Clinical differences between young and older patients with optic neuritis

摘要

Background:To compare clinical features in young(18-44 years)and older patients(>44 years)with optic neuritis(ON).Methods:This is a retrospective case series study.One hundred thirty-three young cases and 51 older cases diagnosed with ON were reviewed.Results:The older patients had lower proportion of disc swelling(37.3%vs.57.1%,P=0.016),but higher proportion of brain plaques(21.6%vs.7.5%,P=0.007)compared with the young patients.The proportion of patients suffered from hypertension or hyperglycemia was nearly 6 times higher in the older patients than in the young patients(29.4%vs.5.3%,P44 years).Physicians should pay attention to the side effects of corticosteroids in elderly patients in clinical practice,although they are generally safe.