A benign syndrome of transient loss of accommodation in young patients

Objective: To describe a benign condition of transient, isolated accommodation paralysis in young patients as a specific entity. Design: Case series of children and young adults with transient loss of accommodation who were referred to the neuro-ophthalmology clinic at the Meir Medical Center from 1997 to 2006. Five young patients who complained of an inability to read had full neuroophthalmological examinations. Those who were found to have isolated accommodation paralysis without any other related ocular or systemic findings were prescribed reading glasses and followed up. Results: All 5 patients had isolated loss of accommodation. No one had other ocular, neurological, or systemic abnormalities that could be associated with accommodation paralysis; they all did well with near correction. Accommodation returned to normal within 3 to 14 months in all 5 patients. Conclusion: An isolated transient loss of accommodation unrelated to any other ocular or systemic manifestations may occur in children and young adults and may be considered a specific idiopathic entity.