Kenneth P. Cheng

Amniotic membrane in the surgical management of acute toxic epidermal necrolysis

OBJECTIVE To report a new surgical technique to manage severe acute toxic epidermal necrolysis. DESIGN Two interventional case reports. PARTICIPANTS Two patients. Case 1: A 6-year-old boy had severe toxic epidermal necrolysis develop after being treated with trimethoprim and sulfamethoxazole for chronic otitis media. Both eyes and eyelids were affected. He underwent bilateral lysis of symblepharon and all adhesions and bilateral amniotic membrane transplantation to the entire ocular surface except the cornea. Loss of eyelid skin required transplantation of amniotic membrane to all four eyelids and strips of amniotic membrane at the eyelid margins. Case 2: An 8-year-old girl with severe toxic epidermal necrolysis associated with mycoplasma pneumonia had bilateral, diffuse keratoconjunctivitis, diffuse corneal epithelial defects, and bilateral symblepharon. Amniotic membrane transplantation was performed bilaterally, using a symblepharon ring in the left eye. INTERVENTION Amniotic membrane transplantation. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Preservation of normal ocular and eyelid surfaces and prevention of blindness. RESULTS Case 1: Thirty-six months after bilateral ocular surgery, there is no symblepharon, good ocular surface wetting, and an uncorrected bilateral vision of 20/20. Case 2: Amniotic membrane transplantation protected both ocular surfaces and prevented conjunctival contracture without adhesion of the eyelids to the ocular surface. The central vision was preserved. There was minimal peripheral corneal vascularization and mild conjunctival scarring of the tarsal conjunctival surface 34 months postoperatively. CONCLUSIONS These are the first cases of acute toxic epidermal necrolysis treated with amniotic membrane transplantation and the first use of the procedure on external eyelid surfaces with good healing of the eyelids. This new treatment for acute toxic epidermal necrolysis preserves normal ocular and eyelid surfaces and may prevent blindness.

Visual Results after Early Surgical Treatment of Unilateral Con enital Cataracts

The authors reviewed the records of 25 consecutive patients who had been operated on for unilateral congenital cataracts at 1 year of age or younger and who had been followed for a period of 5 years or longer. Excluded were patients who demonstrated retinal and optic nerve anomalies. Five eyes achieved 20/40 or better Snellen visual acuity, 5 eyes achieved 20/50 to 20/100 visual acuity, and 15 eyes had 20/200 or less visual acuity. All patients with visual acuity of 20/40 or better had cataract surgery performed before 17 weeks of age, the critical period, and surgery was scattered within this time frame. For surgery performed between 17 weeks and 1 year of age, the best achieved visual acuity in children with surgically significant unilateral congenital cataracts was between 20/50 and 20/100. There was no correlation between the age at the time of surgery and the attainment of these visual levels in this patient subset.

The Infant Aphakia Treatment Study: Design and Clinical Measures at Enrollment

OBJECTIVE To compare the use of contact lenses and intraocular lenses (IOLs) for the optical correction of unilateral aphakia during infancy. METHODS In a randomized, multicenter (12 sites) clinical trial, 114 infants with unilateral congenital cataracts were assigned to undergo cataract surgery with or without IOL implantation. Children randomized to IOL treatment had their residual refractive error corrected with spectacles. Children randomized to no IOL treatment had their aphakia treated with a contact lens. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Grating acuity at 12 months of age and HOTV visual acuity at 4 1/2 years of age. APPLICATION TO CLINICAL PRACTICE This study should determine whether either treatment for an infant with a visually significant unilateral congenital cataract results in a better visual outcome. RESULTS Enrollment began December 23, 2004, and was completed January 16, 2009. The median age at the time of cataract surgery was 1.8 months. Fifty patients were 4 to 6 weeks of age at the time of enrollment; 32, 7 weeks to 3 months of age; and the remaining 32, more than 3 to less than 7 months of age. Fifty-seven children were randomized to each treatment group. Eyes with cataracts had shorter axial lengths and steeper corneas on average than the fellow eyes. CONCLUSIONS The optimal optical treatment of aphakia in infants is unknown. However, the Infant Aphakia Treatment Study was designed to provide empirical evidence of whether optical treatment with an IOL or a contact lens after unilateral cataract surgery during infancy is associated with a better visual outcome.

Congenital Dacryocele: A Collaborative Review

Fifty-four cases of congenital dacryocele from several medical centers were reviewed retrospectively. There was strong female preponderance (73%) and unilateral involvement (88%). Lacrimal sac contents could be expressed by local massage through the puncta in 21% of cases. Probing and irrigation were done under general (27.8%) or local (55.6%) anesthesia, while in other cases (16.7%), the cyst resolved before intervention. Recurrence of the dacryocele occurred in 10 patients (22%) after probing. Nasal cysts were visualized in six cases. Marsupialization of nasal cysts was necessary in four cases. In one center, after conservative therapy, 80% of cysts resolved spontaneously and 20% developed dacryocystitis. Surgical intervention is indicated in cases of dacryocystitis, cellulitis, breathing difficulty from large nasal cysts, recurrent dacryocele, and lack of its resolution after a short trial of digital massage.

Secondary intraocular lens implantation after cataract surgery in children

PURPOSE To report results of secondary intraocular lens implantation after cataract surgery in children. METHODS We reviewed clinical records for a 5-year period of patients who had cataract surgery in childhood and received a secondary intraocular lens implant. We studied indications for secondary intraocular lens placement; surgical procedures for intraocular lens implantation; preoperative and postoperative visual acuity, refractive error, and binocular status; and complications of the procedure. RESULTS A secondary intraocular lens was placed in 28 eyes of 25 patients who had cataract surgery in childhood. In 20 eyes, the lenses were placed in the ciliary sulcus. The other eight eyes had insufficient capsular support for an intraocular lens; in two, the intraocular lens was placed in the anterior chamber and, in six, in the posterior chamber with suture fixation to the sclera. Twenty of 28 eyes (71%) had measurable improvement in visual acuity; only one eye had a decrease in visual acuity of 2 lines. Fifteen patients (54%) had a final refraction within 1.50 diopters of the fellow eye; 21 (75%) were within 3.00 diopters. During follow-up, two eyes developed glaucoma. One had transient pressure elevation; one required two filtration procedures. Three patients required Nd:YAG capsulotomy. Six patients demonstrated Worth fusion at distance and near; three demonstrated 200 seconds of arc or better stereo visual acuity. CONCLUSION Secondary placement of an intraocular lens in the posterior chamber appears to be a safe, effective alternative for correction of aphakia in the contact lens- or spectacles-intolerant child or young adult.

Visual Recovery in Patients With Optic Neuritis and Visual Loss to No Light Perception

We reviewed the records of 151 patients with optic neuritis examined over an eight-year period. Of these patients, 12 developed visual acuity of no light perception during the first episode of optic neuritis in the affected eye. Eight of the 12 patients recovered visual acuity of 20/40 or better. Of these, five patients had visual acuity of 20/20 or better, one had visual acuity of 20/25, one had visual acuity of 20/30, and one had visual acuity of 20/40. Four of the 12 patients recovered peripheral visual fields but had dense central scotomas and visual acuity of less than 20/400. Dyschromatopsia persisted after visual recovery in 11 of 12 patients.

Stereopsis Results at 4.5 Years of Age in the Infant Aphakia Treatment Study

PURPOSE To determine whether stereopsis of infants treated for monocular cataracts varies with the type of optical correction used. DESIGN Randomized prospective clinical trial. METHODS The Infant Aphakia Treatment Study randomized 114 patients with unilateral cataracts at age 1-7 months to either primary intraocular lens (IOL) or contact lens correction. At 4.5 years of age a masked examiner assessed stereopsis on these patients using 3 different tests: (1) Frisby; (2) Randot Preschool; and (3) Titmus Fly. RESULTS Twenty-eight patients (25%) had a positive response to at least 1 of the stereopsis tests. There was no statistically significant difference in stereopsis between the 2 treatment groups: Frisby (contact lens, 6 [11%]; IOL, 7 [13%]; P = .99), Randot (contact lens, 3 [6%]; IOL, 1 [2%]; P = .62), or Titmus (contact lens, 8 [15%]; IOL, 13 [23%]; P = .34). The median age at surgery for patients with stereopsis was younger than for those without stereopsis (1.2 vs 2.4 months; P = .002). The median visual acuity for patients with stereopsis was better than for those without stereopsis (20/40 vs 20/252; P = .0003). CONCLUSION The type of optical correction did not influence stereopsis outcomes. However, 2 other factors did: age at surgery and visual acuity in the treated eye at age 4.5 years. Early surgery for unilateral congenital cataract and the presence of visual acuity better than or equal to 20/40 appear to be more important than the type of initial optical correction used for the development of stereopsis.

Results following secondary intraocular lens implantation in children.

BACKGROUND Placement of a secondary intraocular lens (IOL) in a child may be considered in children with congenital monocular cataracts who have had complete opacities removed early in life and who later become contact lens intolerant, in eyes that have received trauma which precluded placement of a primary IOL, and in young adults who have bilateral aphakia who become resistant to use of contact lenses or spectacles. METHODS Clinical records of all children in our practice who received a secondary IOL between January 1988 and December 1994 were reviewed. Indications, biometry, type of procedures, preoperative and postoperative acuity, refractive error, binocular status, and complications were studied. RESULTS During the 7-year period, 242 cataract operations were performed. Fifty-nine eyes received a lens implant, and 28 of these were secondary implants. There was a mean interval between the initial cataract operation and the procedure for the secondary implant of 77 months. The mean follow-up was 35 months (range, 3 to 71) for the 28 eyes that received a secondary implant. Two received anterior chamber implants. Eight eyes had insufficient capsular support for an IOL. Six implants were placed in the posterior chamber and required suture fixation to the sclera. Twenty of 28 eyes had a measurable improvement in visual acuity. Only 1 eye had a decrease in visual acuity of 2 lines. Fifteen patients (54%) had a final refraction within 1.50 diopters of the fellow eye, and 75% were within 3.00 diopters. During the follow-up period, 2 eyes developed glaucoma. One had a transient pressure elevation, and the second has required 2 filtration procedures. Three patients required a Nd: YAG capsulotomy. Six patients demonstrated Worth fusion at distance and near, but only 3 patients demonstrated 200 seconds of arc or better stereo acuity. CONCLUSION Placement of contemporary-style, secondary intraocular lenses in children and young adults appears to provide a safe and effective alternative for correction of aphakia in children who become contact lens or spectacle-intolerant.

Aphakic Optical Correction with Intraocular Lenses for Children with Traumatic Cataracts

Two hundred and thirty-eight children, all but one with unilateral traumatic cataracts, were treated by our paediatric ophthalmology group between 1974 and 1988. One hundred and seventeen patients received IOLs, 86 received contact lenses, three received glasses, 14 had epikeratoplasties and 18 patients received no correction because of the marked reduction in vision following the initial trauma. Three designs of IOLs were implanted: 79 iris suture IOLs between 1974 and 1981, followed by 28 anterior chamber and 20 posterior chamber IOLs implemented between 1981 and 1988. The incidence of preoperative complications was 59%. Secondary operations were somewhat more frequent for IOL-containing eyes at 51%, but less than epikeratoplasty eyes at 79% and more than contact lens or glasses rehabilitated eyes at 41 and 33% respectively. Iris-supported IOLs required more secondary surgery, but these were often related to the occurrence of secondary membranes which were routinely opened at a second operation. The visual results were equal for patients receiving contact lens and IOLs even with a skewed case selection. Patients receiving primary IOLs had a better visual result than those patients receiving secondary IOLs because of time lost before the IOL was implanted and before amblyopia therapy was begun. Children over 8 years at the time of injury also achieved far better visual results because of the presence of visual maturity.

Risk factors for complications following pediatric epikeratoplasty

ABSTRACT We studied the prevalence and types of complications that occurred in children treated with epikeratoplasty to identify risk factors. A review of the clinical records of 88 consecutive patients (106 eyes; 114 procedures) revealed that no complications occurred in 58 grafts (54%). Refractive complications (refractive error greater than 3.00 diopters spherical equivalent from emmetropia or astigmatism greater than 3.00 diopters) occurred in 30 eyes (28%). Medical complications occurred in 22 eyes (19%); these included epithelial defects (14 grafts), interface opacities (six grafts), graft vascularization (eight grafts), graft infection (two grafts), graft necrosis (five grafts), graft haziness (four grafts) or opacification (11 grafts), and graft dehiscence (three grafts). Eleven grafts (10%) were removed and five eyes received new grafts. Epikeratoplasty in children will be more successful if risk factors such as patient age less than one year, microcornea, corneal endothelial cell dysfunction, mental retardation, and combining the procedure with cataract surgery are avoided.