Purpose To evaluate the results of surgical treatment of maculopathy secondary to congenital optic pit anomaly with pars plana vitrectomy (PPV), endolaser to the temporal edge of the optic disc and C3F8 tamponade without internal limiting membrane (ILM) peeling. Patients and methods Thirteen eyes of 12 patients with serous macular detachment and/or macular retinoschisis secondary to congenital optic disc pit (ODP) were included in the study. All eyes underwent PPV, posterior hyaloid removal, endolaser photocoagulation on the temporal margin of the optic disc and 12% C3F8 gas tamponade. Anatomic success and functional outcome determined retrospectively by optical coherence tomography and measurement of best corrected visual acuity (BCVA), respectively were the main outcome parameters. Results Two lines or more improvement in BCVA was obtained in 11 eyes and 6 of these eyes had 20/40 or better BCVA at the final visit. Subretinal or intraretinal fluid was completely resorbed postoperatively in 12 eyes but a little intraretinal fluid persisted in one eye at the 16-month follow-up. Better visual improvement was observed in patients treated by earlier surgical intervention. Conclusion PPV, C3F8 gas tamponade and endolaser to the optic disc margin without ILM peeling may yield favourable results in the treatment of ODP maculopathy.

Maternal preeclampsia was found to be associated with increased ROP development risk in premature infants. ROP was also more severe in infants born to pre-eclamptic mothers. The role of maternal preeclampsia in the occurrence and severity of ROP remains to be elucidated.

BackgroundReconstitution of cytomegalovirus-specific CD3+CD8+ T cells (CMV-CTLs) after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) is necessary to bring cytomegalovirus (CMV) reactivation under control. However, the parameters determining protective CMV-CTL reconstitution remain unclear to date.Design and MethodsIn a prospective tri-center study, CMV-CTL reconstitution was analyzed in the peripheral blood from 278 patients during the year following HSCT using 7 commercially available tetrameric HLA-CMV epitope complexes. All patients included could be monitored with at least CMV-specific tetramer.ResultsCMV-CTL reconstitution was detected in 198 patients (71%) after allogeneic HSCT. Most importantly, reconstitution with 1 CMV-CTL per µl blood between day +50 and day +75 post-HSCT discriminated between patients with and without CMV reactivation in the R+/D+ patient group, independent of the CMV-epitope recognized. In addition, CMV-CTLs expanded more daramtaically in patients experiencing only one CMV-reactivation than those without or those with multiple CMV reactivations. Monitoring using at least 2 tetramers was possible in 63% (n = 176) of the patients. The combinations of particular HLA molecules influenced the numbers of CMV-CTLs detected. The highest CMV-CTL count obtained for an individual tetramer also changed over time in 11% of these patients (n = 19) resulting in higher levels of HLA-B*0801 (IE-1) recognizing CMV-CTLs in 14 patients.ConclusionsOur results indicate that 1 CMV-CTL per µl blood between day +50 to +75 marks the beginning of an immune response against CMV in the R+/D+ group. Detection of CMV-CTL expansion thereafter indicates successful resolution of the CMV reactivation. Thus, sequential monitoring of CMV-CTL reconstitution can be used to predict patients at risk for recurrent CMV reactivation.

Microalbuminuria is a simple, inexpensive, and useful tool for predicting mortality and morbidity in critically ill children in the PICU.

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