Maculopathy Masquerading as Migraine

Abstract

We describe a case of a 23-year-old Caucasian woman with a background history of migraines who presented with bilateral paracentral scotomata. The ophthalmoscopy and MRI head were originally thought to be normal, and the scotomata were attributed to be of migrainous origin: a persistent negative aura. However, persistence of her symptoms prompted further specialist review 10 months later, at which time subtle bilateral perifoveal changes were noted, which had been apparent but overlooked at the initial assessment. Near-infrared reflectance imaging enabled better visualization of the lesions, which were apparent prior to any abnormalities on clinical examination. Spectral-domain optical coherence tomography revealed the early findings of hyperreflectivity in the outer nuclear and outer plexiform layers characteristic of acute macular neuroretinopathy. Our case aims to emphasize the importance of scrutinising ancillary tests of the macula in patients presenting with scotomata or atypical migraine symptoms, and to caution clinicians against diagnosing migraine with persistent negative aura without these investigations.