Purtscher's Retinopathy Following Long Bone Fracture: A Case Report

Purtscher's retinopathy represents an occlusive retinal microvasculopathy that poses a potential threat to vision and is linked to traumatic events. This condition typically manifests in individuals following trauma, commonly associated with long bone fractures, head injuries, or thoracic compression. We report a rare case of unilateral Purtscher's retinopathy after sustaining a long bone fracture. A 27-year-old healthy man sustained an open, comminuted midshaft fracture of the right femur after an alleged motor vehicle accident. On day 3 post trauma, he developed sudden right eye painless reduced vision. Visual acuity in the right eye was 6/12 pinhole 6/12 and the left eye was 6/9 pinhole 6/6. The pupillary reflex was normal in both eyes. Both anterior segments were unremarkable. Fundoscopy showed the presence of multiple cotton wool spots and fleckens in the right eye. Macula optical coherence tomography of the right eye confirmed hyperreflective lesions within the retinal nerve fiber layer. He was diagnosed with Purtscher's retinopathy. The patient was treated conservatively given the fairly good visual acuity. There was complete resolution of fundus lesions with good visual acuity of 6/6 after one month. Ophthalmologic evaluation is crucial in cases of post-traumatic visual impairment, particularly in scenarios involving long bone fractures, to effectively exclude the possibility of Purtscher's retinopathy.