Metastatic paraganglioma presenting as ajunctional scotoma

Abstract

Purpose: To report a unique case of metastatic paraganglioma presenting as a junctional scotoma.

Observations: A 38-year-old Caucasian man with a history of abdominal paraganglioma presented with minimally blurred vision 20/25 visual acuity in the left eye. The patient was found to have a junctional scotoma upon visual field testing. Cranial MRI revealed a large peri-clival mass compressing the pre-chiasmal optic nerves and other loci of metastatic disease. Intracranial masses, including metastases, can present with a relatively intact central acuity and nonspecific visual symptoms.

Conclusions and importance: To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of metastatic paraganglioma causing a junctional scotoma. In cases with junctional scotoma, careful neuro-ophthalmic assessment and imaging are of paramount importance, even in patients with excellent visual acuity.