Purpose:
COVID-19 infection, its treatment, resultant immunosuppression, and pre-existing comorbidities have made patients vulnerable to secondary infections including mucormycosis. It is important to understand the presentation, temporal sequence, risk factors, and outcomes to undertake measures for prevention and treatment.
Methods:
We conducted a retrospective, interventional study on six consecutive patients with COVID-19 who developed rhino-orbital mucormycosis and were managed at two tertiary ophthalmic referral centers in India between August 1 and December 15, 2020. Diagnosis of mucormycosis was based on clinical features, culture, and histopathology from sinus biopsy. Patients were treated with intravenous liposomal amphotericin B with addition of posaconazole and surgical debridement of necrotic tissue.
Results:
All patients were male, mean age 60.5 ± 12 (46.2–73.9) years, type 2 diabetics with mean blood glucose level of 222.5 ± 144.4 (86–404) mg/dL. Except for one patient who was diagnosed with mucormycosis concurrently with COVID-19, all patients received systemic corticosteroids for the treatment of COVID-19. The mean duration between diagnosis of COVID-19 and development of symptoms of mucor was 15.6 ± 9.6 (3–42) days. All patients underwent endoscopic sinus debridement, whereas two patients required orbital exenteration. At the last follow-up, all six patients were alive, on antifungal therapy.
Conclusion:
Mucormycosis is a life-threatening, opportunistic infection, and patients with moderate to severe COVID-19 are more susceptible to it. Uncontrolled diabetes mellitus and use of corticosteroids increase the risk of invasive fungal infection with mucormycosis which can develop during the course of the illness or as a sequelae. High index of suspicion, early diagnosis, and appropriate management can improve survival.
Sweat gland neoplasms are rare adnexal tumors that pose a diagnostic challenge for both, ophthalmologists and pathologists. Endocrine, mucin producing sweat gland carcinoma (EMPSGC), considered to be analogous to the solid papillary mammary carcinoma is one such tumor. It usually affects elderly, is more frequent in women and has a predilection for skin of the eyelid. Although it has an indolent clinical course, EMPSGC is believed to be a precursor of the invasive mucinous carcinoma and has a potential for local recurrence. We report a series of 10 biopsy-proven EMPSGCs with their immunohistochemical features and review the literature.
TCAT and WFO ablation provided essentially equivalent outcomes after myopic LASIK, with induction of fewer lower order aberrations and higher order aberrations following TCAT ablation. [J Refract Surg. 2017;33(1):6-10.].
Dengue is a mosquito-borne infection endemic in the tropical and subtropical regions of the world. Classic dengue fever is a self-limiting, influenza-like illness transmitted by Aedes aegypti mosquito. Ophthalmic manifestations though rare can involve both the anterior and posterior segments and are usually associated with the thrombocytopenic state. However, ophthalmic complications such as anterior uveitis and vasculitis suggest immune-mediated pathogenesis. Herein, we report a rare case of stromal keratitis and an unusual occurrence of simultaneous bilateral blindness following dengue fever in a young girl.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.