Aim Optic neuritis (ON) involves primary inflammation, demyelination, and axonal injury in the optic nerves and that causes acute vision loss (usually monocular), pain upon eye movement, and colour vision loss. ON may occur in the course of demyelinating diseases or may be seen as an isolated finding.

Material and Method In this study, patients with vision complaints who were diagnosed with optic neuritis between 2015 and 2023 were examined. Those patients who at first admission were diagnosed with a demyelinating disease of the central nervous system (like MS) were not included in the study. During follow-up, the number of attacks, the imaging findings, the CSF findings, the treatments that the patients received, and the final diagnosis were evaluated.

Results A total of 19 patients were included in this study. There were 68.4% female patients, and the average age of their first attack was 12.68(SD: 3.84) years. The average follow-up period was 59.74 months. Sixty-three percent of patients presented with blurred vision as the main symptom for admission. A total of 42% of patients had nonspecific white matter lesions. In 84% of the cases, optic disc edema was present at the time of the first ophthalmologic examination. In 55.6% of the patients, the oligoclonal band (OCB) was positive. In the last clinical evaluation, 26.3% of the patients were diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS) and one patient was diagnosed with neuromyelitis optica. It is important to note that all patients diagnosed with MS had OCD at the time of their first attack, and 40% had nonspecific white matter lesions. The treatment of two of our patients with rituximab was successful.

Conclusions Identifying oligoclonal bands positivity in isolated cases of optic neuritis in children could provide valuable predictive information. The possibility of demyelinating disease developing in children with optic neuritis must be kept in mind.