Evaluating the optic nerve stiffness and optic nerve sheath diameter in idiopathic intracranial hypertension patients after the resolution of papilledema

Purpose The objective of this study was to investigate the optic nerve’s elastic properties and optic nerve sheath diameter (ONSD) using shear-wave elastography (SWE) in patients with idiopathic intracranial hypertension (IIH) compared to healthy individuals. Methods The study included 22 IIH patients and 15 healthy subjects. SWEs were performed on the optic nerve and ONSD, and optic nerve stiffness were measured. Results The patients with IIH demonstrated higher stiffness of the optic nerve compared with that of healthy volunteers ( P < 0.001). The optic nerve sheath diameter of the optic nerve in the IIH group was significantly larger than that in the control group ( P < 0.001). There was no correlation between the disease duration and SWE values in the Spearman correlation test. Conclusion These findings suggest that ONSD can be used as a follow-up method in the treatment of IIH. However, there was not any correlation between the disease duration and SWE-based stiffness measurement of the optic nerve.