ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: The authors report a case of posterior internal ophthalmomyiasis causing vitreous haemorrhage and retinal detachment after uncomplicated cataract extraction. CASE REPORT: The patient suffered an abrupt vitreous haemorrhage 9 days after ECCE and posterior chamber IOL implantation. After 2 months the haemorrhage did not clear up and a retinal detachment arose. The patient underwent encircling scleral buckle, pars plana vitrectomy and fluid-gas exchange. In course of intervention the surgeon removed from the vitreous chamber a 14-mm-long round worm subsequently identified as a dipterous larva of the Sarcophagidae family. DISCUSSION: The patient showed no sign of subretinal tracking or retinal breaks or holes. The sclerocorneal surgical wound seems the most likely site of entrance of the parasite, and this would then be the first reported case of myiasis with no RPE tracking.
Subject(s)
Cataract Extraction/adverse effects , Eye Infections, Parasitic/complications , Myiasis/complications , Retinal Detachment/surgery , Vitrectomy/methods , Aged , Animals , Diptera , Eye Infections, Parasitic/parasitology , Eye Infections, Parasitic/surgery , Female , Follow-Up Studies , Humans , Lenses, Intraocular , Myiasis/parasitology , Myiasis/surgery , Postoperative Complications , Retinal Detachment/etiology , Scleral Buckling , Vitreous Hemorrhage/etiology , Vitreous Hemorrhage/surgeryABSTRACT
Copper intraocular foreign bodies (IOFB) are relatively common after penetrating eye injuries. Ocular signs and symptoms vary greatly in relation to the copper content, ranging from chronic uveitis and severe visual loss for IOFB containing more than 85% copper, to local copper deposits with no severe ocular damage for less toxic alloys. Reported here is the case of a ten-year-old boy who suffered from recurrent chronic uveitis five months after a perforating eye injury due to copper wire. Diagnostic ultrasound and computerized tomography revealed an IOFB within the lens and X-ray spectrometry (DXS) indicated the nature of the IOFB as copper, and accurately measured the dissolution of the metal. The patient underwent cataract extraction and standard three-port pars plana vitrectomy with gas-fluid exchange. Twelve months after surgery the retina was flat and visual acuity had risen to 20/60. Undiluted vitreous samples obtained in the course of the intervention, studied by immunohistochemical techniques, showed an inflammatory reaction with a prevalence of PMN-N and CD3 T-lymphocytes. DXS thus appears to be a new and reliable diagnostic tool for the early detection and management of copper and other toxic metal IOFB.
