Treatment of serpiginous choroiditis with sub-tenon triamcinolone in conjunction with systemic steroids case report.

PURPOSE: To report two cases of serpiginous choroiditis which were treated with sub-Tenon's triamcinolone in conjunction with systemic steroids to control acute and chronic disease progression. Increased success of disease remission has been postulated for sub-Tenon's triamcinolone therapy in conjunct with systemic steroids. METHODS: Retrospective chart review of two serpiginous choroiditis patients who presented at an eye center. Both patients received sub-Tenon's triamcinolone and systemic steroids. Visual acuity and disease course are reported. RESULTS: Both cases of serpiginous choroiditis received sub-Tenon's triamcinolone on presentation and were hospitalized for intravenous corticosteroids and systemic work up. The first patient had been on oral corticosteroids before presentation. Both patients reported same day visual improvement after sub-Tenon's triamcinolone was administered. CONCLUSIONS: These two case reports describe unique clinical scenarios in which sub-Tenon's triamcinolone was used in both the acute and chronic phases of serpiginous choroiditis. Local steroid therapy can be a useful adjunctive therapy when systemic steroids are delayed, contraindicated or intolerable.

Endoscopic Pars Plana Vitrectomy in Patients With Open-Globe Injury and Corneal Opacity.

Purpose: To determine the 1-year outcomes of endoscopic pars plana vitrectomy (EPPV) and its impact on the corneal transplantation rate in patients with open-globe injury (OGI) and corneal opacity. Methods: This retrospective cohort study collected data between December 2018 and August 2021. All EPPVs were performed at a level I trauma center. Inclusion criteria were adult patients with a history of OGI complicated by corneal opacification that prevented fundus visualization. The main outcome measures were the rate of successful retinal reattachment, final visual acuity (VA), and number of patients who had penetrating keratoplasty (PKP) within 1 year of the OGI. Results: Ten patients (3 women; 7 men) with a mean age of 63.4 ± 22.7 years (SD) met the inclusion criteria. The indications for EPPV were intraocular foreign bodies in 2 patients, dense vitreous hemorrhage in 3 patients (1 with a retinal tear; 1 with a choroidal hemorrhage), and retinal detachment in 5 patients. The final VA ranged from 20/40 to no light perception. All 4 repaired detachments remained attached after 1 year. Corneal opacity was treated with PKP in 3 patients. Conclusions: Results indicate EPPV can be a useful tool to treat posterior segment pathology in patients with a recent OGI and corneal opacity. EPPV can help address posterior segment disease and postpone corneal transplantation until the visual potential can be fully determined. Larger prospective studies are needed.

An Evaluation of Popular Online Eye Health Products on Amazon Marketplace.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: To investigate popular eye health supplements available on Amazon Marketplace to increase awareness about their efficacy, safety, and the validity of their purported benefits. MATERIALS AND METHODS: An observational quantitative and qualitative analysis of the top 100 eye health products was performed in March 2019. To determine the popular online eye health products on Amazon Marketplace, eight keywords were used for the search: "Eye Health," "Eye Health Supplements," "Eye Health Vitamins," "Retina Vitamins," "Macular Degeneration," "Macular Degeneration Vitamins," "Macular Health," and "Vision Health." The active ingredients, cost, and customer rating were all recorded. RESULTS: No statistically significant association was found between product type and price of the product, number of supplements, average rating, number of customer reviews, or number of verified customer reviews. The average daily cost of the eye health supplements was $0.72 ± $0.55 (range, $0.05 to $2.67). CONCLUSION: This study evaluated popular eye health supplements publicly available on Amazon Marketplace. The findings of this study help both patients and physicians better understand the safety and efficacy of these products so they may make more informed choices when supporting their eye health with commercially available supplements. [Ophthalmic Surg Lasers Imaging Retina 2023; 54(3):147-152.].

Novel Use of Topical Ivermectin for the Prevention of Facial Insect Bites.

Options to prevent facial insect bites while sleeping are limited. Patients may prefer to avoid facial application of potentially neurotoxic insect repellants. Non-toxic “natural” repellants have limited efficacy, and netting may not be well-tolerated. Nightly facial application of 1% topical ivermectin (IVM) cream completely prevented overnight bites in 2 patients, both of whom reported recurrent bites after discontinuation, and a return to complete bite prevention after IVM resumption. Topical IVM may be an alternative facial mosquito bite prevention modality. J Drugs Dermatol. 2022;21(8):906-907. doi:10.36849/JDD.6432.

Post-Biopsy Pneumothorax Incidence in Patients Treated with Biosentry™ Plug Device.

INTRODUCTION: This study aimed to determine if the Biosentry™ Plug Device (BPD), a prophylactic sealant used to prevent pneumothorax after lung biopsies, reduced post-lung biopsy pneumothorax rates, and other complications compared to no device utilization. METHODS: This single institution, retrospective cohort study included patients who received a lung biopsy in the Department of Interventional Radiology from May 1, 2015 to August 31, 2017. Data such as sex, race, ethnicity, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease status, degree of lung bullae if present, smoking status, and use of BPD were recorded. Decisions to use BPD were based on operator preference. A chi squared analysis was used with a p value greater than 0.05 considered significant. RESULTS: The study included 521 patients who underwent a lung biopsy during the study timeframe. Of these, 74 (14.2%) received the BPD, while 447 (85.8%) did not. One-hundred ninety (36.4%) had a pneumothorax within one month of the lung biopsy. Of the total 190 that experienced pneumothorax, 36.7% of non-BPD biopsies resulted in pneumothorax, while 35.1% of BPD biopsies resulted in pneumothorax (p value = 0.7970; degrees of freedom = 1). CONCLUSIONS: These findings indicated that BPD may not reduce pneumothorax incidence nor limit the severity of complications in patients.

Vitamin K2 Awareness in Sun-Protected Patients Supplementing With Vitamin D.

Dermatologists often recommend vitamin D for sun-protected patients. Most patients are not aware of the key role vitamin K2 plays in vitamin D metabolism and do not receive sufficient dietary vitamin K2. A survey of 50 sun-protecting patients shows 4/50 understood the role of vitamin K2 and 1/50 was supplementing vitamin K2. Therefore, counseling on vitamin K2 supplementation may be of benefit to sun-protected dermatology patients. J Drugs Dermatol. 2021;20(2):228-229. doi:10.36849/JDD.5829.