A rapidly growing pedunculated pilomatrixoma of the eyelid.

A pilomatrixoma is a benign tumor originating from a hair follicle that most frequently occurs in the head-and-neck region. It usually presents as a subcutaneous, slow-growing, nodular, painless firm mass. There are few reported cases on eyelid pilomatrixoma. We reporting an unusual presentation of a rapidly growing pedunculated eyelid pilomatrixoma in a 29-year-old female patient. Surgical excision was performed, and histological examination showed a cavity containing proliferating cords of basaloid cells differentiated into eosinophilic keratinized shadow cells confirming the pilomatrixoma diagnosis. Only a few cases with pedunculated eyelid masses have been reported in the literature; pedunculated lesions can be misdiagnosed as vascular tumors or malignancies. Therefore, pilomatrixoma should be considered in the differential diagnosis of such a presentation. A complete excisional biopsy of the mass is diagnostic and therapeutic.

Clinical Characteristics and Risk Factors among Patients with Positive COVID-19 Test Admitted to ICU.

Background: Studies that show common characteristics among ICU-admitted patients due to COVID-19 are available on the net, but such studies in Saudi Arabia are limited. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study establishing common comorbidities and risk factors among critically ill patients who tested positive for COVID-19 at the National Guard Hospital from March 2, 2020, to March 20, 2021. The data were obtained from the BEST Care System of King Abdulaziz Medical City, computed, and analyzed using SPSS. Results: Three hundred eighty-five COVID-19 patients admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) were included in this study. The mean age was 60.85 ± 20.46, 60.85% were males, and 39.2% were females. There was statistically significant positive relationship between severity of the symptoms and age (P = 0.002). The mean duration of hospital stay in the sample was 21.85 ± 28.47. More than one-third (37.4%) of cases admitted to the hospital died while about two-thirds of the cases were discharged after complete recovery. Two hundred ninety (75.3%) of the patients who were admitted to the National Guard Health Affairs (Riyadh, Saudi Arabia) had respiratory disease. Two hundred twelve patients (55.1%) had diabetes mellitus, while the number of hypertensive patients was 203 (52.7%). There was a significant positive relation among patients with gastrointestinal tract infection (GIT) risk factors and the severity of the symptoms of COVID-19 (P = 0.000). In addition, there was a strong significant relation between hypertension patients and the severity of the COVID-19 symptoms (P = 0.017). Conclusion: COVID-19 patients who have GIT and hypertension have been found to be at an increased risk of COVID-19 symptom severity. Old age was also found to have an increased risk for COVID-19 symptom severity.

Endoscopic transorbital management of frontal sinus mucocele: a case report and review of the literature.

The frontal sinus is the most common site for paranasal mucoceles, resulting in potentially threatening intraorbital or intracranial complications. Surgical drainage of mucoceles is the mainstay of treatment, which can be achieved usually through open or endoscopic transnasal approaches. Transorbital endoscopic surgery is a relatively novel approach to selective skull base lesions with limited data in the literature. It could be utilized as a safe and effective alternative approach in managing frontal sinus lesions when the endoscopic transnasal access alone is insufficient or inadequate. Here, we present a case of an isolated lateral left frontal mucocele that was managed successfully using an endoscopic transorbital approach alone with complete resolution of symptoms during a 10-month follow-up period.

Invasive sino-orbital aspergillosis with brain invasion in an immunocompetent pregnant patient.

PURPOSE: Invasive Fungal Sinusitis (IFS) is a potentially life-threatening condition that can progress rapidly to the orbit and the brain, especially if it goes on undetected for a long period. We report a case of a 28-year-old pregnant woman in her second trimester with sino-orbital A spergillosis and subsequent brain involvement who tragically developed deterioration of her neurological status and a spontaneous abortion. OBSERVATIONS: The patient presented to the ophthalmology emergency department, King Khaled Eye Specialist Hospital, Riyadh, complaining of left upper eyelid fullness with a palpable eyelid mass and chronic relapsing remitting dull pain for 4 months. Clinical examination was significant for reduced colour vision in the left eye, limited left supraduction, left upper eyelid firm palpable mass, inferior dystopia and proptosis of 4 mm. Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) done without contrast-enhancement due to her pregnancy revealed aggressive infiltrative sinonasal, nasal septum, cribriform plate, orbital, intracranial infiltration with extensive brain edema and midline falcine herniation patterns. Endoscopic endonasal biopsy of the lesions showed septate hyphae branching at acute angles, suggestive of A spergillosis. Her neurological status deteriorated with a spontaneous abortion during admission. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPORTANCE: This case demonstrates that IFS could present only with proptosis, eyelid fullness, chronic pain without external inflammatory signs and should be considered in such presentation even in immunocompetent patients. Early detection and management are crucial. Whether pregnancy presents a relative immune susceptibility to IFS is an issue that needs further in-depth investigation.

Effectiveness of 0.15% hylan A eye drops in ameliorating symptoms of severe dry eye patients in Saudi Arabia.

PURPOSE: The aim of the HYLAN A study was to investigate if symptoms and/or signs of patients suffering from severe dry eye disease (DED) in Saudi Arabia can be improved by substituting individually optimized artificial tear therapy by high molecular weight hyaluronan (HMWHA) eye drops. METHODS: The HYLAN M study, a multicenter prospective randomized open-label study, was performed in 11 centers in eight countries. Patients suffering from severe DED were electronically randomized in two parallel arms. patients with symptoms of at least ocular surface disease index (OSDI) 33 and corneal fluorescein staining (CFS) of at least Oxford grade 3 were included . The patients in the control group continued with their individual optimized therapy as by the time of inclusion. The patients in the hylan A group replaced their individual lubricant eye drops by preservative-free eye drops containing 0.15% hylan A. The total OSDI scores as well as the OSDI subscores for pain and for visual disturbances of each patient at baseline, at 4 weeks, and at 8 weeks of treatment was used to analyse the improvement of symptoms. We focus and report the results obtained at the two study centers in Riyadh ,Saudi Arabia (King Khaled Eye Specialist Hospital and Riyadh Military Hospital). RESULTS: A total of 13 patients were included in the study. The majority of the study participants were middle aged (40-65 years). Overall, female patients accounted for 76.9% of all study participants. At the initiation of the study, both hylan A and control groups had relatively similar total OSDI scores together with pain and vision subscores. At 4-week follow-up, both groups demonstrated a noticeable decrease in all study variables. Nevertheless, the OSDI scores improved significantly in the group of patients treated with hylan A eye drops at 8 weeks, whereas the scores increased in the control group. CONCLUSION: Saudi Arabia has a very high prevalence of patients with severe dry eye disease. Ethnicity, climate, and a high incidence of diabetes mellitus may contribute to this situation. Lubricant eye drops frequently do not provide adequate relief from ocular pain and instable vision in severe chronic ocular surface disease. High molecular weight hyaluronan (HMWHA) eye drops provide superior relief of symptoms of patients suffering from severe DED. This includes ocular pain as well as unstable vision.

Conjunctival Pediatric Follicular Lymphoma: Case Report and Literature Review.

Follicular lymphoma (FL) is the second most commonly reported B-cell lymphoma and accounts for 6% of all orbital lymphomas. FL presentation in the pediatric population is rare. This study reported an 18-year-old male with a pink elevated lesion in the conjunctiva of the left eye and normal ocular parameters. Following a complete excisional biopsy, the lesion was oval and smooth grossly and showed dense proliferation with a high nuclear-cytoplasmic ratio microscopically. Immunohistochemical studies revealed positive CD20 and bcl-6 while bcl-2 was negative, which is a common feature for pediatric FL in contrast to bcl-2 positivity found by immunohistochemistry in FL occurring in adult patient population. No signs of recurrence were observed over 2 years of follow-up. This study adds a new case to the existing few reports. Interestingly, all reported cases were males including the patient, mean duration of onset was 5 months, and mean duration of follow-up was 18.4 months. The authors emphasize that total surgical excision with close monitoring is reasonable management of such clinical entity.Follicular lymphoma (FL) is a rare entity in pediatric patients. Six cases have been reported with conjunctival FL in the literature (age between 6 and 21 years). Interestingly, all of them were male including the patient.

Eyelid molluscum contagiosum presenting as a giant solitary ulcerating mass.

Molluscum contagiosum is a benign viral cutaneous infection. It typically presents as an asymptomatic centrally umbilicated nodule 3-5 mm in diameter. Susceptible patients are children and adults receiving immunosuppressive therapy. We report a case of an eyelid molluscum contagiosum in a 5-year-old boy with no risk factors and a 2-week history of a large localized ulcerating mass of the left upper eyelid. The mass was totally excised, and diagnosis of molluscum contagiosum was confirmed in the histopathology study. Microscopic examination revealed enlarged keratinocytes, and acquired eosinophilic Henderson-Patterson inclusion bodies were also detected. Such ulcerating solitary lesions can be misdiagnosed as infected epidermal cysts, keratoacanthoma, or infected chalazions; therefore, molluscum contagiosum should be considered in the differential diagnosis. Complete excisional biopsy of the mass is diagnostic and curative.

An evidence-based medicine audit of the ophthalmic emergency services unit of King Abdulaziz University Hospital (KAUH).

PURPOSE: To improve the interventions provided for patients presenting with acute ophthalmic conditions to the ophthalmic emergency unit through applying the best available evidences from quality literature for managing such conditions. METHODS: A retrospective cohort study at a tertiary eye care university hospital in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, involving a two-phase audit of diagnosis-intervention was conducted. The first phase was done retrospectively for the duration from April 1 to May 30, 2014, after disseminating the results of the first phase to King Abdulaziz University Hospital ophthalmology department staff, and the second phase was done retrospectively for the duration from November 1 to December 30, 2015. The validity of outcomes was assessed through a literature search using Medline and the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. The participants were masked on the study objectives to avoid Hawthorne's phenomenon (prescribing bias). RESULTS: In the first part of the audit, 73.2% out of 355 interventions were found to be evidence based. There was notable improvement of 80.9% in the number of evidence-based interventions in the second part of the audit. This improvement was statistically significant (p = 0.017). CONCLUSION: Evidence-based medicine audit can be a helpful tool to assess the performance and can lead to quality improve of the provided care by reducing the number of medical errors and refining medical decisions and interventions.

Meibography for eyes with posterior blepharitis.

PURPOSE: To study the effect of posterior blepharitis on meibomian glands using infrared meibography and to correlate the results with tear film parameters. METHODS: This is a prospective cohort study. The study included eyes from two groups: 86 eyes of healthy volunteers' eyes and 72 eyes with posterior blepharitis. Participants were examined, and diagnosis of posterior blepharitis was achieved clinically based on signs of posterior blepharitis. Clinical assessment of dryness was performed including slit lamp examination looking for signs of posterior blepharitis, tear breakup time (TBUT), superficial punctate keratopathy (SPK), Schirmer II test (with anesthesia) and meibum score. Non-contact meibography was performed for both upper and lower eyelids using the meibo-grade system which involved distortion of meibomian gland, shortening and dropout. RESULTS: Lid margin abnormalities (Telangiectasia, lid margin swelling and hyperemia) were all significantly higher in the posterior blepharitis group. SPK, meibum score, meibography dropout, distortion, shortening, and total meibography were all significantly higher in the posterior blepharitis group as well as meibum score (P value < 0.001). TBUT was significantly shorter in the posterior blepharitis group (P value < 0.001). There was no significant difference between the two groups in Schirmer's II test. CONCLUSION: Meibography can be a helpful non-invasive tool for the clinical evaluation of the extent of the anatomical damage in patients having meibomian glands loss due to posterior blepharitis. Knowing the extent of damage in meibomian glands may help in selecting the appropriate treatment modality and expect the response to treatment in patients with posterior blepharitis.

Prevalence of symptoms and risk of sleep apnea in middle-aged Saudi males in primary care.

OBJECTIVE: The prevalence of obstructive sleep apnea OSA has not been assessed in Saudi Arabia. We aimed to assess the prevalence of individuals who were at risk of OSA in a sample of middle-aged Saudi males, using the Berlin questionnaire at primary care settings. METHODS: The study was conducted at King Khalid University and King Fahd National Guard primary health care clinics in Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia between December 2005 and March 2006. Berlin Questionnaire was administered by trained medical students to consecutive Saudi male patients in the age group 30-65 years attending the primary health care clinics, after explaining the procedure of the study. Based on the data collected and defined criteria, patients were stratified into high risk and low risk according to responses. RESULTS: Five hundred and seventy-eight middle-aged Saudi males with a mean age of 45.02 +/- 9.3 year were surveyed in this study. Snoring was present in 52.3%, and breathing pauses more than once per week was noticed in 11.3%. Based on the Berlin questionnaire stratification for risk of OSA, 33.3% were considered as high risk patients for OSA. The occurrence of daytime tiredness >once/week was reported by 35.5%. The prevalence of snoring and risk for OSA is similar to that reported in the US. CONCLUSION: In primary care setting, one in 3 middle-aged Saudi males is at risk for OSA.