Evisceration for Intractable Endogenous Endophthalmitis

PURPOSE: To evaluate the clinical aspects of severe endogenous endophthalmitis requiring evisceration,particularly underlying disease, causative microorganisms, and infection focus, and to assess the outcome of evisceration. METHODS: The records of 13 patients who were diagnosed with endogenous endophthalmitis requiring evisceration and treated at Yeungnam University Hospital from July 1994 to April 2007 were retrospectively reviewed. RESULTS: Of the 13 patients, all patients had diabetes mellitus, five had advanced liver disease, and one had aplastic anemia. Infection foci were pyelonephritis, pneumonia, and liver abscess. Five cases were confirmed with positive culture of lebsiella pneumoniae. Ten cases underwent evisceration with hydroxyapatite implantation, and three cases were treated conservatively because the patient was in poor systemic condition. Of the 10 patients who underwent evisceration, ocular implants were exposed in five cases. CONCLUSIONS: This study suggests that evisceration with primary orbital implant insertion for endogenous endophthalmitis involves the risk of implant exposure, but after secondary repair, all patients have stable clinical courses.

Surgical Outcomes of Intermittent Exotropia as a Function of Strabismic Angle

PURPOSE: To analyze postoperative results of intermittent exotropia as a function of the difference in strabismic angles measured immediately and another time prior to the surgery. METHODS: We reviewed the clinical records of intermittent exotropia patients who received surgery and had differences greater than or equal to 10 prism diopters (PD) between the last preoperative measurement of strabismic angle and another previous measurement. After applying various exclusion criteria, 66 patients were entered into our study. At the last follow-up visit after surgery, we divided postoperative results into 3 categories: (1) poor; with greater than 10 PD of esotropia or angle of exodeviation of 20 PD or more (2) moderate; with 6-10 PD of esophoria/tropia or 10-19 PD exodeviation, or (3) good; with 1-5 PD of esophoria/tropia or an angle of exodeviation less than 10 PD, or orthophoria. RESULTS: Good results were higher in patients where the difference in strabismic angle was 10 PD or greater between the last measurement and any other earlier measurement. CONCLUSIONS: In cases of Intermittent exotropia where the last preoperative value of strabismic angle was greater than any previous preoperative measurement, surgical dosage based on the last preoperative measurement yielded better results.