Purpose:To determine the visual outcome of cataract surgery in diabetes mellitus with advanced cataract in a tertiary institution in Nigeria.Design:A retrospective case control study conducted at the University College Hospital, Ibadan Nigeria.Subjects:Twenty three consecutive patients with diabetes and 23 age and sex matched non-diabetic control patients who had extracapsular cataract extraction for advanced cataract between 2002-2005.Main outcome:Mean post operative visual acuity and surgical complications.Results:Twenty three patients with diabetes mellitus and 23 non diabetic controls were studied; mean duration of diabetes was 8.1 ± 7.2 years. The mean post operative visual acuity in diabetics was 0.11±0.38, 0.33±0.57 and 0.38±0.49 at one week, two months and six months compared with 0.23±0.19, 0.46±0.37 and 0.48±0.31 in non diabetics. (p=0.207, 0.403 and 0.465 respectively). Improvement in preoperative visual acuity was noted in 84.2% and 90% in diabetics and non-diabetics respectively. Poor visual outcome in diabetics was mainly due to diabetic retinopathy, maculopathy or diabetes related surgical complications.Conclusion:Visual improvement was seen following surgery for advanced cataract in diabetics in this study population. Post operative monitoring for treatment of diabetic retinopathy may enhance visual outcome.

Anterior chamber crystals occur due to severe ocular trauma or chronic inflammation. The affected eye has often suffered irreversible visual loss. Iridescent crystals are rare and they have interesting clinical features which have been reported commonly among Caucasian populations. This condition has never been reported in an African patient. A 21-year-old Nigerian woman presented with a history of trauma to the left eye and subsequent progressive loss of vision. Polychromatic crystals were observed incidentally in the anterior chamber. This is the first report of this unusual clinical condition in an African patient.

Injury to the eyelid is one of the most common emergencies at eye hospitals. Injuries to the eye and its surrounding tissues may result from several types of foreign bodies. The injured eye must be carefully and gently examined to prevent missed injuries and to avoid putting pressure on the globe, which might cause prolapse of intraocular contents. We report an unsightly upper eyelid discharging sinus with wood fragment impaction that was incompletely removed by the first attending physician for a period of eleven months. The wood fragments were carefully and completely removed under local anaesthesia, and debridement and dressing of the wound were done by an ophthalmic plastic surgeon when the patient was eventually referred to the tertiary institution. The need to include basic eye care courses in continued medical education for all general practitioners is advocated to reduce resultant ocular morbidity from such ocular injuries. This will aid this group of physicians in decision-making while providing care to patients with eye injuries.