Intravenous Immunoglobulin for Management of Non-paraneoplastic Autoimmune Retinopathy

Abstract

Purpose: To report a case of non-paraneoplastic autoimmune retinopathy (npAIR) treated with intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG). Case report: A 12-year-old boy presented with progressive visual field loss, nyctalopia, and flashing for three months. He had suffered from common cold two weeks before the onset of these symptoms. On the basis of clinical history and paraclinical findings, he was diagnosed with npAIR, and IVIG without immunosuppressive therapy was started. During the one-year follow-up period after the first course of IVIG, flashing disappeared completely. Visual acuity remained 10/10, but nyctalopia did not improve. Multimodal imaging showed no disease progression. Conclusion: Although established retinal degenerative changes seem irreversible in npAIR, IVIG may be a suitable choice to control the disease progression.

Keywords

• autoimmune retinopathy
• intravenous immunoglobulin
• nyctalopia
• photopsia
• retinal degeneration