BACKGROUND: We report a case of Graves' ophthalmopathy (GO) developed after the administration of interferon-alpha for chronic hepatitis C. METHODS: The GO was treated with lanreotide. RESULTS: A 47-year-old female patient presented with euthyroid GO with spontaneous retrobulbar pain, eyelid edema, conjunctival injection and eyelid retraction of the right eye and conjunctival injection of the left eye 6 months after administration of interferon-alpha for chronic hepatitis C. Orbital computed tomography revealed no involvement of extraorbital muscles and no increase in retrobulbar adipose tissue. Only soft tissue was involved. These symptoms subsided after 12 weeks of lanreotide treatment, except right eyelid retraction, which, however, disappeared later during follow-up. CONCLUSION: The use of interferon-alpha may be complicated by GO and lanreotide might be considered for GO if patients cannot accept steroid therapy.
BACKGROUND: We report a case of Graves' ophthalmopathy (GO) developed after the administration of interferon-alpha for chronic hepatitis C. METHODS: The GO was treated with lanreotide. RESULTS: A 47-year-old female patient presented with euthyroid GO with spontaneous retrobulbar pain, eyelid edema, conjunctival injection and eyelid retraction of the right eye and conjunctival injection of the left eye 6 months after administration of interferon-alpha for chronic hepatitis C. Orbital computed tomography revealed no involvement of extraorbital muscles and no increase in retrobulbar adipose tissue. Only soft tissue was involved. These symptoms subsided after 12 weeks of lanreotide treatment, except right eyelid retraction, which, however, disappeared later during follow-up. CONCLUSION: The use of interferon-alpha may be complicated by GO and lanreotide might be considered for GO if patients cannot accept steroid therapy.