Computed tomographic findings in septo-optic dysplasia: discordance between clinical and radiological findings.

The clinical and radiological findings in four children with septo-optic dysplasia are reported. All four had growth retardation associated with growth hormone deficiency, as well as varying degrees of ophthalmologic dysfunction. The CT scan findings spanned a spectrum from normal to the expected abnormalities involving the ventricular system and orbits. Only two of the four had an absent septum pellucidum. A third patient had normal CT scans except for optic nerve hypoplasia, while the fourth had entirely normal CT scans of both the brain and orbits. Because the anatomic defects of septo-optic dysplasia may be subtle, an apparently normal CT scan does not invalidate the clinical diagnosis of septo-optic dysplasia.