[Changes in contrast sensitivity in children with optic neuritis].

Changes of spatial contrast sensitivity (SCS) were studied in children with optic neuritis in the acute, convalescent, and remote periods of disease. A selective reduction of SCS of involved and intact eyes in the high frequency band was revealed, indicating the predominant involvement of the parvocellular subsystem of vision in optic neuritis. A correlation of SCS disorders with abnormalities of visual evoked potentials was revealed. The detected regularities indicate shifts on the part of the retrochiasmal structures in patients with optic neuritis, this being confirmed by studies making use of computer-aided tomography and magnetic imaging.