Graves' ophthalmopathy in childhood and adolescence.

Thirty-four patients with childhood Graves' disease were examined to determine the incidence and severity of Graves' ophthalmopathy in children and adolescents. Twenty-three of the 34 patients formed a population of childhood Graves' disease unselected for ocular disease; 11 were unaffected and 12 (52.2%) had findings considered to be of mild functional importance. The remaining 11 patients were referred for evaluation because of a history of Graves' ophthalmopathy; eight (72.7%) exhibited findings of mild severity and three the more meaningful complications of ophthalmoplegia. There were no cases of dysthyroid optic neuropathy or sight-threatening corneal involvement. Both the presence of asymmetric ocular manifestations and increasing severity of disease seem to correlate with increasing age. Although ophthalmoplegia does occur infrequently, Graves' ophthalmopathy in children and adolescents seems to be a substantially more benign process than that seen in adults.