Topical Application of Perchlorate: A Toxicity Study in Rats.

PURPOSE: To investigate the ocular safety profile of topical perchlorate as a potential preventive treatment for nasolacrimal obstruction associated with excessive use of radioactive iodine therapy. METHODS: Nine Wistar male rats (18 eyes) were randomly assigned to receive an ocular application (topical eye drop on the OD, 3 times a day for 5 days) consisting of either: 1) sterile saline solution, 2) 30 mg/ml NaClO4 or 3) 30 mg/ml KClO4. The rat eyes were examined daily for corneal cloudiness/clarity, discharge, mucous secretions, conjunctival injection, eyelid erythema, and/or changes in behavior. Seven days after the first dose, the rats were euthanized and OU were harvested, fixed, embedded in paraffin, and stained with H&E and Masson's trichrome using standard techniques. RESULTS: The data collected over the 7 days revealed no behavior changes or ocular complications in any of the 3 study groups. Pathologic analysis of the corneas revealed normal findings on all groups without signs of inflammation, fibrosis, or any other abnormality, and no difference between the treated and control eyes. CONCLUSIONS: The findings of this study suggest that the use of topical perchlorate is safe to use on eyes in high concentrations. The efficacy of this compound in minimizing fibrosis of the nasolacrimal sac and duct warrants further study.

Use of Noncadaveric Human Acellular Dermal Tissue (BellaDerm) in Lower Eyelid Retraction Repair.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the efficacy and longevity of a human-derived, noncadaveric, acellular dermal implant (BellaDerm) as a posterior spacer graft in the correction of lower eyelid retraction, taking into consideration issues associated with the use of acellular dermis such as contraction and potential regression of repairs. METHODS: A prospective, nonrandomized clinical study involving the use of BellaDerm as a posterior spacer graft to correct symptomatic lower eyelid retraction secondary to involutional, cicatricial, and paralytic etiologies. Pre- and postoperative margin reflex distance 2 and inferior scleral show (ISS) were measured for each eyelid, and success was defined as a positive eyelid elevation and decrease in ISS. Long-term stability beyond 12 months was evaluated. Resolution of symptoms and postoperative complications were also documented. RESULTS: Fifteen eyelids of 11 patients were included. All eyes showed an improvement in eyelid elevation and decrease in ISS, both of which were statistically significant. The mean improvement in margin reflex distance 2 for all eyelids was 2.2 mm (p<0.0001). The mean decrease in ISS for all eyelids was 1.7 mm (p<0.0001). The average duration of follow up was 15.6 months. Ten eyelids of seven patients had greater than 12 months of follow up (mean 21.9 months), and this subset was evaluated separately to emphasize longevity of results. In this subset, the mean improvement in margin reflex distance 2 was 2.4 mm (p<0.0001), and the mean decrease in ISS was 1.7 mm (p=0.0003). CONCLUSIONS: Noncadaveric human acellular dermal tissue is efficacious in treating lower eyelid retraction. BellaDerm produced long-term symptomatic relief and stable clinical correction of lower eyelid retraction secondary to multiple etiologies. These findings contradict the thinking that although acellular dermis is an adequate modality for correction of eyelid retraction, results may be compromised by graft resorption and recurrence of symptoms. Improved biological integrity from live donor harvesting or alternate processing techniques may contribute to the success of this particular acellular dermis.

Synchronous verrucous carcinoma and inverted papilloma of the lacrimal sac: case report and clinical update.

Inverted papilloma is a benign epithelial tumor of the nasal cavity. It is known to coexist with malignancy in 5 to 13% of cases, with squamous cell carcinoma being the most common malignancy. Another associated malignancy, one that is extremely rare, is verrucous carcinoma. To the best of our knowledge, no case of verrucous carcinoma occurring alone or in association with another neoplasm has been described in the nasolacrimal system. We report a case of synchronous verrucous carcinoma and inverted papilloma of the lacrimal sac in a 47-year-old man. The patient presented with epiphora, nasal obstruction, swelling of the left medial canthus, and drainage of a foul-smelling fluid from the left nostril. Computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging detected the presence of a large mass occupying the left nasal cavity and sinuses with extension into the nasopharynx. In addition, bony invasion of the anteroinferomedial wall of the left orbit was noted with extension of the tumor into the orbit itself, which resulted in lateral displacement of the left medial rectus muscle. The patient underwent endoscopic debulking of the left sinonasal lesion. Of note, the surgery had to be completed in stages because of excessive blood loss. Histopathologic examination of the intranasal component of the tumor identified it as an inverted papilloma. One month after the intranasal resection, a left dacryocystectomy was performed; histopathologic examination revealed that an invasive verrucous squamous cell carcinoma had arisen within the inverted papilloma.

Prevention and management of lacrimal duct injury.

Due to the proximity of the lacrimal duct and sac to the uncinate process, occult injury to the lacrimal drainage system is common during uncinectomy and maxillary antrostomy. Fortunately, these injuries do not often progress to develop clinical symptoms as most either heal on their own, or drain into the middle meatus. In the event that injury to the lacrimal drainage system does become clinical evident, symptoms will present within the first two weeks following surgery. These symptoms may resolve over the ensuing weeks as the intranasal inflammation resolves. In cases of persistent epiphora, determination of the level of obstruction is critical for proper intervention. This can be achieved with several office-based studies as well as radiographic studies. If the obstruction is in the lacrimal duct, dacryocystorhinostomy is a highly successful surgical procedure. However, complications do occur with inadvertent violation of the orbit and cranial vault the subject of substantial publications while lacrimal duct injury (LDI) following FESS has been relatively neglected.

Primary malignant melanoma of the orbit in an African-American man.

The authors report the third case of primary orbital melanoma in an African American. A 50-year-old black man presented with 1 year of progressive vision loss and swelling of the right lacrimal gland. His presentation, imaging, biopsy, histopathology, and management are presented and the poor prognosis of primary orbital melanoma reviewed.

Fibrin sealant for Müller muscle-conjunctiva resection ptosis repair.

PURPOSE: To determine the safety and efficacy of fibrin sealant for use in Müller muscle-conjunctiva resection ptosis repair. METHODS: This was a retrospective review of a consecutive case series. All patients underwent Müller muscle-conjunctiva resection ptosis repair with fibrin sealant used for wound closure. Surgery was performed in a manner similar to a previously described technique, using fibrin tissue sealant rather that suture for wound closure. Postoperative symmetry was defined as MRD1 of each eyelid within 0.5 mm. RESULTS: Müller muscle-conjunctiva resection ptosis repair with fibrin sealant used for wound closure was performed on 53 eyelids of 33 patients. There were 27 female patients and 6 male patients. Twenty patients underwent bilateral ptosis repair and 13 patients underwent unilateral ptosis repair. Average follow-up was 17 weeks (range, 3 to 45 weeks). Mean preoperative MRD1 was 1.22 mm (range, -1.5 to 2.5 mm) in the right upper eyelid and 1.50 mm (range, 0 to 2 mm) in the left upper eyelid. Mean postoperative MRD1 was 3.11 mm (range, 2 to 4.5 mm) in the right upper eyelid and 3.12 mm (range, 1 to 4.5 mm) in the left upper eyelid. Postoperative symmetry was found in 32 of 33 patients (97%). We found no evidence of keratopathy or other complications attributable to the fibrin sealant. CONCLUSIONS: Müller muscle-conjunctiva resection ptosis repair with fibrin sealant used for wound closure may allow for predictable results with few complications and appears to be an acceptable alternative to traditional suture techniques.

Expression of sodium iodide symporter in the lacrimal drainage system: implication for the mechanism underlying nasolacrimal duct obstruction in I(131)-treated patients.

PURPOSE: Nasolacrimal outflow obstruction has been associated with high-dose (>150 mCi) radioactive iodine (I(131)) treatment. Commonly used for thyroid cancer treatment, I(131) is effectively transported in the targeted tissue by the Na(+)/I symporter (NIS). We hypothesized that NIS is expressed in the lacrimal sac and nasolacrimal duct and that active accumulation of I(131) is responsible for the clinical observations seen in these patients. METHODS: Reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction and immunohistochemical analyses were used to evaluate NIS expression in both archived and fresh human tissues RESULTS: Reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction analysis showed that NIS mRNA is present in the lacrimal sac. Immunohistochemical analysis indicated that NIS protein is expressed in the stratified columnar epithelial cells of the lacrimal sac and nasolacrimal duct. NIS protein was undetectable in the lacrimal gland, Wolfring and Krause glands, conjunctiva, canaliculus, and nasal mucosa. NIS-expressing columnar epithelial cells were absent and fibrosis was evident in the lacrimal sacs from I(131)-treated patients undergoing dacryocystorhinostomy. CONCLUSIONS: NIS is present in the lacrimal sac and nasolacrimal duct of humans, correlating to the anatomic areas of clinical obstruction that develop in patients treated with greater than 150 mCi of I(131). This suggests that NIS may be the vector of radiation-induced injury to the lacrimal system. To our knowledge, this is the first report of any ion transporter in the nasolacrimal outflow system and raises new questions as to the role the lacrimal sac plays in the modification of tears and in lacrimal outflow pathology.

Pediatric canaliculitis and stone formation.

A 5-year-old girl with a remote history of idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura presented with a history of partial nasolacrimal duct obstruction unresolved with standard treatments of probing, irrigation, and lacrimal system intubation. Surgical exploration revealed canaliculitis with dacryolith formation within the inferior canalicular system. After punctoplasty and removal of the dacryoliths, the patient had full resolution of symptoms. Although the diagnosis is uncommon in this age group, it should be included in the differential diagnosis of chronic or recurrent pediatric nasolacrimal obstruction.

Bilateral optic nerve sheath enhancement from giant cell arteritis.

An 83-year-old man presented with acute bilateral visual loss to no light perception (NLP) OD and 20/50 OS. His fundus examination showed moderate bilateral pallid disc edema. A sedimentation rate was 60 mm/h. Magnetic resonance imaging of the brain and orbits with gadolinium revealed marked bilateral enhancement of the optic nerve sheaths and adjacent orbital fat. He underwent biopsies of the optic sheath OD and bilateral temporal arteries. Histopathology of the optic nerve sheath area revealed fibroadipose tissue containing numerous arteries with intimal thickening, and mild mural inflammation consisting predominantly of lymphocyte with occasional giant cells. The bilateral temporal artery biopsies revealed focal disruption of the elastic lamina with rare giant cells. His vision had since stabilized on IV methypdnisolone therapy. The biopsies of the nerve sheath suggest that the radiologic finding of optic nerve sheath enhancement in giant cell arteritis is caused by tbe same pathophysiology, and therefore may be a manifestation of this systemic disease.