A Case of Adult-Onset Recurrent Painful Ophthalmoplegic Neuropathy With Bilateral Ophthalmoplegia

Cureus. 2024 Feb 22;16(2):e54683. doi: 10.7759/cureus.54683. eCollection 2024 Feb.

Abstract

Recurrent painful ophthalmoplegic neuropathy (RPON), previously known as ophthalmoplegic migraine, is a disorder typically characterized by recurrent episodes of unilateral headache concurrent with ipsilateral ocular cranial nerve paresis which primarily affects children. Diagnosis is mostly one of exclusion, based on clinical symptoms, supplemented by imaging for enhanced or distorted oculomotor nerves. We present a case of RPON in a 24-year-old adult female with unique features of unilateral left headache with ipsilateral pupillary dilation spreading to bilateral dilation and no MRI findings of oculomotor nerve enhancement.

Keywords: cranial nerve enhancement; hemiplegic migraine; migraine; ophthalmoplegic migraine; recurrent painful ophthalmoplegic neuropathy.

Publication types

  • Case Reports