To the Editor. —
In regard to the five papers referred to by Dr. Smith, and which I cited in European Neurology (7:321, 1972), only careful reading of their full length discloses reference to optic nerve glioma occurrence in their patients: It is mostly mentioned in the case reports or incidently found in the introduction or summary. The five papers mainly deal with the emaciation or overactivity seen in this syndrome.
There is, on the other hand, little doubt that in all these patients visual deficit was not recognized, though "nystagmus" was constantly recorded and optic foramen enlargement sometimes mentioned.
Even if by using the term optic nerve glioma we generally mean primary optic nerve glioma, demonstrating that it is primary by detailed histology is, in my view, far more important. This is particularly true in dealing with the "diencephalic syndrome" with overt hypothalamic involvement by questionable or unrecognized clinical
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