A Case of Orbital Infarction Syndrome in a Patient with Hemophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis

Purpose@#To report a case of orbital infarction syndrome in a patient with hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH).Case summary: A 70-year-old woman with diabetes mellitus and hypertension was referred to the Department of Ophthalmology for sudden-onset left upper eyelid ptosis after being diagnosed with HLH. After 3 days, the best corrected visual acuity in the right eye was 0.8, while there was no light perception in the left eye. In the left eye, the ocular motility examination showed limitations in all fields of gaze. On fundus examination, optic disc pallor, retinal hemorrhage, and narrowed retinal arteries were observed in the left eye. Fluorescein angiography showed no blood flow in the retinal arteries and veins in the left eye. On neck computed tomography angiography, the left distal internal carotid artery was narrowed. Orbit computed tomography showed exophthalmos and extraocular muscle hypertrophy in the left eye. Orbit magnetic resonance imaging confirmed optic nerve edema, enhancement of the optic nerve sheath, and high signal intensity of the intraocular fat in the left eye. Slit-lamp examination revealed ischemia of the anterior segment and ischemic necrosis of the eyelid in the left eye. The patient was diagnosed with orbital infarction syndrome. @*Conclusions@#Several factors may lead to ischemia of the orbital tissues in patients with HLH, including coagulopathy, an increased incidence of blood clots, and inflammation in the orbit. It is necessary to consider the possibility of orbital infarction syndrome when HLH patients present with visual loss, ocular movement limitations, and anterior segment ischemia.

Initial Experience of Hybrid Vascular Operation / 대한혈관외과학회지

PURPOSE: Despite advances in the techniques and development of new devices, endovascular (EV) procedures are not the panacea for peripheral vascular diseases. This is partly because substantial cases are too complicated to manage with only EV procedures and partly because of the relatively large size of devices. We reviewed our experience of hybrid vascular procedures and report here on their outcomes. METHODS: Between August 2008 and March 2010, thirteen cases of hybrid vascular operation were performed. A retrospective review of electronic medical records was performed. The primary outcome measures were technical outcomes and patency rates. RESULTS: The mean follow-up duration was 17.7 months. Treatment indications were as follows: critical ischemia (n=6), claudication (n=3), abdominal aortic aneurysm with leg ischemia (n=3), and unstable aortic atheroma with recurrent embolism (n=1). All operations were performed under local anesthesia in an angiography suite. A single surgeon and a single interventional radiologist performed all the major procedures together. Technical and clinical success rates were 92.3%. All limbs were salvaged in patients with critical ischemia. The primary patency rate of the 13 cases was 83.3% at 1 year. There was no in-hospital mortality. CONCLUSION: hybrid vascular operation is useful for patients with a complex vascular condition. The role of hybrid vascular operation should be established with regards to not only the cost benefit but also the long-term outcomes.

Echocardiographic Assessment of Left Ventricular Hypertrophy in Patients with Essential Hypertension

Left ventricular hypertrophy(LVH) is one of common cardiovascular complications in hypertensive patients and it is well known that hypertensive cardiac disease accompained by LVH is still common cause of congestive heart failure in spite of treatment of hypertension. The authors assessed the prevalence of anatomical and functional abnormalities of left ventricle by EKG, chest X-ray and echocardiography in 45 essential hypertensive patients and also in 20 normal controls. Average values of left ventricular posterior wall thickness(LVPWd), interventricular septal thickness(IVSd), left ventricular mass(LVM), and left ventricular mass index(LVM/BSA) by echocardiography in hypertensive groups with LVH by EKG or chest X-ray were significantly higher than those of hypertensive groups without LVH by EKG or chest X-ray(P<0.005). Among 27 hypertensive patients with LVH by EKG and chest X-ray increased LVPWd was found in 24 patients(18%) and increased LVH in 26 patients(19%). Increased LVPWd and LVM were found in 3 patients(23%) among 13 hypertensives without LVH by EKG and chest X-ray. Hypertensive patients with increased LVH showed LVH by EKG and chest X-ray more frequently than those with increased LVPWd. Also, hypertensive patients without increased LVM showed MVH by EKG and chest X-ray less frequently than those without increased LVPWd. Therefore, echocardiography appears to be superior to routine chest X-ray and EKG for defecting LVH in hypertensive patients, especially without LVH by these tests. In conclusion, even though estimation of LVM by echocardiography seems to be a better method than single measurement of LVPWd, it seems thant estimation of LVM together with LVPWd will be more valuable in diagnosis of LVH in hypertensive patients.