Safety Profile of Certolizumab Pegol in Patients with Immune-Mediated Inflammatory Diseases: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Introduction: Certolizumab pegol (CZP), an anti-tumor necrosis factor PEGylated Fab' fragment of a humanized monoclonal antibody, is currently approved for treatment of some immune-mediated inflammatory diseases (IMIDs). To our knowledge, no systematic review and meta-analysis evaluating the overall safety profile of CZP has been performed.

Objective: The objective of this systematic review was to assess the adverse event (AE) patterns of CZP versus a control in patients with IMIDs.

Bilateral Orbital Abscesses After Strabismus Surgery.

Infectious orbital complications after strabismus surgery are rare. Their incidence is estimated to be 1 case per 1,100 surgeries and include preseptal cellulitis, orbital cellulitis, subconjunctival and sub-Tenon's abscesses, myositis, and endophthalmitis. This report describes the case of an otherwise healthy 3-year-old boy who underwent bilateral medial rectus recession and disinsertion of the inferior obliques.

Bilateral internal carotid artery dissection presenting as isolated unilateral Horner syndrome.

A 52-year-old man developed a unilateral Horner syndrome following a skiing accident. He was otherwise asymptomatic. Neuroimaging with magnetic resonance revealed bilateral internal carotid artery dissections, and he was urgently treated with anticoagulation.

Cost-benefit evaluation of homeopathic versus conventional therapy in respiratory diseases.

Methods: A retrospective observational study was conducted on 105 out of 233 patients suffering from chronic respiratory disease attending the Homeopathic Clinic of the Campo di Marte Hospital in Lucca (Tuscany, Italy) between October 1998 and May 2003. We assessed the cost of conventional medicinal products using Anatomic Therapeutic Chemical (ATC) classification, specific for the pathology in question, and the general costs in the year preceding the first appointment at the Homeopathic Clinic vs. the first and second year subsequent to homeopathic treatment.

Smooth nylon foil (SupraFOIL) orbital implants in orbital fractures: a case series of 181 patients.

Purpose: The SupraFOIL smooth nylon foil implant is a polyamide sheet available in varying thicknesses that has been used in orbital reconstruction following trauma. The authors report their experience with smooth nylon foil implants in the repair of orbital fractures.

Methods: A retrospective chart review of patients having undergone repair of orbital fractures between January 1, 1995 and December 31, 2003 was conducted.

Dacryoadenitis caused by methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus.

A healthy 23-year-old man developed swelling of his left upper eyelid, conjunctival chemosis, and ocular motility restriction associated with epiphora and purulent discharge from the lacrimal ductules. Clinical examination, imaging, and culture results disclosed dacryoadenitis caused by community-acquired methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. To our knowledge, this is the first reported case of methicillin-resistant S.

Use of porous polyethylene with embedded titanium in orbital reconstruction: a review of 106 patients.

Purpose: To evaluate our initial experience with a porous polyethylene implant with embedded titanium in orbital reconstruction.

Methods: A retrospective review of the charts was performed for patients receiving at least 1 orbital porous polyethylene implant with embedded titanium from October 2004 through April 2006. Patient demographics, implant type and size, method of fixation, postoperative complications, and length of follow-up were recorded.

Cicatricial ectropion associated with treatment of metastatic colorectal cancer with cetuximab.

Cetuximab is a monoclonal antibody that binds to the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) of cancer cells expressing EGFR and prevents dimerization and downstream cell signaling pathways. It has been shown to prolong survival in patients with metastatic colorectal cancer. Cutaneous toxicity is relatively common because of the inhibition of EGFR of normal epidermal cells.

New corticosteroid-eluting porous polyethylene implant for the management of lower eyelid retraction: a pilot study.

Purpose: Lower eyelid retraction after trauma presents a challenging management problem. We postulated that a porous polyethylene (pPE) eyelid spacer coated with a polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and triamcinolone acetonide (TA) matrix could deliver corticosteroid locally over extended periods and modulate inflammation and scar formation. We designed a pPE corticosteroid-eluting implant and evaluated its characteristics in vitro and in vivo.

Anaesthetic abuse keratopathy as a manifestation of ocular Munchausen's syndrome.

Two patients, both with a history of major depressive disorder, presented with large bilateral corneal epithelial defects and ring-shaped stromal opacities. Both were initially treated unsuccessfully with topical antibiotic therapy for presumed infectious keratitis. One patient eventually admitted to topical anaesthetic abuse.

Effect of 0.5% apraclonidine on ptosis in Horner syndrome.

To demonstrate the effect of apraclonidine on anisocoria and ptosis in Horner syndrome, one drop of 0.5% apraclonidine was instilled in both eyes of 3 patients who presented with acute Horner syndrome, and the effect on ptosis and anisocoria was documented. As reported in the literature, one drop of 0.

Resection of an orbital lymphangioma with the aid of an intralesional liquid polymer.

A 28-year-old man with long-standing right proptosis presented with an extensive multilobulated partially cystic orbital mass thought to be a lymphangioma. Because of concern that excision or debulking of the lesion was likely to be complicated by excessive bleeding, the lesion was injected with a mixture of ethiodized oil (Ethiodol) and cyanoacrylate glue under direct observation. The mixture caused the injected lobules to assume a firm, rubbery texture, allowing them to be excised without bleeding.

Harm in homeopathy: aggravations, adverse drug events or medication errors?

Background: The assessment of harm arising from the use of homeopathic medicine is much discussed, but there is little published data on the subject.

Aim: To study prospectively adverse drug events related to homeopathic medicines.

Setting: The data were gathered between 1 June 2003 and 30 June 2004 during follow-up visits consecutively carried out at the Homeopathic Clinic, Campo di Marte Hospital, Azienda USL 2, Lucca (Italy).

Features of the iridocorneal endothelial syndrome on confocal microscopy.

Purpose: To present a subtle case of iridocorneal endothelial (ICE) syndrome and discuss the utility of in vivo confocal microscopy in the evaluation of this disorder. Previous reports of the confocal microscopic features of ICE syndrome are reviewed.

Methods: A 32-year-old man presented with decreased vision and halos.

Immunotactoid keratopathy: a clinicopathologic case report and a review of reports of corneal involvement in systemic paraproteinemias.

Corneal deposits in association with paraproteinemias have been well described in the ophthalmic literature. Recent reports in the renal literature have described immunotactoid deposition associated with glomerulopathy-organized microtubular deposits of IgGkappa that measured 32-50 nm in diameter on renal biopsies. We present a case of corneal immunotactoid deposition in the setting of chronic lymphocytic leukemia and review previous reports of corneal deposition in the setting of systemic paraproteinemia, highlighting the etiology, differential diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment of corneal involvement.

Head tilt-dependent esotropia associated with trisomy 21.

Objective: To describe a series of patients who used a head tilt to control esotropia.

Design: Retrospective noncomparative case series.

Participants: Seven children with esotropia that decreased with their compensatory abnormal head tilt.

Butterfly-shaped pattern dystrophy: a genetic, clinical, and histopathological report.

Objectives: To identify the disease-causing mutation in a large family segregating dominantly inherited butterfly-shaped pattern dystrophy (BPD) and to describe the microscopic pathological changes observed in a member of this family.

Methods: Seventeen individuals at risk for dominantly inherited BPD in a family were examined and blood samples obtained. Linkage analysis and mutation screening of the human retinal degeneration slow (RDS)/peripherin locus were performed.

Identification and functional consequences of a new mutation (E155G) in the gene for GCAP1 that causes autosomal dominant cone dystrophy.

Mutations in the gene for guanylate cyclase-activating protein-1 (GCAP1) (GUCA1A) have been associated with autosomal dominant cone dystrophy (COD3). In the present study, a severe disease phenotype in a large white family was initially shown to map to chromosome 6p21.1, the location of GUCA1A.

A novel mutation in the ABCR gene in four patients with autosomal recessive Stargardt disease.

Purpose: To identify additional mutations in the ABCR gene and describe the clinical features of four affected siblings with autosomal recessive Stargardt disease.

Methods: A cohort of eight siblings was identified for study. Four of these individuals were diagnosed with Stargardt disease based on clinical evaluation and fluorescein angiography.

Comparison of visual acuity measured with Allen figures and Snellen letters using the B-VAT II monitor.

Objective: Allen figure optotypes commonly are used to measure visual acuity in young children. Children with normal acuity measured with Allen figures sometimes are found to have unsuspected amblyopia that is detected when they are tested with Snellen letters. The correlation between visual acuities measured with these two optotype charts has not been well studied.

Optimization of human endothelial cell attachment to vascular graft polymers.

Endothelial cells (EC) covering the blood-contacting surface of a prosthetic material could potentially enhance the subsequent nonthrombogenicity of the surface. In order to create such a surface, the EC must become attached to the surface, spread and ultimately form a monolayer. In this study we examined several factors that influence these processes.