Syphilitic chorioretinitis mimicking an anterior chiasmal syndrome.

PURPOSE: To report a case of syphilitic chorioretinitis mimicking an anterior chiasmal syndrome.

METHODS

Observational case report.

RESULTS

A 74-year-old man with a remote history of syphilitic chorioretinitis was noted to have an apparent junctional scotoma on a screening Humphrey visual field. Subsequent magnetic resonance imaging of the brain was normal, and the patient was referred for neuro-ophthalmologic evaluation. The fundus examination and a fluorescein angiogram demonstrated that the pattern of chorioretinal scarring corresponded to the visual field defects in both eyes.

CONCLUSION

Syphilis, the great masquerader, may cause retinal disease that mimics a neurologic visual field defect.