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Background: This study evaluated whether progressive optic neuropathy (ON) is commonly found after retrobulbar neuritis and whether optical coherence tomography (OCT) is a useful tool for follow-up of patients with multiple sclerosis (MS)., Methods: An observational study of 86 MS patients (currently treated with immunomodulation) with a past medical history of ON was carried out. Patients were assessed in 2010 and 2012 using the expanded disability status scale (EDSS), visual acuity, visual evoked potentials (VEP) and OCT but magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was performed only in 2012., Results: In this study 16 men and 70 women with a mean age of 41.6 and 43.8 years, respectively, were evaluated (28 patients post bilateral and 58 patients post unilateral ON including 114 eyes post-ON and 58 eyes without previous ON). Visual acuity and VEPs improved or remained the same over the study period. Visual acuity, VEPs, retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) thickness and macular volume were significantly worse in eyes post-ON compared to eyes without previous ON. The RNFL significantly decreased over the study period in eyes post-ON from an average of 79.9 ± 13.3 μm to 77.0 ± 12.9 μm (p < 0.0001) and eyes without previous ON from 89.5 ± 12.9 μm to 86.0 ± 12.5 μm (p < 0.0001). The number of VEPs and RNFL thickness were significantly correlated with visual acuity in all eyes. In patients after unilateral ON the brain atrophy parameters corpus callosum index (CCI) and cella media index (CMI) were negatively correlated with the EDSS., Conclusion: Initially MS often begins with an episode of ON which can be stabilized by immunomodulation. A mild progressive ON was generally detectable in this study but severe progressive ON was rarely observed. The OCT measurements showed no better correlation than the VEPs with visual acuity; however, OCT can be applied for confirmation of atypical ON. The corpus callosum index seems to be best associated with the degree of disability while, as already described in the literature, the number of T2 lesions is not well correlated with disability, probably due to the small-world network function of the brain and the position of the lesions in areas with no clinical relevance.

In the GDR the apoplexy occupies the 4th place in the statistics of causes of death. It is an acute pathological process and has a firm place in emergency medicine (urgent home visit service and urgent medical aid). The symptomatology is multiform and under ambulatory conditions it may lead to considerable differential-diagnostic difficulties. In the present paper references are given taking into consideration the anamnesis (factors of risk), the clinical examination of the patient, first differential-diagnostic aspects, therapeutic methods resulting from this and suitable possibilities of hospitalisation.

Following a short discussion of hitherto known facts about glutethimid intoxications, two own cases are described. In these cases minimal amounts (2.5 and 5 g) caused haemorrhagic diatheses and acute insufficiency of the liver, which in one case were combined with acute renal insufficiency. Possible causes are discussed.

The subarchnoidal haemorrhage is an acute disease which has a high lethality and, therefore, in every case presents an indication for admission into an intensive-therapeutic department. It often occurs in younger age groups and appears more frequently than is assumed in general. Despite impressive clinical symptoms (suddenly beginning stabbing headache, vomiting and disturbances of consciousness of various degree of severity) the picture of the disease is not exactly diagnosed almost in every case. From 1970 to 1974 we treated 105 patients with subarachnoidal haemorrhages. In this paper is referred to the most important clinical and paraclinical parameters. Diagnostic and therapeutic possibilities are discussed.