MINI REVIEW article
Front. Neurol.
Sec. Neuro-Ophthalmology
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fneur.2025.1626909
This article is part of the Research TopicOptic Neuropathies: Etiologies, Diagnosis, and TreatmentsView all 11 articles
Ethambutol optic neuropathy
Provisionally accepted
- 1University of Kentucky, Lexington, United States
- 2Centennial Neurosciences, Nashville, TN, United States
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Word count: 136 Ethambutol is an antitubercular drug that is commonly used in the areas of the world that is endemic to tuberculosis. It is used in infections caused by Mycobacterium Tuberculosis and some non-tuberculous infections caused by Mycobacterium species. Ethambutol related toxic optic neuropathy remains one of the most concerning adverse effects of the medication in addition to other nonspecific side effects like peripheral neuropathy, nausea, vomiting, joint pain and rash. Recently the guidelines for treatment of tuberculosis in some countries where tuberculosis (TB) is endemic have been revised to allow for fixed dose combinations (wherein a single tablet contains a fixed strength of isoniazid, rifampicin, pyrazinamide, and ethambutol) and longer duration of treatment with ethambutol. Thus, it is anticipated that there will be an increase in ethambutol toxic optic neuropathy.In this minireview we plan to discuss the clinical features, neuro-ophthalmic evaluation, screening and diagnosis of ethambutol toxic optic neuropathy. We will also discuss the available treatment options for this condition.
Keywords: optic neuropathy, Ethambutol, mycobacteria, arabinosyl transferase, Antitubercular
Received: 12 May 2025; Accepted: 25 Aug 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Sudhakar, Acharya and Kini. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Padmaja Sudhakar, University of Kentucky, Lexington, United States
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