[Retinoblastoma--clinical diagnostic errors]

The author discusses clinical and histological findings in 6 patients whose complaints had been wrongly diagnosed, out of 91 patients in whom a retinoblastoma had been diagnosed at the ophthalmo-pathological laboratory of the University Eye hospital in Utrecht between 1960 and 1981. In 6 other cases the diagnosis was doubtful. All the cases occurred before 1974. The faulty diagnoses were: spontaneously necrotized retinoblastoma, congenital anomaly, retinal detachment, infection with toxocara canis, sarcoidosis, and angiomatosis retinae. Three patients are still living. If the diagnosis is not certain a blind eye should be removed without delay.