 |
 |

Effects of Desferoxamine on Retinal and Visual Function
Ming Lu, MD, PhD;
Ronald M. Hansen, PhD;
Melody J. Cunningham, MD;
Susan E. Eklund, BA;
Anne B. Fulton, MD
 |
 |
| Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text and any section headings. |
|
 |
 |
We describe recovery of vision and postreceptor retinal function but not photoreceptor function following severe, acute visual impairment associated with high-dose desferoxamine (DFO) used to chelate iron in a 36-year-old woman with β-thalassemia major.1-2 Survival of patients with β-thalassemia necessitates long-term transfusion with consequent iron overload of vital organs, for which chelation therapy is mandatory.
At age 28 years, the patient visited the emergency department with the symptom of her eyes not adjusting to dark. Three years prior, regular ophthalmic surveillance for DFO toxic effects had demonstrated normal visual and retinal responses. Eight weeks earlier, the DFO dosage had been increased from 50 to 100 mg/kg per day (Figure 1) because of symptomatic cardiac failure and an elevated liver iron concentration.
Figure appears in full text version.
|
|
|
|
|
AUTHOR INFORMATION
|