Associated symptoms | Papilloedema

Associated symptoms

Papilloedema usually has two accompanying symptoms. The swelling of the papilla and thus also of the optic nerve leads to impaired vision. Typically, affected persons complain that their vision is blurred in the affected eye.

In addition, headaches are often associated with papilledema. The reason for this is the usually causally increased intracranial pressure, which also triggers the headaches. Vision problems can be triggered by papilledema.

The expansion of tissue at the site of the papilla due to the accumulation of fluid can also affect the surrounding tissue and thus the retina. If there are slight changes in shape, such as fluid accumulation also around the papilla, the retina is displaced. This can lead to a distorted perception of images.

In addition, other important structures of the visual system can also be damaged. If, for example, the receptors and nerve cells that transmit important information about the light that falls into the eye to the brain are affected, blindness can even result from papilledema. It is also possible that only individual parts of the visual field are affected by the visual disturbances caused by papilloedema.

One speaks of an increased intracranial pressure when the pressure in the skull itself is increased. This can be caused by swelling of the brain, but often the chambers in which cerebrospinal fluid (liquor) is produced are also involved in the development of high intracranial pressure. The growth of tissue, such as that caused by a tumor, can also increase the pressure inside the skull and thus lead to cerebral pressure.

Since the head is almost completely closed off by the skull, the pressure can only escape from the head in a few places. One of these places is where the optic nerve passes through the skull bone into the eye socket. Increased intracranial pressure can push additional tissue or the optic nerve through this gap, which can cause papilledema.

How is papilledema treated?

The therapy of papilloedema depends very much on the cause of the disease. For example, circulatory disorders can often be caused by increased blood pressure throughout the body. The therapy therefore consists of lowering the blood pressure so that the treatment is applied to the entire body and not directly to the eye.

If, on the other hand, papilloedema occurs as a result of a rheumatic-inflammatory disease of the vessels, the aim is to find a treatment that treats the underlying rheumatic disease.Often, this requires medication that slightly downregulates the body’s immune system. In the case of causes inside the skull that increase intracranial pressure and thus cause papilloedema, the underlying disease must also be treated. For example, brain edema can be treated with medication.

If the body produces too much cerebral fluid so that it accumulates, a small tube (so-called liquor drainage) can be inserted to drain the cerebral fluid and thus reduce the pressure. If the cause of the papilloedema lies in the eye itself, drug therapies can also be used. However, surgical therapies are also possible, depending on the exact underlying cause.