Oftalmomiasis por Oestrus ovis en un área urbana al sur del Perú / Oestrus ovis ophthalmomyiasis at an urban area in Southern Peru

Resumen La oftalmomiasis es la infestación ocular por larvas de dípteros. Ha sido descrita en pacientes provenientes de áreas rurales, higiene deficiente o por contacto con animales. Sin embargo, existen reportes esporádicos de esta infestación en áreas urbanas. Presentamos el caso de un varón joven, sin factores de riesgo, proveniente de un área urbana al sur del Perú, que presentó 10 larvas en la conjuntiva ocular. Las larvas fueron identificadas como Oestrus ovis, una mosca que suele infestar ovejas y cabras como parte de su ciclo de vida. Realizamos una breve revisión del tema, resaltando la importancia de identificar adecuadamente la especie causante de la miasis, así como su ciclo de vida.

Ophthalmomyiasis is the ocular infestation by dipterous larvae. It has been described in patients from rural areas, poor hygiene, or contact with animals. However, there are sporadic reports of this infestation in urban areas. We present the case of a young man without risk factors, from an urban area in southern Peru, in whom we found 10 larvae at ocular conjunctiva. The larvae were identified as Oestrus ovis, a fly that usually infests sheep and goats as part of their life cycle. We made a brief review of the case, highlighting the importance of adequately identifying the species that cause myiasis as well as its life cycle.

A Removed Chestnut Thorn after Corneal Incision

PURPOSE: To report the surgical technique to remove a chestnut thorn through a corneal incision. CASE SUMMARY: A 54-year-old female visited our clinic complaining of a sudden foreign body sensation and conjunctival injection in her left eye after picking chestnuts 4 days prior to her visit. Visual acuity of both eyes was 1.0 and the intraocular pressures were within normal limits. Slit lamp examination revealed that a chestnut thorn had deeply penetrated the left corneal stroma and a small number of inflammatory cells were observed in the anterior chamber. There was no corneal defect stained with fluorescein and the Seidel test was negative. A corneal foreign body comprised of a chestnut thorn and its remnants was diagnosed and emergency surgery was performed. A partial corneal incision was made along the foreign body and the exposed foreign body was easily and completely removed. The patient was treated with topical antibiotics after surgery and no complication was observed during a follow-up period of 3 months. CONCLUSIONS: In the case of a corneal foreign body comprised of a chestnut thorn, the foreign body with its remnants were easily removed by performing a partial corneal incision.