Amaurosis fugax history and symptoms

Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]

The experience of amaurosis fugax is classically described as a transient monocular vision loss that appears as a “curtain coming down vertically into the field of vision in one eye;” however, this altitudinal visual loss is relatively uncommon. In one study, only 23.8 percent of patients with transient monocular vision loss experienced the classic “curtain” or “shade” descending over their vision.^[1] Other descriptions of this experience include a monocular blindness, dimming, fogging, or blurring.^[2] Total or sectorial vision loss typically lasts only a few seconds, but may last minutes or even hours. Duration depends on the etiology of the vision loss. Obscured vision due to papilledema may last only seconds, while a severely atherosclerotic carotid artery may be associated with a duration of one to ten minutes.^[3] Certainly, additional symptoms may be present with the amaurosis fugax, and those findings will depend on the etiology of the transient monocular vision loss.