Teleophthalmology as a Model for Detecting Ocular Diseases in Tribal Areas of a North West State in India.

Background: Lahaul and Spiti district of Himachal Pradesh, a high altitude tribal district, situated at altitudes varying from 10,000 to 15, 000 ft. above mean sea level is cut off from the rest of the country for nearly 6 months due to heavy snowfall in the mountain passes. In the absence of any ophthalmologist and ophthalmic technician, the provision of eye care is virtually absent.

Atypical central retinal artery occlusion: an uncommon cause of retinopathy and visual loss in dermatomyositis.

Several ophthalmic manifestations in patients with dermatomyositis have been described but involvement of the retina is rare. A 39-year-old man diagnosed with dermatomysitis had developed sudden painless visual loss in the left eye. He was non-diabetic and non-hypertensive.

Entrapment and kinetic resolution of stabilized axial and equatorial conformers of spiro-β-lactams.

The facile synthesis of the stabilized axial and equatorial conformers of spiro-β-lactams was achieved via entrapment of cyclohexanone imines (Schiff bases) with acetoxyacetyl chloride in a [2 + 2]-cycloaddition reaction followed by their kinetic resolution. The immobilization of the racemic substrates on an inert solid support significantly reduced the reaction time and improved the enantioselectivity of conformers during kinetic resolution. The mechanism of the formation of the spiro-β-lactams was explored using B3LYP/6-31+G* level quantum chemical calculations.

A new iridoid glycoside from Vitex negundo Linn (Verbenacea).

Five compounds have been isolated from the leaves of Vitex negundo Linn (Verbenacea) and their structures established by spectral analysis. Compound 1 has been identified and characterised as a new iridoid with a novel structure which has never before been reported in literature from Vitex or any other source. Its structure has been established as 1,4a,5,7a-tetrahydro-1-beta-D-glucosyl-7-(3',4'-dihydroxybenzoyloxymethyl)-5-ketocyclopenta[c]pyran-4-carboxylic acid.

Seasonal epidemic of ocular caterpillar hair injuries in the Kangra District of India.

Purpose: To report a rare seasonal occurrence of ocular caterpillar hair injuries (ophthalmia nodosa) in epidemic proportions in the Kangra district of Himachal Pradesh, India.

Methods: 136 patients with pain, redness and a foreign body sensation in their eyes were examined and treated for caterpillar hair injury in a short span of 6 months.

Results: The pattern of corneal abrasions was very useful in indicating the presence and location of the setae.

Use of the free vastus lateralis flap in skull base reconstruction.

Free flaps in skull base reconstruction are indicated for providing an effective separation of the intracranial cavity from the oronasal space, for eliminating a dead space, and for the treatment of established wound complications such as dural exposures and cerebrospinal fluid leaks. Seven patients with cranial base defects underwent reconstructions using a free vastus lateralis muscle flap. In two cases, a vastus lateralis flap was raised to incorporate the anterolateral thigh skin as a myocutaneous flap.

Microsurgical reconstruction of the esophagus using supercharged pedicled jejunum flaps: special indications and pitfalls.

This report outlines a microsurgical technique for total esophageal reconstruction in situations in which conventional methods using stomach or colon are not available. Eleven patients with corrosive injury and one patient following tumor resection underwent total esophageal reconstruction in a two-stage procedure. In the first stage, skin flaps or free jejunal transfers were used for the cervical reconstruction.