Combination management by C-arm fluoroscopy and extraocular muscle severance for penetrating ocular trauma with a retrobulbar foreign body.

We report here the successful removal of a retrobulbar metallic foreign body in a patient with penetrating ocular trauma by a transconjunctival approach and combination management with C-arm fluoroscopy and extraocular muscle severance. A 37-year-old man sustained a penetrating injury to the right eye while using an iron hammer. Initial slitlamp examination revealed a corneoscleral laceration, iridocele, anterior chamber collapse, and a traumatic cataract.

Identification of common secreted factors in human corneal fibroblasts exposed to LPS, poly(I:C), or zymosan.

Infection of the cornea with bacteria, viruses, or fungi can result in corneal ulceration. Corneal stromal cells participate in the immune and inflammatory responses to such infection in part by producing various cytokines and chemokines. The effects of lipopolysaccharide (LPS), polyinosinic-polycytidylic acid [poly(I:C)], and zymosan as surrogates for bacteria, viruses, and fungi, respectively, on the release of cytokines and chemokines from cultured human corneal fibroblasts were examined in order to identify common factors in infectious corneal keratitis.

Immunohistofluorescence analysis of myofibroblast transdifferentiation in human corneas with bullous keratopathy.

Purpose: To detect the transdifferentiation of keratocytes into myofibroblasts in human corneas with bullous keratopathy and to examine the relation of such transdifferentiation to the clinical course of the disease.

Methods: Twenty patients with bullous keratopathy who underwent penetrating keratoplasty were enrolled in the study. Corneal buttons collected during surgery were examined for expression of α-smooth muscle actin (αSMA) by immunoblot analysis and by immunofluorescence analysis of whole-mount preparations.

Inhibition of poly(I:C)-induced matrix metalloproteinase expression in human corneal fibroblasts by triptolide.

Purpose: Triptolide is a major component of the herb Tripterygium wilfordii Hook f, extracts of which are used in traditional Chinese medicine, and it has been found to possess immunosuppressive and anti-inflammatory properties. Viral infection of the cornea can lead to corneal ulceration and perforation as a result of collagen degradation in the corneal stroma. We have now examined the effect of triptolide on the expression of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) induced by polyinosinic-polycytidylic acid [poly(I:C)], a synthetic analog of viral double-stranded RNA, in cultured human corneal fibroblasts.

Release of interleukins 6 and 8 induced by zymosan and mediated by MAP kinase and NF-kappaB signaling pathways in human corneal fibroblasts.

Purpose: Zymosan is derived from the cell wall of yeast and induces immune responses associated with fungal infection. The effects of zymosan on the expression of proinflammatory cytokines, chemokines, and adhesion molecules and on the activity of signaling pathways were examined in cultured human corneal fibroblasts.

Methods: Release of the proinflammatory cytokines interleukin (IL)-6, IL-1beta, and IL-12 and of the chemokines IL-8, IP-10, and RANTES was measured with enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays.

Upregulation of ZO-1 in cultured human corneal epithelial cells by a peptide (PHSRN) corresponding to the second cell-binding site of fibronectin.

Purpose: To investigate the effect of a peptide (PHSRN) corresponding to the second cell-binding site of fibronectin on the expression of ZO-1 in cultured human corneal epithelial (HCE) cells.

Methods: The effects of the PHSRN peptide on the expression of ZO-1, -2, and -3; claudin; and occludin were determined by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), immunoblot, and immunofluorescence analyses. Phosphorylation of mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) and the transcription factor c-Jun was assessed with a multiplex analysis system and immunoblot analysis.

Two cases of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus keratitis after Epi-LASIK.

Background: We describe two severe cases of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) keratitis following Epi-LASIK surgery.

Cases: One patient was a 23-year-old man who underwent Epi-LASIK surgery in both eyes. He developed an infectious corneal ulcer in one eye 2 days after surgery and was referred to us 7 days post-surgery with corneal perforation, for which we performed therapeutic penetrating keratoplasty.