Candida albicans endophthalmitis following cataract surgery is fortunately rare complication, but once the infection is established, its course is unrelenting and the prognosis for a good visual result is usually very guarded. The authors experienced a case of culture-proved Candida albicans endophthalmitis following intracapsular cataract extraction in a 74-year old man. Endophthalmitis was resolved after treatment with intravitreal injection of amphotericin B, intravenous amphotericin B, oral Ketoconazole and 2% of topical Ketoconazole.
Aged ; Amphotericin B ; Candida albicans ; Candida* ; Cataract Extraction* ; Cataract* ; Endophthalmitis* ; Humans ; Intravitreal Injections ; Ketoconazole ; Prognosis

The authors treated 12 patients with pseudophakic endophthalmitis over a 5 year period between 1990 and 1994. Common clinical manifestations included anterior chamber inflammation, conjunctival injection, decreased visual acuity, ocular pain and hypopyon. Eight of 12 cases(67%) were culture positive when organisms were grown up from aspirates of the aqueous, the vitreous or both. Three of the culture positive cases were grown up from aspirates of the aqueous, the vitreous or both. Three of the culture positive cases were candida endophthalmitis. Treatment consisted of topical, periocular, systemic and intravitreal injection of antimicrobial agents. In addition, because of poor clinical response of medical conservative therapy, six cases had a vitrectomy. Intraocular lenses were removed in 3 candida endophthalmitis at second operation. Final visual acuity has better in culture negative and low virulent bacterial endophthalimitis than high virulent bacterial and candida endophthalmitis. Visual outcome was better in cured patients who received a single intravitreal injection or a single intravitreal injection in combination with virectomy than the patients who did not receive intravitreal injection or received repeated intravitreal injection. Complications were two eviscerations and a retinal detachment.
Anterior Chamber ; Anti-Infective Agents ; Candida ; Endophthalmitis* ; Humans ; Inflammation ; Intravitreal Injections ; Lenses, Intraocular ; Pseudophakia ; Retinal Detachment ; Visual Acuity ; Vitrectomy

No abstract available.
Aorta* ; Pulmonary Artery*

Takayasu's arteritis is the chronic inflammatory panarteritis of unknown pathogenesis, affecting aortic arch and main arotic branches, pulmonary and renal arteries. It mainly affects young oriental women and cause chronic ischemic injury to tissues of the brian, orbits, upper limbs, myocardium, and kidneys. The ophthalmologic features are tend to be late the manifestations of Takayasu's arteritis and include ischemia of the retina, choroid, and anterior segment. We experienced two cases of Takayasu's arteritis whose ipsilateral ophthalmic artery was completely occluded. yet maintained proper visual acuity by external carotid-ophthalmic anastomosis.
Aorta, Thoracic ; Choroid ; Female ; Humans ; Ischemia ; Kidney ; Myocardium ; Ophthalmic Artery ; Orbit ; Renal Artery ; Retina ; Takayasu Arteritis* ; Upper Extremity ; Visual Acuity

BACKGROUND: Pachydermoperiostosis(PDP) is a rare genetic disease characterized by pachydermia, periostosis, arthralgia and finger clubbing. The pathogenesis of this disease is still unknown, but the concept that platelets and endothelial cells may play a major role in the developement of pachydermia is widely accepted nowadays, It is also suspected that several serum growth factors stimulate proliferation of soft tissue. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to investigate the pathogenesis of pachydermia in patients with pachydermoperiostosis through evaluating whether the fibroblasts from these patients have a higher proliferation rate than those from controls or whether the proliferation rate of those cells are affected by certain serum growth factors. METHOD: At first, we evaluated the proliferation rate of fibroblasts from patients and corntrols by the MTT colorimetric assay, and then the proliferation rate of fibroblasts from the prepuce of newborn infants under several conditions of media containing uncentrifuged patients serum, centrifuged patients serum, uncentrifuged control serum, or centrifuged control serum. RESULTS: The proliferation of fibroblasts from patients skin was slower than the control fibroblasts and fibroblasts derived from uninvolved skin of patients. The statistically significant highest proliferation rate was observed when fibroblasts were cultured in the uncentrifuged patients serum contained media and the order of proliferation was as follows: centrifuged patients serum, uncentrifuged control serum and centrifuged control serum condition at 20%, 10%, and 1% respectively. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that patients fibroblasts do not proliferate in vitro at a higher rate than control firoblasts. Fibroblasts in PDP may only play a role as target cells and certain serum factors are responsible for the pathogenesis of PDP.
Arthralgia ; Endothelial Cells ; Fibroblasts* ; Fingers ; Humans ; Infant, Newborn ; Intercellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins ; Osteoarthropathy, Primary Hypertrophic* ; Skin

Optic disc neovascularization is known to occur in occlusive vascular diseases or chronic posterior inflammatory conditions. It has been recently reported to occur in chronic anterior uveitis. The authors treated a patient with optic disc neovascularization associated with chronic anterior uveitis with topical and systemic steroid administration. The authors present our experience of optic disc neovascularization in chronic anterior uveitis with a brief review of the literatures related to this disease.
Humans ; Uveitis ; Uveitis, Anterior* ; Vascular Diseases

Mechanical obstruction of the common hepatic duct includes the following causes; choledocholithiasis, sclerosis, cholangitis, pancreatic carcinoma, cholangiocarcinoma, postoperative stricture, primary hepatic duct carcinoma, enlarged cystic duct lymph nodes, and metastatic nodal involvement of the porta hepatis. Partial mechanical obstruction of the common hepatic duct caused by impaction of stones and inflammation surrounding the vicinity of the neck of the gallbladder had been reported on the “syndrome del conducto hepatico” in 1948 by Mirizzi. Nowadays, this disease was named by Mirizzi syndrome. Mrizzi syndrome is a rare entity of common hepatic duct obstruction that results from an inflammatory response secondary to a gallstone impacted in the cystic duct or neck of the gallbladder. It results from an almost parallel course and low insertion of the cystic duct into the common hepatic duct. In a variant of Mirizzi's syndrome, the cause of the common hepatic duct obstruction was a primary cystic duct carcinoma rather than gallstone disease. A 71-year-old man was admitted with a four-day history of right upper quadrant abdominal pain. Past medical history was unremarkable. On physical examination, the patient had a temperature of 38℃, icteric sclera and right upper quadrant tenderness. Pertinent laboratory findings included WBC 18,000/cm3; albumin 2.6 g/dl (normal 0-1) with the direct bilirubin, 4.4 mg/dl (normal 0-0.4). Ultrasonography revealed a dilated extrahepatic biliary tree. ERCP showed that the superior margin was angular and more consistent with a calculus causing partial CHD obstruction (Mirizzi syndrome). At surgery a diseased gallbladder containing calculi was found. In addition, there was two calculi partially eroding through the proximal portion of the cystic duct and compressing the common hepatic duct. A cholecystectomy and excision of common bile duct was performed, with Roux-en-Y hepaticojejunostomy. The postoperative course was uneventful.
Abdominal Pain ; Aged ; Biliary Tract ; Bilirubin ; Calculi ; Cholangiocarcinoma ; Cholangiopancreatography, Endoscopic Retrograde ; Cholangitis ; Cholecystectomy ; Choledocholithiasis ; Common Bile Duct ; Constriction, Pathologic ; Cystic Duct ; Cytochrome P-450 CYP1A1 ; Gallbladder ; Gallstones ; Hepatic Duct, Common ; Humans ; Inflammation ; Jaundice, Obstructive ; Lymph Nodes ; Mirizzi Syndrome* ; Neck ; Physical Examination ; Sclera ; Sclerosis ; Ultrasonography

Laser photocoagulation was applied in vitro to organ culture exoplants of porcine retinal pigment epithelium(RPE) attached to Bruch's membrane, choroid, and sclera using the Del Priore method for de-monstrating the proliferation of RPE cells and characterizing the response with respect to power level of treatment. Six-millimetor-round buttons of eyewall were treated with 20-30 spots from the argon bluegreen laser using a 500 micrometer spot size, 0.1s duration, and variable powers(100mW, 300mW, and 500mW). Group 1 is untreated control group and group 2(100mW) and group 4(500mW) showed less active proliferation of RPE than group 3(300mW). In group 3, all RPE cells, Bruch's membrane, and a part of choroid were disrupted and lifted off three hours after laser photocoagulation and then RPE cells began to proliferate actively at third day. The treated area became completely covered with several layers of RPE cells. The proliferation of RPE cells turned out to be larger when the power was moderate(300mW) as compared to the case when the power was too high(500mW) or too low(100mW).
Argon ; Bruch Membrane ; Choroid ; Light Coagulation* ; Organ Culture Techniques* ; Retinal Pigment Epithelium* ; Retinaldehyde* ; Sclera

The authors tried to evaluate the effect of the growth factors on cell proliferation in the human retina astrocyte culture. Each growth factor, EGF, bFGF, GGF, IGF-1 or PDGF, together with BrdU was added to astrocytes-enriched cultures in the serum-free media. The proliferating effect of each growth factor was evaluated by a double immunofluo- rescenece labelling for GFAP and BrdU. By and addition of each growth factor, the number of retinal astrocytes at the synthetic stage significantly increased than those of control group (p<0.01). In comparision, PDGF was more potent than IGF-1 (p<0.01). Above data extended the concept of astrocytic proliferation caused by several growth factors in human retinal injury.
Astrocytes ; Bromodeoxyuridine ; Cell Proliferation ; Culture Media, Serum-Free ; Epidermal Growth Factor ; Humans ; Insulin-Like Growth Factor I ; Intercellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins* ; Neuroglia* ; Retina ; Retinaldehyde*

The primary Malignant lymphoma of the orbit is a relatiely uncommon condition. The authers experienced a case of primary orbital malignant lymphoma in 59 year old female. The malgnant lymphocytic lymphoma was confirmed by excisional biopsy, and local radiation theraphy was followed. There has been no sign of recurrence at the orbital region and the other sites for postoperative 12 months.
Biopsy ; Female ; Humans ; Leukemia, Lymphocytic, Chronic, B-Cell ; Lymphoma* ; Middle Aged ; Orbit* ; Recurrence