Papilledema and Peripheral Neuropathies.

INTRODUCTION: Papilledema is a common sign in ophthalmology and is typically associated with increased intracranial pressure (ICP) in neurological diseases. Since the beginning of the 20th century, some cases of papilledema have been reported in association with acute or chronic inflammatory neuropathies. CASE REPORT: We describe a 42-year-old man with acute-onset inflammatory polyradiculoneuropathy and bilateral papilledema. CONCLUSIONS: Based on a personal case report and from an extensive review of the medical literature, we identify 2 distinct patterns. First, radiculoneuropathy may be a consequence of intracranial pressure (peripheral nerve involvement corresponding to a "false localizing sign"). Second, papilledema may occur after the onset of inflammatory neuropathy. For such cases, the pathophysiological mechanism remains unknown (eg, reactional inflammatory processes or actions of unknown autoantibodies) and requires further elucidation.

Retinal microvascular alterations related to diabetes assessed by optical coherence tomography angiography: A cross-sectional analysis.

Fluorescein angiography has been so far the gold-standard test to assess diabetic macular ischemia (DMI), a cause of irreversible visual impairment in diabetic patients. The aim of this study was to investigate foveal avascular zone (FAZ) and perifoveal microcirculation changes in eyes with nonproliferative diabetic retinopathy (NPDR) using optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA), a new and noninvasive vascular imaging technique.Cross-sectional study including eyes of diabetic patients with NPDR.All patients underwent medical history, best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) measurement, slit-lamp and fundus examination, multicolor imaging, SD-OCT, and swept-source OCT. OCTA was performed in order to assess macular superficial and deep capillary plexus, and swept-source OCT was performed to evaluate the central choroidal thickness.Fifty-eight eyes of 35 patients with a mean age of 61.8 years (±12.1) with mean HbA1C level of 7.6% (±1.5) were included in this study. Among them, 19 eyes had mild NPDR, 24 eyes had moderate NPDR, and 15 eyes had severe NPDR. There was a significant progression between NPDR stages for FAZ grade (P < 0.0001), surface (P = 0.0036) and perimeter (P = 0.0001), and for superficial capillary plexus nonperfusion index (NPI) (P = 0.0009). Moreover, a significant correlation was found between NPI and BCVA (P = 0.007).OCT angiography is a useful noninvasive tool to explore early phases of diabetic retinopathy, which are not routinely explore with fluorescein angiography and not precisely enough with color photographs. NPI and foveal avascular zone parameters are correlated with glycated hemoglobin in patients with NPDR. If confirmed by further studies, these results could represent a mean to sensibilize diabetic patients to their disease.

Intraventricular Silicone Oil: A Case Report.

Intracranial silicone oil is a rare complication of intraocular endotamponade with silicone oil. We describe a case of intraventricular silicone oil fortuitously observed 38 months after an intraocular tamponade for a complicated retinal detachment in an 82 year-old woman admitted in the Department of Neurology for a stroke. We confirm the migration of silicone oil along the optic nerve. We discuss this rare entity with a review of the few other cases reported in the medical literature. Intraventricular migration of silicone oil after intraocular endotamponade is usually asymptomatic but have to be known of the neurologists and the radiologists because of its differential diagnosis that are intraventricular hemorrhage and tumor.

Association Between Diabetic Macular Edema and Cardiovascular Events in Type 2 Diabetes Patients: A Multicenter Observational Study.

Diabetic macular edema (DME) is the main cause of visual loss associated with diabetes but any association between DME and cardiovascular events is unclear.This study aims to describe the possible association between DME and cardiovascular events in a multicenter cross-sectional study of patients with type 2 diabetes.Two thousand eight hundred seven patients with type 2 diabetes were recruited from diabetes and nephrology clinical institutional centers participating in the DIAB 2 NEPHROGENE study focusing on diabetic complications. DME (presence/absence) and diabetic retinopathy (DR) classification were based on ophthalmological report and/or on 30° color retinal photographs. DR was defined as absent, nonproliferative (background, moderate, or severe) or proliferative. Cardiovascular events were stroke, myocardial infarction, and lower limb amputation.Details regarding associations between DME and cardiovascular events were evaluated.The study included 2807 patients with type 2 diabetes, of whom 355 (12.6%) had DME. DME was significantly and independently associated with patient age, known duration of diabetes, HbA1c, systolic blood pressure, and DR stage. Only the prior history of lower limb amputation was strongly associated with DME in univariate and multivariate analyses, whereas no association was found with regard to myocardial infarction or stroke. Moreover, both major (n = 32) and minor lower limb (n = 96) amputations were similarly associated with DME, with respective odds ratio of 3.7 (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.77-7.74; P = 0.0012) and of 4.29 (95% CI, 2.79-6.61; P < 0.001).DME is strongly and independently associated with lower limb amputation in type 2 diabetic patients.

Intravitreal Ranibizumab in Daily Clinical Practice for Age-Related Macular Degeneration: Treatment of Exudative Age-Related Macular Degeneration in Real Life.

PURPOSE: To describe the anatomical and functional outcomes in patients with exudative age-related macular degeneration (AMD) undergoing ranibizumab therapy in real-life practice. METHODS: This is a retrospective analysis of patients with exudative AMD treated with ranibizumab. Visual acuity (VA) and optic coherence tomography characteristics at baseline and at the end of the follow-up, clinical forms of the disease, delay between diagnosis and treatment as well as the number of follow-up visits and of intravitreal injections were collected. RESULTS: One hundred and seventy-nine patients (220 eyes) were followed up during a mean of 24 months. The mean delay between diagnosis and treatment was 20.3 days (SD ±16.8). VA stabilization was observed in 46.4% of eyes, 21.7% of eyes gained ≥15 ETDRS (Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study) letters and 31.9% lost ≥15 ETDRS letters. The mean central retinal thickness decreased from 380.6 µm at baseline to 295.6 µm at the final examination. A lower baseline VA score was associated with a greater gain of letters (OR 1.04, 95% CI 1.02-1.06; p < 0.001). CONCLUSION: Shortening the delays in diagnosis appears to be a key point in real-life situations.

Relevance of wide-field autofluorescence imaging in Birdshot retinochoroidopathy: descriptive analysis of 76 eyes.

PURPOSE: To study and classify retinal lesions in patients with birdshot disease using wide-field autofluorescence imaging and correlate them according to patients' visual status. METHODS: A multicentre study was carried out on 76 eyes of 39 patients with birdshot disease, analysing colour images and under autofluorescence using the wide-field Optomap(®) imaging system. This was combined with a complete clinical exam and analysis of the macula with OCT. RESULTS: In over 80% of the eyes, a chorioretinal lesion has been observed under autofluorescence with a direct correlation between the extent of the lesion and visual status. The presence of macular hypo-autofluorescence was correlated with a decreased visual acuity, due to the presence of a macular oedema, active clinical inflammation or an epiretinal membrane. The hypo-autofluorescence observed correlated with the duration of the disease and the degree of inflammation in the affected eye, indicating a secondary lesion in the pigment epithelium in relation to the choroid. The pigment epithelium was affected in a diffuse manner, as in almost 50% of the eyes the wider peripheral retina was affected. CONCLUSION: Wide-field autofluorescence imaging could appear to be a useful examination when monitoring patients, to look for areas of macular hypo-autofluorescence responsible for an irreversible loss of vision.

Abnormal retinal thickness in patients with mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer's disease.

In Alzheimer's disease (AD), brain lesions are marked by severe neuronal loss and retinal degeneration was previously mentioned in affected patients. Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) is a clinical syndrome that could be an early phase of AD. In this study, using optical coherence tomography (OCT), the retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) thickness was assessed in patients with mild AD, moderate to severe AD, amnestic MCI and control subjects. The results show that RNFL thickness is statistically reduced in patients with MCI, mild AD or moderate to severe AD compared to controls. In addition, no statistical difference was found between the results in MCI patients and mild AD patients. The RNFL seems to be involved early during the course of amnestic MCI and OCT tests could be carried out in patients with cognitive troubles.