Surgically-Induced Necrotizing Scleritis After Scleral Buckling With Stenotrophomonas maltophilia Infection.

Surgically induced necrotizing scleritis (SINS) is a rare inflammatory disease of the sclera that occurs following ocular surgery, specifically pterygium surgery and scleral buckling. Here, we report a case of SINS in a 78-year-old female patient after segmental scleral buckling for rhegmatogenous retinal detachment. The retina was restored after scleral buckling, and the postoperative course was uneventful. However, the patient developed ocular discharge and conjunctival hyperemia, indicating infection, after two months. The sclera became thinner and intraocular inflammation developed after buckle removal. Stenotrophomonas maltophilia was isolated from the ocular discharge, and the patient was treated with antibacterial agents susceptible to the bacteria. However, her symptoms persisted, and corrected visual acuity decreased from 20/25 to 20/1000. Oral steroid treatment was initiated because of the suspicion of SINS. Intraocular inflammation gradually subsided, the thin sclera was covered by conjunctival tissue, and the patient's corrected visual acuity improved to 20/32, which stabilized her condition. Infection with Stenotrophomonas maltophilia after scleral buckling is extremely rare, and SINS development in such cases is unprecedented.

Topical Erythropoietin for Treatment of Scleral Necrosis.

PURPOSE: To investigate the safety and efficacy of topical erythropoietin for the treatment of scleral necrosis. METHODS: This study enrolled eight consecutive patients with scleral necrosis due to previous ocular surgery, rheumatoid arthritis-associated necrotizing anterior scleritis, and thermal and chemical burns. Conventional treatments failed to heal avascular scleral lesions in all eyes. Patients were treated with topical erythropoietin (3000 IU/mL) four times a day. RESULTS: The mean patient age was 37.6 ± 15.5 years. The interval between the development of scleral necrosis and initiation of topical erythropoietin was 25.6 ± 12.0 days. The necrotic sclera completely healed within 31.9 ± 16.9 days in all patients. The avascular lesions did not recur, and there was no evidence of side effects during the study. CONCLUSION: Our results showed that topical erythropoietin could be safely used to manage scleral necrosis. Randomized clinical trials are needed to further explore the efficacy of this intervention in patients with avascular scleral lesions.

Atypical Noninfectious Surgically Induced Necrotizing Scleritis in a Child.

Surgically induced necrotizing scleritis (SINS) is recognized as a rare and vision-threatening complication of ocular surgery. In adults, it has been mostly described after multiple ocular surgical procedures such as pterygium excision, glaucoma, and retinal detachment in the same eye. SINS is relatively less likely with single ocular surgery. It has been postulated that multiple surgeries may result in exposure of an antigen that leads to hypersensitivity reaction. Interestingly, it has also been reported after single strabismus surgery in adults. We present a case of unilateral surgically induced scleral necrosis resulting in complete loss of left inferior rectus muscle and muscle sheath in a child 2 weeks after uneventful bilateral strabismus surgery for hypertropia.

Diffuse anterior and posterior scleritis with multiple iris granular deposits following pterygium excision.

Surgically induced necrotizing scleritis has been reported after several types of ophthalmic surgeries; however, not many cases are reported following pterygium surgery (PS). A 79-year-old woman underwent primary pterygium excision and conjunctival autograft transportation with mitomycin C in her left eye. 18 months postoperatively, diffuse anterior and posterior scleritis was noted; however, scleral necrosis was not apparent. Multiple granular deposits were observed on the surface of the iris. The deposits, aqueous humor, and vitreous were examined. Since there were no signs of infection or malignancy, the patient was diagnosed with scleritis with intraocular inflammation following PS. Necrosis was accompanying at the surgical site in most cases of scleritis following PS. However, the scleral necrosis of the surgical site was not significant in our case. Posterior scleritis associated with PS has never been reported. This is the first report of anterior diffuse scleritis accompanied by posterior scleritis following PS. Abbreviations: PS = pterygium surgery, SINS = surgically induced necrotizing scleritis, MMC = mitomycin C, ANCA = antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody.

Rapid Regression of Scleral Melting Associated with Tumor Necrosis Factor-α in a Case of Surgically Induced Necrotizing Scleritis.

PURPOSE: To report a case with rapid regression of scleral melting associated with tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) in a surgically induced necrotizing scleritis (SINS) patient treated with local steroid therapy. CASE PRESENTATION: An 85-year-old male patient presented with conjunctival tumor in his right eye. Complete resection of the tumor lesion and conjunctival re-construction were performed. Local steroid drops were administered until 1 month after surgery, and a good clinical course was achieved. However, after stopping the local steroid, scleral melting to the uvea occurred on the center of the tumor-resected sclera. After diagnosing SINS, we immediately restarted his local steroid. After 2 weeks, there was a complete and rapid regression of the scleral melting. Following this episode, only local steroid therapy was continued for the treatment of SINS, with no recurrence observed after 6 months. Histopathological analysis revealed the infiltration of inflammatory cells during the acute phase, with TNF-α immune reactivity observed in the center of the melting site near the resected conjunctiva. CONCLUSION: We speculate that the observed changes were associated with the TNF-α that was present during the pathological state of SINS. Local steroid therapy may play a key role in the local immune balance in SINS.

Surgically induced necrotizing scleritis after retinal detachment surgery masquerading as scleral abscess.

Scleral necrosis is a rare occurrence after many ocular procedures. In the absence of infection or use of surgical adjuncts such as antimetabolites or radiation, the necrosis is presumed to be directly related to surgical trauma and is hence termed surgically induced necrotizing scleritis (SINS). A high index of suspicion is required for an early diagnosis of SINS and its differentiation from infective scleritis is important as the treatment modalities of these two related conditions are different. We report a case of SINS at sclerotomy site following 23-gauge transconjunctival retinal detachment surgery that was initially suspected to be a scleral abscess. Prompt recognition and institution of topical and systemic steroid therapy helped in limiting the extent of scleral damage.

Tectonic corneal lamellar grafting for surgically-induced necrotizing scleritis after strabismus surgery: Case report & literature review.

PURPOSE: To report the first case of infectious surgically-induced necrotizing scleritis following strabismus surgery which was treated successfully with a tectonic corneal graft. OBSERVATIONS: We report a case of surgically-induced necrotizing scleritis after strabismus surgery in a 61-year-old gentleman with gout and a subconjunctival abscess. Surgical drainage of the subconjunctival abscess led to a diagnosis of scleral melt which was subsequently treated with a tectonic corneal graft along with aggressive medical management. Over the following eight months, the patient showed no signs of endophthalmitis, graft necrosis, nor graft dehiscence, and serial anterior segment optical coherence tomography imaging demonstrated anatomic stability. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPORTANCE: This case offers further insights into a rare but vision-threatening and potentially life-threatening diagnosis. In conjunction with aggressive local and systemic treatment, tectonic lamellar keratoplasty provides good therapeutic and tectonic results for scleral necrosis after strabismus surgery. This case also demonstrates the importance of screening for associated systemic risk factors in any patient with scleritis for appropriate, targeted therapy.

Surgically Induced Necrotizing Scleritis Following Strabismus Surgery Treated Successfully with Topical N-acetylcysteine in a Child with Congenital Fibrosis of Extraocular Muscles and Varadi Papp Syndrome.

INTRODUCTION: Surgically induced necrotizing scleritis (SINS) is a rare but serious disorder that can develop many years after strabismus surgery. It is generally treated with high-dose steroids or immunosuppression. CASE REPORT: We describe a patient with Varadi Papp syndrome and congenital fibrosis of the extraocular muscles, who developed surgically induced necrotizing scleritis a month after strabismus surgery and was successfully managed by oral vitamin C and topical N-acetylcysteine 10%. DISCUSSION: While SINS is conventionally treated with steroids/immunosuppression, a conservative approach may be tried in milder cases. The role of topical N-acetylcysteine in managing this complication needs to be explored.

The spectrum of postoperative scleral necrosis.

An otherwise healthy 62-year-old woman developed necrotizing scleritis 23 years following pterygium excision with adjunctive beta-radiation. Surgically induced necrotizing scleritis (SINS) was diagnosed, but the scleritis progressed despite anti-inflammatory therapy, and 10 weeks after presentation the patient developed a hypopyon and decreased vision. After cultures revealed no growth at 72 hours, immunosuppressive therapy was escalated, with a subsequent deterioration in the patient's clinical course. Scedosporium superinfection was eventually cultured and found on histological examination of the enucleated globe. In reported cases, infectious scleral necrosis occurs most commonly following pterygium (71.4%) and scleral buckling (97.2%) surgery. Hypopyon is uncommon (10.0%) in patients with postoperative scleral necrosis, but when present is a strong predictor of infection (odds ratio, 21.2; 95% confidence interval, 2.9-157.5). Rates of underlying autoimmune disease are generally low (0.0-12.5%) except following cataract and lens procedures, where the occurence of SINS heralds systemic illness in 42.9% of cases.