[Transpupillary thermotherapy in the primary management of choroidal melanoma].

Objective: To determine if primary transpupillary thermotherapy can achieve local remission of choroidal melanoma. Secondary objectives were to determine safety of treatment, visual acuity and evaluate complications. The long term objective was to evaluate the impact of treatment on survival without metastatic disease.

[Posterior uveal pseudomelanoma. Clinical differential diagnosis at the referral hospital].

Purpose: To determine the rate of patients referred with diagnosis of posterior uveal melanoma to a referral hospital for such disease who were excluded for such diagnosis resting on clinical approach. To determine which are the most frequent corrected diagnosis.

Methods: Retrospective review of clinical histories of patients referred to the Department of Ophthalmology of Hospital Universitario Clínica Puerta de Hierro from January 1983 through April 1998 with clinical diagnosis of posterior uveal melanoma.

[Risk factors of small choroidal melanocytic lesions].

Purpose: To detect the possible predictive factors of tumor spread or future growth of the small choroidal melanocytic lesions.

Methods: Retrospective review of the clinical medical histories of fourteen patients with small choroidal melanocytic lesions --< or =3mm in thickness-, which due to these features could be confused with choroidal nevus. Few clinical parameters are assessed: tumor thickness, posterior tumor margin touching the optic disc, symptoms and documented tumor growth as main prognostic features.

[Vasoproliferative tumors of the ocular fundus].

Purpose: To establish the differential diagnosis from choroidal melanoma and other malignant tumors.

Methods: We report 5 patients with vasoproliferative tumors studied in our Hospital since 1993; diagnosis was mainly based on clinic appearance of the lesions. Each patient had undergone indirect ophthalmoscopy and ocular echography.