[A case or Leber hereditary optic neuropathy (LHON): differential diagnosis with post inflammatory atrophy of nerve II using the mtDNA analysis].

The Leber hereditary optic neuropathy (LHON) is a disease due to a mtDNA mutation. The disorder results from enzymatic perturbations in the mitochondrial respiratory chain. Clinically the LHON may present as a progressive axonal atrophy of the optic nerves with or without other neurological symptoms. The process of reaching the diagnosis of the LHON by means of the molecular analysis of mtDNA is discussed.