammation and thrombosis. Anticoagulation and systemic steroid therapies were required to reduce the inflammation and to prevent the recurrence of thrombosis.

Optic Neuritis Possibly Induced by Anti-PD-L1 Antibody Treatment in a Patient with Non-Small Cell Lung Carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: Recent immune therapy with checkpoint inhibitors (CPIs) has demonstrated remarkable antitumor effects on specific tumors, such as malignant lymphoma and non-small cell lung carcinoma. By contrast, CPIs cause an imbalance in the immune system, triggering a wide range of immunological side effects termed immune-related adverse effects (irAEs). Here, we report a rare case of optic neuritis and hypopituitarism during anti-programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) antibody treatment. CASE PRESENTATION: A patient with non-small cell lung carcinoma received anti-PD-L1 antibody treatment every 3 weeks; however, the patient started experiencing headaches, general fatigue, anorexia, and diarrhea approximately 1 year after the initiation of the treatment. Moreover, sudden visual loss of the right eye occurred 1 week after the interruption of the anti-PD-L1 antibody treatment. MRI findings showed gadolinium enhancement in the left optic nerve, but no enlargement of the pituitary gland and stalk. Laboratory data showed decreased serum adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), cortisol, and free T4 levels, and a hormone tolerance test indicated hypopituitarism, hypothyroidism, and hypoadrenocorticism. The central scotoma caused by optic neuritis completely disappeared immediately after a course of steroid pulse therapy, and no recurrence occurred up to 2 years after initiation of the steroid pulse therapy while replacement therapy for hypothyroidism and hypoadrenocorticism was continued. CONCLUSIONS: The patient presented with optic neuritis and hypopituitarism, possibly due to irAEs of the anti-PD-L1 antibody treatment. Steroid pulse therapy was effective for optic neuritis, suggesting underlying immunological mechanisms. Neurological complications including optic neuritis should be considered when examining patients with cancer undergoing CPI treatment.