Ear and audiology: Susac syndrome: practice question

A ENT question in the style of the NEET PG paper. Answer it first, then read why the right option is right and why each of the others is wrong.

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ENT · Ear and audiology: Susac syndrome

Sample item

A 35-year-old woman has headache, confusion, branch retinal artery occlusions and low-frequency sensorineural hearing loss. MRI shows central lesions in the corpus callosum. Which is the diagnosis?

Original practice item, not a recalled exam question. Nothing here is recorded.

The answer and the reasoning

A. Susac syndrome

Susac syndrome is a microangiopathy of the brain, retina and cochlea producing encephalopathy, branch retinal artery occlusions and low-frequency hearing loss, with typical snowball lesions of the corpus callosum on MRI. Treatment is immunosuppression.

Option by option

  • A. Susac syndrome (correct)

    Correct. The triad of encephalopathy, branch retinal artery occlusion and hearing loss with callosal lesions is Susac syndrome.

  • B. Behcet disease

    Behcet disease gives oral and genital ulcers with uveitis, not branch retinal artery occlusion with callosal lesions.

  • C. Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada disease

    Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada disease gives uveitis with meningism, vitiligo, poliosis and hearing loss, but not retinal artery occlusion.

  • D. Cogan syndrome

    Cogan syndrome gives interstitial keratitis with vestibulo-auditory loss, without callosal lesions or arterial occlusions.

Source note: Original NextPrep sample item — pending expert review. This item is original practice material awaiting independent expert review, so confirm important facts in a standard textbook.

More ENT questions

Questions about this ENT question

What is the answer to this ENT question?

The best answer is A, Susac syndrome. Susac syndrome is a microangiopathy of the brain, retina and cochlea producing encephalopathy, branch retinal artery occlusions and low-frequency hearing loss, with typical snowball lesions of the corpus callosum on MRI.

Why is "Behcet disease" not the answer?

Behcet disease gives oral and genital ulcers with uveitis, not branch retinal artery occlusion with callosal lesions.

Why is "Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada disease" not the answer?

Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada disease gives uveitis with meningism, vitiligo, poliosis and hearing loss, but not retinal artery occlusion.

Why is "Cogan syndrome" not the answer?

Cogan syndrome gives interstitial keratitis with vestibulo-auditory loss, without callosal lesions or arterial occlusions.

What concept does this question test?

It tests Ear and audiology: Susac syndrome in ENT. Treatment is immunosuppression.

How hard is this question?

We tag it as a multi-step question: it asks you to combine more than one idea. The tag is our own editorial judgement, not an official difficulty rating, so read the reason for every option, not only the answer.

How should I study Ear and audiology: Susac syndrome?

Learn tuning fork results and audiogram patterns by sketching them. Then use the flashcards and the other ENT questions on this site to test what stuck.

Is this a real NEET PG question?

No. It is an original practice item (editorial status: sample, version 1). NextPrep does not publish recalled or leaked questions, and independent faculty review of this item has not been completed yet, so confirm important facts in a standard textbook.