Measuring optic nerve sheath diameter using ultrasonography in patients with idiopathic intracranial hypertension

BACKGROUND: Idiopathic intracranial hypertension (IIH) is primarily a disorder of obese young women characterized by symptoms associated with raised intracranial pressure in the absence of a space-occupying lesion. OBJECTIVE: To compare the mean optic nerve sheath diameter (ONSD) measured using ultrasonography (USG) in patients with idiopathic intracranial hypertension (IIH) and normal healthy individuals. METHODS: A prospective study. Ninety-seven participants aged 18-80 years were divided into two groups as patients with IIH (n=47) and the control group (n=50). The ONSD was measured using ultrasound with a 10-MHz probe. ONSD was measured 3 mm behind the optic disc. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was performed to determine patients with IIH using ONSD. RESULTS: Body mass index was higher in the IIH group compared with the control group (p=0.001). The mean ONSD was statistically significantly thicker in the IIH group (6.4 mm) than in the control group (4.90 mm). The cut-off value of ONSD in patients with IIH was measured as 5.70 mm. There was a significant negative correlation between ONSD and age (r:-0.416 and p<0.001). There was a positive correlation between BMI and ONSD (r: 0.437 and p<0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Ultrasound can be a reliable, non-invasive and rapid tool to measure ONSD in monitoring patients with IIH. After the first diagnosis of IIH, based on neuroimaging and measuring intracranial pressure using invasive methods, ONSD can be used in treatment and follow-up.