Does pupillary sparing oculomotor nerve palsy really spare the pupil?

We examined the pupillary cycle time (PCT) in eight elderly patients with isolated oculomotor nerve palsy (ONP) that was characterized by complete involvement of the extraocular muscles. In addition to advanced age, all patients had at least one other vasculopathic risk factor. Although in all cases the pupil was completely spared by clinical impression, the PCT was significantly prolonged compared with the other eye and well outside the normal range (mean 1590 +/- 212 msec on the involved side and 1076 +/- 110 on the uninvolved side).

The pupil cycle time in Horner's syndrome.

Edge-light pupil cycle time has been introduced recently as a simple method for examining parasympathetic pupillary innervation. Since the sympathetic system is not thought to be involved in the light reflex, it was assumed that edge-light pupil cycle time would be unimpaired in lesions of the sympathetic pathways. In 12 patients with unilateral Horner's syndrome of different etiologies, the edge-light pupil cycle time was determined in both eyes.

Clinical variability in vitreoretinal degeneration.

Three families with a wide range of vitreoretinal degeneration, median cleft face syndrome and skeletal anomalies are described. Their autosomal dominant transmission and phenotypic spectrum are presented. In view of the similarity between these patients and the clinical overlap existing between them, it is assumed that they are all the same entity forming parts of a continuum.