Cavernous angioma of the optic nerve. Case report.

The case of a 24-year-old woman with a cavernoma of the right optic nerve is presented. She suffered recurrent headaches and showed a deficit of the right nasal visual field. A computed tomography scan, a computed tomography cisternography, and magnetic resonance imaging revealed a lesion in projection on the right suprasellar cistern, yet angiography was inconspicuous. On operation, an angiomatous tumor of the right optic nerve with a surrounding hemorrhage was found. Histological examination of the specimen confirmed the intraoperative diagnosis of a cavernoma. Postoperatively, the right nasal visual field deficit increased slightly.