Reversal of visual loss with hyperbaric oxygen treatment in a patient with Susac syndrome.

PURPOSE: The purpose of the study is to report on a 34-year-old woman with Susac syndrome who presented on two separate occasions with visual acuity loss from a recurrent branch retinal artery occlusion and underwent hyperbaric oxygen treatment with favorable outcome. METHODS: Visual acuity was 20/400 in the left eye and count fingers in the right eye after separate occlusive events. The patient underwent hyperbaric oxygen treatment on each occasion of visual acuity loss. The patient subsequently was diagnosed with Susac syndrome (microangiopathy of the retina, brain, and middle ear). The authors present visual fields, photographs, angiograms, and ancillary tests documenting diagnosis and course of treatment. RESULTS: On each occasion, visual acuity improved to 20/25 during and was maintained after hyperbaric oxygen treatment. Visual fields showed improvement immediately after treatment. CONCLUSION: This is the first report of hyperbaric oxygen treatment for Susac syndrome. Dramatic post-treatment visual field and acuity changes suggest benefit of treatment. Hyperbaric oxygen treatment can be considered a treatment option for visual complications of this syndrome. Susac syndrome should be included in the differential diagnosis of recurrent branch retinal artery occlusion.

[Esophageal prostheses in cancer stenosis. Insertion with the Dumon-Gilliard device. 342 patients]. / Prothèses oesophagiennes dans les sténoses cancéreuses. Mise en place avec l'appareil de Dumon-Gilliard. 342 malades.

Endoscopic placement of an oesophageal prosthesis rapidly brings a satisfactory comfort to patients with cancer of the oesophagus beyond the therapeutic stage. When the least traumatic technique and materiel are used, the procedure is simple and safe, irrespective of the patient's general condition and the extent of local or regional lesions. The present possibility to insert, at the same time, a tracheobronchial prosthesis broadens the indication to patients who have an oesophagus-airway fistula or who suffer from compression of the trachea or the left bronchus. The procedure is performed under general anaesthesia at the expense of a short hospital stay which is always appreciated by this type of patients. The author's 10-year experience of oesophageal prosthesis placement with the Dumon-Gilliard applicator, is reported.