Keratoprosthesis: preoperative prognostic categories.

PURPOSE: Recent advances aimed at preventing and treating complications after keratoprosthesis surgery have improved prognosis, but it has been suspected that various preoperative diagnoses may carry substantially different postoperative outcomes. This article attempts to clarify the ranking of prognostic categories for patients undergoing keratoprosthesis surgery. METHODS: A retrospective review of the outcome in a recent series of 63 patient eyes operated at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary between 1990 and 1997 and followed up for a minimum of 21 months. Anatomic retention of the device and the loss of vision caused by complications were recorded. The patients were divided into four categories according to preoperative cause. RESULTS: Anatomically, one keratoprosthesis extruded spontaneously. Another 10 were permanently removed because of complications. Of the 63 eyes, 10 never achieved a visual acuity of at least 20/200 vision because of preexisting retinal or optic nerve damage. The remaining 53 had a visual acuity of 20/200 to 20/20 as follows: Stevens-Johnson syndrome (n = 7), after 2 years: 33%, after 5 years: 0%; chemical burn (n = 17), after 2 years: 64%, after 5 years: 25%; ocular cicatricial pemphigoid (n = 20), after 2 years: 72%, after 5 years: 43%; graft failure in noncicatrizing conditions (dystrophies, degenerations, or bacterial or viral infections) when a repeat graft was expected to have a poor prognosis (n = 19), after 2 years: 83%, after 5 years: 68%. The difference in outcome between the Stevens-Johnson syndrome outcome group and the graft failure group or the ocular cicatricial pemphigoid group was statistically significant. In the group of 53 eyes, visual acuity was restored to 20/200 to 20/20 for a cumulative total of 138 years. CONCLUSION: Outcome of the keratoprosthesis surgery varied markedly with preoperative diagnosis. Most favorable was graft failures in non-cicatrizing conditions, whereas Stevens-Johnson syndrome was the worst. Ocular cicatricial pemphigoid and chemical burns occupied a middle ground. The difference between the groups seemed to correlate with the degree of past preoperative inflammation.

Effect of topical povidone-iodine versus topical ofloxacin on experimental Staphylococcus keratitis.

PURPOSE: To compare the antibacterial effect of povidone-iodine (PI) with that of ofloxacin in an experimental model of bacterial keratitis. METHODS: Staphyloccocal keratitis was induced in 21 eyes of Dutch Belted rabbits by intrastromal inoculation of approximately 280 organisms of Staphylococcus aureus. Six hours later, the animals were divided in four groups treated topically with saline 0.9%, Betadine 10%, Betadine 0.5% or Ofloxacin 0.3% (2 gtt every 30 min for 8 h). The central 8-mm cornea was excised, washed and homogenized. Colony counts were performed on serial 10-fold dilutions plated on blood and brain infusion agar and incubated overnight. RESULTS: Colony-forming units per cornea were 7.4x10(7) for the saline group compared to 8.2x10(7) for PI 10% (P>0.5), 4.3x10(7) for PI 0.5% (P<0.01) and no organisms for ofloxacin 0.3%. CONCLUSIONS: Betadine 0.5% demonstrates a statistically significant bactericidal effect compared with untreated staphyloccocal keratitis in our experimental model. Ofloxacin has superior antibacterial effect under the conditions studied. Further improvements in the povidone-iodine formulation are warranted prior to consideration for human keratitis.

Innovations in keratoprosthesis: proved and unproved.

Progress in the notoriously slow and difficult field of KPro has gained speed during the last decade, and interest among corneal surgeons has been increasing slowly. Recent advances aimed at preventing complications and treating early complications after KPro surgery have improved the prognosis. In retrospect, several factors have proved critical to this progress. Organic chemistry has given us PMMA--an invaluable material--watery clear and inert. This material may be surpassed in the future, but it has served us well during the last half-century. KPro designs are undoubtedly important, although their role probably has been overstated. Temporary postoperative tissue coverage has proved its value. Antiinflammatory substances are absolutely vital, and enzyme inhibitors show promise. Glaucoma shunts are definitely effective in preventing glaucoma in some (but not all) patients. Finally, frequent follow-ups--more than after most other ocular surgeries--and early repairs of complications are mandatory. With recent resurgence in interest and further developments, the future of KPro surgery should be bright.

Ocular adnexal granulocytic sarcoma as the first sign of acute myelogenous leukemia relapse.

PURPOSE: To report a case of granulocytic sarcoma involving the eyelids and caruncles after bone marrow transplantation. METHODS: Case report. A 30-year-old man with acute myeloid leukemia in remission developed multiple friable eyelid and caruncular lesions in addition to two cutaneous lesions on the chest wall and right axilla approximately 3 months after a successful autologous bone marrow transplant. RESULT: Pathologic examination was consistent with granulocytic sarcoma. CONCLUSION: This condition should be considered in the differential diagnosis of cutaneous or eyelid masses in patients with a history of leukemia.