Early Recognition of Stroke by Confrontation Visual Field Test – Is It Possible?

Introduction: Visual field loss is often the first sign of lesion of the anterior or posterior visual pathways. Screening for visual field defects should be a part of all routine eye examinations, mainly when neurological lesions are suspected. A confrontation visual field (CVF) test provide a rapid and practical method of visual field assessment, allowing the recognition of major neurological deficits. Materials and Research Methods: To report a case of posterior cerebral artery (PCA) stroke early suspected by CVF test. Case-Report: A 77 year-old male presented to our emergency department with vision blurring complaints and a strange sensation of a vision loss on one side on the left eye (OS), for the previous 15 days. He explained that symptoms initiated after an episode of dizziness followed by lipothymia. He denied diplopia or headaches. Past history revealed hypertension and diabetes as cardiovascular risk factors. The best corrected visual acuity was 20/25 on right eye (OD) and 20/60 on OS and pupillary reflexes were normal. CVF test was performed and showed a decrease on left hemicampus of OS. The biomicroscopy was normal and the fundus examination showed optic nerve edema bilaterally, also documented by Optical Coherence Tomography. Considering the findings and the history, neuroimaging and a neurological observation were requested. Computerized axial tomography revealed a hypodense lesion in right occipital posterior region, with hematic density. He was hospitalized for proper treatment with the diagnosis of posterior cerebral artery ischemic stroke, with further hemorrhagic transformation. Discussion: In acute stroke, visual disorders may form all or part of the initial presentation. Homonymous visual field deficits are well-known almost universal characteristics of PCA ischemia, however, due to the absent of cognitive impairment or speech problems associated to many cases, the diagnosis can be challenging at early stages. Our case-report highlights the importance of using CVF test to an immediate inspection of the peripheral visual field, in order to detect acute major defects, including homonymous deficits, to understand if a further prompt neurological examination is mandatory.