Purpose: To describe a case of spontaneous improvement of syphilis chorioretinitis and review the literature.
Methods: Case report and literature review of cases with untreated syphilis chorioretinitis.
Results: A 58-year-old man presented to the emergency department with counting fingers vision, normal fundus, and disruption of the outer retinal layers on optical coherence tomography of the right eye. Examination by a retina specialist 3 weeks later revealed visual acuity of 20/50 and partial restoration of outer retinal layers on optical coherence tomography. Workup showed positive serology for syphilis and human immunodeficiency virus. Treatment with intravenous penicillin resulted in further vision improvement. Literature review showed six cases of spontaneous improvement of syphilis chorioretinitis.
Conclusion: Spontaneous improvement of syphilis chorioretinitis is possible. Clinicians should keep a high index of suspicion and consider syphilis chorioretinitis in diseases that affect the outer retina even with spontaneous improvement.