Painful ophthalmoplegia secondary to nasopharyngeal carcinoma--a case report

A case of painful ophthalmoplegia with unilateral ocular pain, fixed eyeball to all directions of gaze, and loss of vision is presented. After intensive steroid therapy, conjunctival chemosis subsided markedly, but no improvement was seen in other clinical signs. We took a CT scan of orbit brain and performed nasopharyngeal biopsy and open biopsy through craniectomy. Based on the results of clinical features and findings of the CT scan and tissues, we diagnosed painful ophthalmoplegia secondary to nasopharyngeal carcinoma metastasized to orbital apex and brain.