Unilateral blindness as the only finding in a patient with high flow carotid-cavernous fistula

The authors reported a patient with unilateral blindness of the left eye after trauma. Apart from paralysis of the 4th cranial nerve and mild optic nerve edema, there was no structural problem during the ophthalmologic examination. Brain CT scan, CT angiography and MRI demonstrated aneurysm in the left pericavernous region. The patient underwent angiography for coiling of the aneurysm, which detected large carotid cavernous fistula [CCF] mainly draining into the petrous sinus. Therapeutic embolization was performed with balloon and the CCF vanished completely. The most important points of this case are the blindness without exophthalmia as the only presentation of CCF which has not been reported as the only symptom and failure of CT-angiography and MRI evaluation for the diagnosis of CCF

Carotid doppler ultrasonography in preoperative assessment of coronary artery bypass graft surgery in an Iranian population: association between atherosclerosis risk factors and carotid stenosis

The aim of this study was to assess the frequency of significant carotid artery stenosis and its association with the cardiovascular risk factors in a group of Iranian candidates for CABG. Three hundred and one patients with critical coronary artery disease, who were candidates for coronary artery bypass graft [CABG] were evaluated by internal carotid Doppler study. The relations between age, gender, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, smoking, lipid profile, left main coronary stenosis greater than 50% by diameter and coronary artery disease with carotid stenosis were assessed. Significant carotid stenosis greater than 70% was detected in 13 patients [4.3%]. According to the meaningful relationship between significant carotid stenosis and low HDL serum level [lower than 45 in women and lower than 35 in men, p=0.028], hypertension [p=0.021], history of smoking [p=0.026] and left main coronary artery stenosis greater than 50% [p=0.035], they were identified as risk factors valuable enough to guide for selective screening. Among all cardiovascular risk factors. It seems that serum HDL, smoking, left main coronary stenosis and hypertension could be associated with significant carotid artery stenosis in CABG candidates

[Evaluation of the etiology of cataract in a referral hospital in Tehran, Iran]

To evaluate the etiology of cataract and prevalence and correlation of risk factors with various types of cataract. Among the patients who underwent cataract surgery in Labafinejad Hospital in 2004, 400 patients were chosen by a systemic sampling method. Information were collected from the patients' records and recorded in a check list. Senile and congenital types of cataract were the most prevalent in the sample. There was a correlation between age, mean age, sex, type of involvement and type of cataract. Among systemic diseases, hypertension was the most common [35.5%], followed by diabetes mellitus [22%]. In slit lamp examination, of congenital cases, the most common opacity was lamellar type and in other types of cataract, mixed opacity was the most common type. In this study the proportion of male cases was greater than that reported in other studies. Meanwhile, 65.5% of the patients were under the age of 70, which shows the need for evaluation of the relatively low age of onset in Iran

Fluoroscopic versus conventional computed tomography-guided biopsy

To determine the success rate of computed tomographic [CT] fluoroscopic CT [FCT] and conventional CT [CCT] for needle navigation in biopsies from mediastinum, bone, abdomen, liver and pelvis. Data from 122 consecutive percutaneous interventional biopsies performed with use of FCT guidance [mean age of 50.5; range: 1-79 years] and 84 consecutive biopsies with CCT guidance [mean age: 50.7; range, 12-83 years] were gathered from the interventional radiologist and general practitioner. The success rate of procedure was increased in the FCT group as compared with that of CCT group in some organs such as bone, abdomen, liver and pelvis. A statistically significant difference was noted when we compared FCT group with CCT in liver biopsies [P=0.019]. The mean procedure time was lower in FCT group. The overall mean [ +/- SD] FCT time was 200 +/- 90 [range: 20-400] sec; in CCT group, it was 420 +/- 260 [range: 605-800] second. FCT facilitates CT-guided biopsy procedures and reduces the procedure time by allowing visualization of the needle tip from skin entrance to the target point

Multidetector CT evaluation of congenital heart disease: a pictorial essay

Multidetector computed tomography [MDCT] with or without ECG-synchronized images can successfully evaluate cardiac morphology and congenital heart diseases which mainly involve great vessels. In this pictorial essay, we present the great capability of MDCT for the evaluation of complex congenital heart disease

Determining the efficacy of erythromycin ointment 0.5% in protection of conjunctivitis in neonates under phototherapy with eye patches

Ophthalmia neonatorum is a form of conjunctivitis that occurs in infants younger than 4 weeks of age. It is the most common eye disease in newborns. It presents as the inflammation of mucous membrane lining posterior layer of eyelids and bulbar part of eyeball except cornea. It's complications are corneal ulcer, corneal perforation and blindness. The aim of this randomised clinical trial was to investigate the effect of erythromycin ointment 0.5% to prevent the incidence of conjunctivitis in icteric neonates who were under phototherapy with eye patches. A total of 200 cases of icteric newborns in Javaheri hospital who admitted for phototherapy were considered. Neonatal conjunctivitis was not correlated with gestational age, duration of admission, type of delivery, and weight. It was not associated with erythromycin use, however, there was a significant association between conjunctivitis and age of newborn. Results showed that erythromycin ointment is not useful for protecting conjunctivitis in neonates under phototherapy with eye patches