Introduction: Neuroretinitis is a typical ocular presentation of cat scratch disease (CSD). It is characterised by optic disc swelling with macular star formation. Bartonella henselae is the commonest cause of neuroretinitis. Case series: This article provides a retrospective review of the variations in three patients’ clinical presentations and responses to the two of the treatment options available for the disease. We report a retrospective case series of neuroretinitis in CSD with three patients who presented to the ophthalmology clinic at Selayang Hospital from June 2016 to August 2019. All patients had a history of contact with cats with two of them had a history of fever before developing ocular symptoms. All patients presented with optic disc swelling and macular star. In addition, Case 2 presented with mild vitritis and Case 3 with multiple foci of choroiditis. A serology analysis of Bartonella henselae was positive for both immunoglobulin (Ig) M and IgG in all three patients. Two of the patients were treated with oral doxycycline, while Case 3 was treated with oral sulfamethoxazole and trimethoprim. All patients had a poor vision at their initial presentation, but none of them warranted oral prednisolone and had good visual outcomes. Conclusion: Neuroretinitis is a typical ocular presentation of CSD. Diagnosis is confirmed via positive serologic testing for Bartonella henselae. Although neuroretinitis is self-limiting, various treatment options can hasten disease recovery with good visual outcomes.

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are the small noncoding RNA molecules which regulate target gene expression posttranscriptionally. They are known to regulate key cellular processes like inflammation, cell differentiation, cell proliferation, and cell apoptosis across various ocular diseases. Due to their easier access, recent focus has been laid on the investigation of miRNA expression and their involvement in several conjunctival diseases. The aim of this narrative review is to provide understanding of the miRNAs and describe the current role of miRNAs as the mediators of the various conjunctival diseases. A literature search was made using PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science databases for studies involving miRNAs in the conjunctival pathological conditions. Original articles in the last 10 years involving both human and animal models were included. Literature search retrieved 27 studies matching our criteria. Pertaining to the numerous literatures, there is a strong correlation between miRNA and the various pathological conditions that occur in the conjunctiva. miRNAs are involved in various physiological processes such as cell differentiation, proliferation, apoptosis, development, and inflammation by regulating various signaling pathways, genes, proteins, and mediators. Pterygium was the most studied conjunctival disease for miRNA involvement, whereas miRNA research in allergic conjunctivitis is still in its early stages. Our review provides deep insights into the various miRNAs playing an important role in the various conjunctival diseases. miRNAs do have the potential to serve as noninvasive biomarkers with diagnostic, prognostic, and therapeutic implications. However, multitudinous studies are required to validate miRNAs as the reliable biomarkers in conjunctival pathologies and its targeted therapy.

A white-eyed blowout fracture is an orbital floor fracture associated with restriction of ocular motility (suggestive of orbital content entrapment) but with minimal or absence of signs of soft tissue trauma. It can lead to significant patient morbidity. This case involved an 8-year-old boy with a white-eyed blowout fracture following facial trauma. He presented with binocular diplopia and a history of recurrent episodes of vomiting after the trauma and was referred to our centre for a suspected head injury. Visual acuity in both eyes was 6/9. Examination showed minimal left periorbital haematoma with left eye motility restriction on superior and medial gaze associated with pain. CT scan of the orbit showed left orbital floor fracture with minimal soft tissue entrapment. He underwent urgent open exploration of the left orbit and release of orbital tissue entrapment. Post-operatively, the left eye motility restriction improved significantly with resolution of diplopia. In conclusion, a high index of suspicion is crucial in diagnosing paediatric white-eyed blowout fractures due to lack of external ocular signs.
Diplopia

Endogenous endophthalmitis accounts for approximately 5 – 10% of all endophthalmitis cases. We report a case of a middle-aged gentleman with underlying uncontrolled diabetes mellitus who presented with fever and generalised body weakness for one week. He was diagnosed with invasive Klebsiella syndrome based on blood culture with presence of bilateral pleural effusion, liver abscess, renal impairment and sphenoidal sinusitis. The patient developed sudden bilateral painless reduced vision on day two of admission. Ocular examination revealed bilateral severe anterior chamber reaction and severe vitritis that obscured the view of the fundus. Ocular B-scan ultrasonography showed multiple loculations in the posterior segment in both eyes. There was soft tissue density with calcification in the left sphenoid sinus on computed tomography of the orbit. He was treated for bilateral endogenous endophthalmitis with multiple intravitreal antibiotic injections, but showed no improvement. Functional endoscopic sinus surgery was performed and revealed that the left sphenoid sinus was filled with fungal balls. Following drainage of sphenoidal pus, there was resolution of vitritis and fundus examination showed features of underlying fungal infection with a “string of pearls” present along the vascular arcade of both eyes. The patient was diagnosed with bilateral endogenous endophthalmitis secondary to invasive Klebsiella syndrome with coexisting fungal endophthalmitis secondary to sphenoid mycetoma. In addition to repeated intravitreal antibiotic injections, he was also treated with systemic and topical antifungal therapy. At three months post treatment, the infection resolved and his vision improved from counting fingers to 6/36 bilaterally.

Introduction: Age-related macular degeneration (ARMD) is an ocular degenerative disorder that associated with impairment of central vision. Oxidative stress plays an important role in the pathogenesis of ARMD. The aim of this study was to determine the level of antioxidant enzymes (catalase and glutathione peroxidase) in tears among Malay ARMD patients. Methods: A cross sectional study was conducted between September 2015 and November 2017 among Malay ARMD patients. Schirmer paper was used to collect the tear samples. The level of catalase and glutathione peroxidase level in tears was evaluated using commercially available oxidative stress marker kits. Results: A total of 136 Malay ARMD patients were recruited into the study with 68 controls. Mean tear catalase and glutathione peroxidase levels were significantly lower in ARMD patients (1348.97 SD 109.11 µM and 453.87 SD 41.96 U/L respectively) as compared to the control group (1453.38 SD 38.87 µM and 502.28 SD 34.29 U/L respectively) (P<0.001 and P<0.001 respectively). Late ARMD has lower mean of catalase level in tears as compared to early ARMD (P=0.044). Based on subtypes of neovascular late ARMD, neovascular ARMD has lower mean catalase level in tears compared to idiopathic polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy (IPCV) (P=0.031). Conclusion: This study showed that antioxidant enzyme might play an important factor in the pathogenesis of ARMD.

This a case report on a rare case of denial of visual perception termed as inverse Anton syndrome. It is a rare extension of perception without awareness in which, specific brain lesions affected a patient’s visual abilities. A 66-year-old Malay gentleman presented with sudden onset of the painless bilateral total loss of vision with expressive aphasia for 2 days. His visual acuity was 6/12 in the right eye and 6/48 in the left eye. However, he was insistent that he could not see but did not request any form of assistance for his blindness. He also had neurological signs suggestive of parietal lobe syndrome. Brain imaging showed subacute left middle cerebral artery territorial infarct with no occipital lobe involvement. The denial of visual perception by this patient may be explained by a disconnection of parietal lobe attentional systems from visual perception

The worldwide upsurge of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) warrants the attention of public health, especially in complications. Diabetic Retinopathy (DR), the commonest ocular complication, contributes to the growing incidence of blindness. Recommendations that the visual acuity (VA) assessment guidelines should be used in DR screening was not routinely practiced. This study aims to model the predictive effect of VA - a simple economic clinical assessment - upon DR in patients with T2DM. A case-control study was conducted in Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia with subjects recruited from the ophthalmology clinic. The primary variable during analysis was VA, and the outcome variable was DR. Models with eight control variables which included age, gender, and duration of DM were developed. The predictive effect measured by logistic regression showed that when unadjusted; four variables had a significant association with DR, at p-value<0.25; they were the duration of DM, systolic blood pressure, glycosylated haemoglobin and VA. From the eight different predictive models, the estimated adjusted odds ratio produced ranges from 6.09 to 11.64. Our study shows that VA has a predictive effect upon DR in T2DM patients. We suggest VA assessment, to be on par with the monitoring of blood pressure and blood glucose.
Predictive ; Visual acuity ; Diabetic Retinopathy ; Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus

Introduction: There is limited knowledge on primary angle closure (PAC) in Malays. Understanding the clinical presentation and progression of PAC in Malays is important for prevention of blindness in Southeast Asia. Material and methods: A retrospective record review study was conducted on Malay patients seen in the eye clinic of two tertiary hospitals in Kelantan, Malaysia. Based on the available data, Malay patients re-diagnosed as primary angle closure suspect (PACS), primary angle closure (PAC), and primary angle closure glaucoma (PACG) based on the International Society Geographical Epidemiological classification. Clinical data was collected from initial presentation including the presence of acute primary angle closure until at least 5 years follow up. Progression was defined based on gonioscopic changes, vertical cup to disc ratio (VCDR), intraocular pressure (IOP) and Humphrey visual field (HVF) analysis. Progression and severity of PACG was defined based Hodapp-Parrish-Anderson classification on reliable HVF central 24-2 or 30-2 analysis. Results: A total of 100 patients (200 eyes) with at least 5 years follow up were included. 94 eyes (47%) presented with APAC. During initial presentation, 135 eyes (67.5%) were diagnosed with glaucomatous changes with 91 eyes already blind. After 5 years of follow up, 155 eyes (77.5%) progressed. There was 4 times risk of progression in eyes with PAC (p=0.071) and 16 times risk of progression in PACG (p=0.001). Absence of laser peripheral iridotomy was associated with 10 times the risk of progression. Conclusion: Angle closure is common in Malays. Majority presented with optic neuropathy at the initial presentation and progressed further. Preventive measures including promoting public awareness among Malay population is important to prevent blindness.

RetCam is an excellent screening tool for the detection of retinopathy of prematurity (ROP). However, affordability is a barrier when adopting the use of RetCam in developing countries. We aimed to describe different stages of ROP using ultrasonographic B-scan and to evaluate the association between funduscopic examinations and ultrasonographic B-scan findings in premature neonates with ROP in Malaysia. A descriptive cross sectional study was conducted in 90 eyes of 47 premature neonates with different stages of ROP in three tertiary hospitals in Malaysia. Experienced ophthalmologists performed detailed funduscopic examinations using binocular indirect ophthalmoscopy (BIO). A masked examiner performed a 10 MHz ultrasonographic B-scan evaluation with 12 meridian position images within 48 hours of clinical diagnosis. Data from the clinical examination and ultrasonographic findings were collected and analysed. We recruited 37 eyes (41.1%) with stage 1 ROP, 29 eyes (32.3%) with stage 2, 18 eyes (20.0%) with stage 3, and 3 eyes (3.3%) with stages 4 and 5 based on the clinical assessment. Ultrasonography correctly identified 3 (8.1%) stage 1 eyes, 17 (58.6%) stage 2 eyes, 13 (72.2%) stage 3 eyes, and 3 each (100%) of the stage 4 and 5 eyes. There was a significant association between the funduscopic signs and the ultrasound findings for stage 2 ROP and above (Fisher’s exact test, p <0.001). In conclusion, all stages of ROP were detected and described with a 10 MHz ultrasonic B-scan system. A significant association was observed between funduscopic signs and ultrasonographic findings in premature Malaysian neonates with stage 2 ROP and above.

Although few studies concerning optic neuritis (ON) in Asian countries have been reported, there is no report about ON in Malaysia particularly within the Malay population. We aimed to determine the clinical manifestation, visual outcome and aetiology of ON in Malays, and discussed the literature of ON studies in other Asian populations. This was a retrospective study involving 31 consecutive patients (41 eyes) with ON treated at Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia commencing from July 2005 till January 2010 with a period of follow-up ranging from 18-60 months. The clinical features, laboratory results, possible aetiology, and visual acuity after one year were analysed. Females were the predominant group. The age of the patients ranged between 3-55 years and peaked between 21-30 years old. 67.7% of the patients had unilateral involvement. Pain on ocular movement was observed in 31.7% of the affected eyes. 73.3% of 41 involved eyes showed visual acuity equal 6/60 or worse on presentation. Paracentral scotoma was the most common visual field defect noted. Optic disc papillitis proved more widespread compared to the retrobulbar type of ON. The aetiology was idiopathic in more than 50%, while the risk of multiple sclerosis was extremely low (3.2%) in our series. 66.0% demonstrating visual acuity improved to 6/12 or better at one year after the attack. 16.1% showed evidence of recurrence during follow-up. In conclusion, the clinical profile and aetiology of ON in Malay patients are comparable to other ON studies reported by other Asian countries.