ABSTRACT
Dacryocystographic examination was performed in two groups of patients: patients having leprosy and those not having leprosy, in order to look for early failure of the facial nerve. The results of this study show that this kind of examination does not improve diagnosis of leprosy.
Subject(s)
Facial Nerve Diseases/diagnosis , Lacrimal Apparatus/diagnostic imaging , Leprosy/diagnosis , Adolescent , Adult , Aged , Contrast Media , Diatrizoate Meglumine , Facial Nerve Diseases/etiology , Female , Humans , Lacrimal Apparatus/physiopathology , Leprosy/complications , Male , Middle Aged , RadiographyABSTRACT
This study is based upon the observation f 363 leprosy patients having different types of the disease. At the time of the examination, we did not have any previous knowledge about the type of leprosy the patients were having. Thus, the eye examination was done without the knowledge of clinical diagnosis. The ocular examination protocol covered the following: visual activity, facial muscle function, eyebrows, eyelashes, lacrimal system, pupil, eye motility, corneal sensitivity, Schirmir's test and study of the anterior segment of the ocular bulb with a slit-lamp. The study patients included 275 cases of lepromatous leprosy, 57 tuberculoid, 29 indeterminate and two dimorphous cases. The age of the patients ranged between 18 and 82 years, and 229 of them were males. Among those patients, 183 were whites, 23 were black and 157 were mulatto.
Subject(s)
Eye Diseases/etiology , Leprosy/complications , Vision Disorders/etiology , Adolescent , Adult , Aged , Aged, 80 and over , Brazil/epidemiology , Conjunctival Diseases/etiology , Conjunctival Diseases/pathology , Corneal Diseases/etiology , Corneal Diseases/pathology , Diagnostic Techniques, Ophthalmological , Eye Diseases/diagnosis , Eye Diseases/epidemiology , Eye Diseases/pathology , Eye Infections, Bacterial/complications , Eyebrows/pathology , Female , Humans , Iris Diseases/etiology , Iris Diseases/pathology , Leprosy/epidemiology , Leprosy/ethnology , Male , Middle Aged , Reflex, Pupillary , Scleral Diseases/etiology , Scleral Diseases/pathology , Vision Disorders/diagnosis , Vision Disorders/epidemiology , Vision Disorders/pathology , Visual AcuityABSTRACT
Histopathological study of the ocular globe of a lepromatous leprosy patient revealed the presence of lepra bacilli in the conjunctiva, sclera, episclera, cornea, iris, ciliary body, vitreous body and retina.