AIM: To evaluate the ocular manifestation of benign intracranial hypertension(BIH).

METHODS: Retrospective case series was taken to study the clinical data of 21 patients(42 eyes)diagnosed with BIH at Xi'an No.4 Hospital from February 2002 to October 2011. Examinations included visual acuity, slit-lamp, fundus, fundus fluorescein angiography(FFA), cerebral angiography and brain imaging tests.

RESULTS: Of 21 cases, there were 14 patients(67%)recognized by initial presentation of impaired vision prior to the diagnosis of BIH. Visual acuity: no light perception 1 eye(2%), hand motion to 0.1 in 5 eyes(12%), 0.2-1.0 in 16 eyes(38%), and 20 eyes(48%)above 1.0. The ocular examination revealed exotropia in 1 eye(2%)resulted from abducentparalysis. The fundus examination showed binocular papilledema in 10 cases(48%), monocular papilledema in one case(5%), optic atrophy in 3 eyes of 2 cases(10%), and nothing wrong in 8 cases(38%).

CONCLUSION: Ocular manifestation of BIH is usually characterized by impaired vision and papilledema, and optic atrophy occurs at advanced stage. Some patients present with impaired vision at first. The prognosis could be improved if ophthalmologists know ocular characteristics of BIH and give timely and correct diagnosis and treatment.