Large Choroidal Melanocytoma Simulating Choroidal Melanoma: A Difficult Differential Diagnosis and an Inevitable Enucleation.

PURPOSE: To describe a case of choroidal melanocytoma mimicking a melanoma. METHODS: Retrospective case report. Patient. A 48-year-old Moroccan woman presented with progressive, painless decreased vision in her left eye for 2 months. RESULTS: Her visual acuity was light perception in the left eye and 20/20 in the right one. Fundus examination and fluorescein angiography of the left eye showed a total retinal detachment with a large superior brownish mass. The clinical examination, B-scan ultrasonography, and magnetic resonance imaging all suggested a malignant melanoma. Consequently, the eye was enucleated. The histopathology later revealed a benign melanocytoma of the choroid. Discussion. Melanocytoma is a rare benign pigmented tumor. It is classically described as a tumor of the optic nerve head, but there are some exceptional case reports of uveal tract locations (iris, ciliary body, and choroid). In such cases, it can be difficult to clinically differentiate a melanocytoma from a malignant melanoma.

[Keratoconjunctivitis photoelectrica (arc eye)]. / Photokératoconjonctivite par coup d'arc.

Photokeratitis is a painful keratitis caused by exposure of insufficiently protected eyes to the ultraviolet (UV) rays. We talk about "arc eye" when photokeratitis is caused by UV rays emitted by electric arc during electric arc welding process. We here report the case of a 35-year old rider, with no previous medical-surgical history, who had looked at an electric arc for a few minutes while the doors of his building were welded. He had bilateral burning in his eyes associated with lacrimation, photophobia and blepharospasm. Clinical examination showed corrected visual acuity of 8/10 and 9/10, conjunctival hyperemia with punctate erosive keratitis limited to palpebral fissure after the use of fluorescein. Given patient's clinical picture, keratoconjunctivitis photoelectrica (arc eye) was diagnosed. Treatment was based on topical antibiotics, wetting agents as well as agents with healing properties. Outcome was marked by total disappearance of the signs with restoration of bilateral visual acuity (10/10). This study highlights the role of prevention using appropriate protection equipment.

To What Extent Can Orbital Cellulitis Emergency Aspect Influence the Diagnosis of Maxillary Sinus Lymphoma?

We present a case of a 46-year-old woman admitted to the emergency department for acute swelling and erythema of the right eyelid for 3 days. Ophthalmological examination was notable for 10/10, P2 best visual acuity, and inflammatory periorbital edema, without exophthalmia nor extraocular motility disturbance. Intraocular pressure was 14 mmHg and fundoscopic examination was not notable for any abnormality. Preseptal cellulitis diagnosis was made, and oral antibiotherapy was immediately started; after 72 hours, the patient did not improve and started complaining of pain on ocular movements. Brain and orbit MRI scan revealed right retroseptal cellulitis associated with homolateral pansinusitis. Intravenous antibiotherapy with oral corticosteroid was started simultaneously leading to full remission but with steroid dependency; 5 days after finishing prednisone, orbital cellulitis symptoms reappeared. The same treatment protocol was given but with corticosteroid tapering over weeks. Nevertheless, steroid dependency persisted. Except for the inflammatory syndrome, complete biological examinations did not disclose any abnormalities. The patient underwent maxillary sinus and fat orbital biopsy; however, histopathological examination was not contributory. Persistence of steroid dependency, chronic atypical rhinosinusitis, normal paraclinical investigations, and age of patient let us suspect lymphoma origin hidden by chronic corticosteroid. We carried out for the second time a maxillary sinus biopsy after stopping steroids, which disclosed primitive non-Hodgkin lymphoma of the maxillary sinus. The aim of this observation is firstly to evoke though it is exceptional the diagnosis of maxillary lymphoma in case of atypical orbital cellulitis and secondly to incite clinicians to be more vigilant in prescribing corticosteroid even if there is an emergency character of orbital cellulitis.

Œdème papillaire isolé révélant une sarcoïdose oculaire: Isolated papillary edema revealing ocular sarcoidosis.

Sarcoidosis is a multisystem granulomatous disorders of unknown cause, characterised by the presence of epithelioid granulomas and giant-cell granulomas without caseous necrosis. Ocular sarcoidosis mainly manifests as bilateral anterior granulomatous uveitis. The involvement of the posterior segment in patients with ocular sarcoidosis is rare and manifests as periphlebitis or choroidal invasion. Isolated papillary edema is uncommon; hence the peculiarity of our case study. Posterior involvement is a prognostic indicator of poor outcome, threatening visual acuity. Early management, in close cooperation with pneumologists and based on systemic corticosteroid therapy, improves visual outcome and reduces complications.

Unusual etiology of bilateral acute visual impairment: Optochiasmatic cavernoma haemorrhage.

Optochiasmatic cavernoma haemorrhage is unusual etiology of bilateral acute visual impairment. This vascular hamartoma is extremely rare with a prevalence rate of 0.4-0.9% of the general population. They are frequently revealed by an optochiasmal apoplexy. We present the case of a 38 year old woman admitted to the emergency department for bilateral acute visual impairment, associated with frontal headaches. A brain MRI led to the diagnosis of an optochiasmatic cavernoma haemorrhage. Because of the rareness, and the lack of knowledge regarding the natural history of this lesion, surgical resection is the preferred management option in most reported cases. However after clear and detailed explanations of the surgical procedure as well as the risk of visual loss our patient refused to undergo any interventions. So our attitude was to carry out a close follow-up. After one year the visual evolution was satisfactory, no clinical worsening has been noticed and the MRIs examinations showed the same aspect with the same size. The aim of this observation is to evoke the diagnosis of an optochiasmatic cavernoma haemorrhage in case of acute chiasmal compression syndrome within patients in the third and fourth decades.

Direct carotid-cavernous fistula: an atypical presentation.

Posttraumatic carotid-cavernous fistula (CCF) is a very rare complication that can occur in patients with craniomaxillofacial trauma. It is defined by abnormal communication between arteries and veins located in the cavernous sinus. CCFs can be divided into two groups: direct, which are usually post traumatic and classically with a high flow and acute onset of symptoms. On the other hand, indirect CCFs are in the most of cases idiopathic and typically insidious of onset. The aim of the present case report is to describe an atypical presentation of direct CCF characterized by the insidious onset of symptoms with the goal to think about this rare complication and so not to delay the treatment which is an emergency in this case.

[Fortuitous detection of composite heterozygous S/C sickle cell disease]. / Découverte fortuite d'une drépanocytose hétérozygote composite S/C.

Composite S/C sickle cell disease accounts for 20%-30% of major sickle cell syndromes. We report a case of fortuitous detection of composite heterozygous S/C sickle cell disease in the context of retinal detachment. The patient had been hospitalized in the Department of Ophthalmology for treatment-resistant decreased visual acuity detected 06 months before. The patient's clinical history was marked by total hip replacement (THR) twelve years before. Our study highlights the wide clinical variability of sickle cell disease underlying the importance of early screening and adapted clinical monitoring of patients at-risk, in order to avoid its evolution toward irreversible organic sequelae such as sickle cell retinopathy.

[Ocular Behçet]. / Behçet oculaire.

Our study aimed to determine the clinical, therapeutic and prognostic features of ocular involvement in patients with Behçet's disease treated in our Department of ophthalmology. We conducted a retrospective data collection from medical records of 20 patients treated at the military hospital in Laayoune. All patients underwent complete ophthalmological examination and fluorescein angiography if necessary. OCT exam was performed in two patients. Ten patients had anterior uveitis, complicated in one case by ocular hypertonia; two patients had intermediate uveitis; eight patients had posterior segment involvement complicated in one case by intravitreal hemorrhage. Behcet's Disease (BD) is an systemic idiopathic inflammatory disease currently classified within primary non-necrotizing vasculitis. Ocular involvement is common and severe in Behçet's disease, with the potential to compromise the visual prognosis. Behcet's disease is common in Morocco. It can compromise patient's visual prognosis making the collaboration between ophthalmologists and internists particularly important.

[Epidemiologic profile of uveitis: about 105 cases]. / Profil épidémiologique des uvéites: à propos de 105 cas.

The multiplicity of causes of uveitis makes diagnosis difficult. Determining epidemiological factors associated with uveitis allows better diagnostic orientation and facilitates therapeutic management. This is a retrospective study spanning four years from January 2012 to December 2015. We collected 105 cases with uveitis and studied its epidemiological, clinical and etiological aspects. The average age was 42 years, the most affected age group was 40-50 years. Men were more affected (57.14%) than women (42.86%). Uveitis was unilateral in 60.95% of cases. Anterior uveitis was found in 35.24%, intermediate uveitis in 5.71%, posterior uveitis in 10.48% and panuveitis in 48.57%. Etiologies were dominated by Behçet's disease, sarcoidosis and Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada disease. The origin remained unknown in 43.81% of cases. The evolution was variable. Uveitis is an intraocular inflammation which may represent a real threat to vision. The approach to discover its cause needs to be codified and based on several steps. Our results are relatively close to those found in the literature. Uveitis is a clinical entity where ophthalmology and internal medicine meet. The field of its causes and investigations for the diagnosis is extensive or even unlimited. This study highlighted the clinical challenges and emphasized the limitations of our clinical training in the management of uveitis.

Orbital Metastatic Angiosarcoma

We report a case of a 48-year-old man who developed metastatic angiosarcoma in her left orbit. A 48-year-old man was first sent to us for a check up of proptosis of the left eye. A left orbital tumor was recognized on orbital computed tomography scans. The open biopsy showed angiosarcoma. Chest X-ray films and thoracic computed tomography showed an abnormal mass in the left inferior lung field. Angiosarcoma was confirmed by transbronchial lung biopsy. In summary, we believed that the orbital tumour was an initial symptom of the metastasis ensuing from the lung angiosarcoma.