Federal clinical recommendations on diagnostics and treatment of endocrine ophthalmopathy associated with autoimmune thyroid pathology

Abstract

Endocrine ophthalmopathy (EOP) is a multidisciplinary problem at the intersection of endocrinology and ophthalmology. The patients presenting with this condition experience deficit of adequate medical aid due to the poor cooperation between ophthalmologists and endocrinologists. There are practically no specialized centres in this country where the patients with EOP could receive the combined treatment of this pathology including the surgical intervention. Taken together, late diagnostics and delayed seeking the efficacious medical assistance, the absence of stable compensation of the functional disorders of the thyroid gland, erroneous identification of the phase of the disease, and incorrect choice of the methods for its treatment, the lack of coordination and consistency in the actions of ophthalmologists and endocrinologists are responsible for the low effectiveness of EOP treatment. On the other hand, the absence of the unified approach to diagnostics and treatment of endocrine ophthalmopathy, the necessity of introducing the international experience gained in this field into the routine clinical practice and pooling efforts of representatives of different medical disciplines (endocrinologists, ophthalmologists, radiologists, endocrine surgeons, and neurosurgeons) created the prerequisites for the solution of the EOP problems and gave impetus to the development of the recommendations being proposed.