Keratitis after Implantation of Intrastromal Corneal Rings with Spontaneous Extrusion of the Segment.

PURPOSE: To report a case of bacterial keratitis in a patient with a history of intrastromal corneal ring segments (INTACS®) implantation to correct keratoconus. METHODS: The patient's history, clinical presentation, pathological analysis and therapeutic management were reviewed. RESULTS: A 36-year-old-man was referred to our department due to decreased vision and intense pain in his left eye, 40 days after INTACS® implantation for keratoconus. Slit-lamp examination revealed epithelial defects and stromal infiltrates in the lower channel without evidence of the inferior ring. The anterior chamber also showed a significant fibrin reaction to hypopyon. A low-tension suture was removed at the site of the incision. Microbiological study of the conjunctival swab was positive for Staphylococcus epidermidis, but the corneal culture was sterile. The patient was treated with topical fortified and systemic antibiotics. The infection slowly resolved, leaving opacity at the inferior segment site. CONCLUSIONS: Infectious keratitis following INTACS implantation is an infrequent complication that can have important consequences without suitable and early therapeutic management.

Isolated medial rectus muscle rupture after a traffic accident.

A 30-year-old male suffered an orbital trauma due to a traffic accident. At the Emergency Unit, the patient presented with avulsion of the upper left eyelid in the medial canthus, wounds in the lower eyelid and the inferior canaliculus, conjunctival laceration, proptosis and palpebral hematomas. The patient reported persistent diplopia. During the examination, exotropia and total absence of adduction were observed. Computerized tomography (CT) revealed a discontinuity at the left medial rectus. No orbital fractures were identifiable. The medial rectus was still attached to its anatomic insertion at the globe. The discontinuity was suggestive of laceration or rupture of this muscle at approximately 10-12 mm from its insertion. Surgical exploration revealed total rupture of the medial rectus at approximately 12 mm from its insertion. The posterior edge of the damaged muscle was found and sutured to its anterior edge with 6-0 polyglactin. The following day, the eyes were completely straight and the patient did not mention any signs of diplopia. Botulinum toxin injection into the ipsilateral lateral rectus was not necessary. After six months of follow-up, the patient still reported no diplopia. When muscular laceration is suspected after an orbital trauma, early CT is recommended. The only procedures that assure a significant recovery of the normal function of the eye are early muscle repair and avoidance, if possible, of transposition surgery.

Short-term mitomycin C followed by long-term interferon alpha2beta for conjunctiva-cornea intraepithelial neoplasia.

PURPOSE: To report a case of extensive conjunctiva-cornea intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) treated topically with mitomycin C (MMC) and interferon (INF)-alpha2beta without surgical resection. METHODS: Case report. RESULTS: : An 82-year-old woman showed an extensive gelatinous red mass in the bulbar conjunctiva with invasion into the caruncle, inferior fornix, and tarsal conjunctiva and extending for 270 degrees of the corneal surface. A diagnosis of CIN was made by surgical biopsy. Surgical excision with safety margins carried the risk of limbal stem cell depletion. A conservative treatment strategy was used with 2 cycles of topical MMC (0.02%), followed by INF-alpha2beta eye drops at a dose of 1 million IU/mL, 4 times a day until tumor disappearance. Total resolution was noted after 75 days of treatment with INF, with no clinical evidence of limbal stem cell deficiency. After 1 year of monitoring, no signs of CIN recurrences were observed. CONCLUSION: MMC (0.02%), followed by INF-alpha2beta (1 million IU/mL) 4 times a day, is an effective treatment against highly extensive CIN, in cases where surgical resection with safety margins is unfeasible.