Charles Bonnet syndrome as first manifestation of occipital infarction

Purpose To describe a case of Charles Bonnet syndrome as the first manifestation of occipital infarction in a patient with preserved visual acuity. Observations We report a 78-year-old man followed in our department with a two-month-long history of visual hallucinations based on the vision of flowers and fruits intermittently, being perceived as unreal images. Best-corrected visual acuity was stable in the follow-up time being 20/20 in the right eye and 20/25 in the left eye. Extraocular muscle function testing, pupillary reflexes, biomicroscopy, fundus and optical coherence tomography examinations did not reveal any interesting findings. In order to rule out occipital pathology, orbital-cerebral magnetic resonance imaging was performed, showing an image compatible with the chronic ischemic right occipital lesion. The patient was diagnosed with Charles Bonnet syndrome secondary to occipital infarction and neurology decided that no treatment was required. 24-2 and 10-2 visual field tests showed no remarkable alterations and Full-field 120 point screening test showed nonspecific peripheral defects. Hallucinations improved over the months, being described as not annoying and increasingly infrequent. Conclusions and Importance Charles Bonnet syndrome is a condition characterized by the presence of recurrent and complex visual hallucinations in patients with visual pathway pathologic defects. Visual acuity or visual field loss is not a requirement for diagnosis. Charles Bonnet syndrome should be suspected in all patients with non-disturbing visual hallucinations, even though they present good visual acuteness. It will be essential to perform complementary explorations to identify the underlying pathology that allows the starting of a correct treatment option.

Automated summary

This case report describes a 78-year-old man with Charles Bonnet syndrome as the initial presentation of occipital infarction, despite preserved visual acuity. The patient experienced visual hallucinations of flowers and fruits intermittently for two months, which improved over time without any specific treatment. It is important to consider Charles Bonnet syndrome in patients with non-disturbing visual hallucinations, even in the presence of good visual acuity.