[Traumatic lesions of the optic chiasma (author's transl)]

Traumatic lesions of the chiasma are few when one considers its anatomical position. They happen after severe direct or indirect traumas with or without skull fractures, and with or without macroscopic lesions. Microscopic lesions are characterised by contusion. Clinically the visual loss goes together with bitemporal defects and with bilateral hemorrhagic papillar oedema. Early complications are hematoma of the optochiasmatic space and perichiasmatic meningitis: among delayed complications optochiasmatic arachnoiditis prevails.