Understanding the Neuro-ophthalmology of Head Trauma: A Review of the Current Literature

Head trauma is a major medical, social, economic, national, and public health priority issue in the United States. In severe head trauma, the overwhelming clinical manifestations are so compelling that damage to the visual system is most likely to be ignored. Both the afferent and efferent visual systems are susceptible to injury after head trauma, and physicians should be aware of the visual system and perform a thorough neuro-ophthalmic evaluation in patients presenting with head trauma. Most of the data available on neuro-ophthalmic complications of head trauma including cortical blindness, Horner's syndrome, traumatic internuclear ophthalmoplegia, and ocular motor palsy, comes from case reports highlighting the need for future studies to better understand these complications. This review summarizes some of the most important neuro-ophthalmic complications of head trauma including cortical blindness, Horner's syndrome, traumatic internuclear ophthalmoplegia, and ocular motor palsy. Search of the peer-reviewed literature was conducted using MEDLINE, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature, Cochrane Library, Global Health, and MD Consult.