Diagnostic value of culture results from aqueous tap versus vitreous tap in cases of bacterial endophthalmitis

Management and Prognosis of Acute Post-Cataract Surgery Endophthalmitis: A 10-Year Retrospective Analysis in Eastern China

Acute post-cataract surgery endophthalmitis (APSE) is a serious vision-threatening complication of cataract surgery. Analysis of the management and prognosis in cases of APSE may provide better guidance for future treatment. Fifty-six patients (56 eyes) diagnosed with APSE between 2013 and 2022 were retrospectively reviewed. The incidence of APSE rate was 0.020% (95% CI: 0.011-0.029%). Intraocular cultures were positive in 18 (32.1%) cases, with 21 organisms isolated. Coagulase-negative staphylococci was the predominant isolate (12/21; 57.1%). The time from surgery to the onset of endophthalmitis was 7 days (interquartile range: 3-16) in patients with good best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) (≥20/70) and 3 days (interquartile range: 1-8) in those with poor BCVA (<20/70). Multivariate linear regression analysis revealed that initial BCVA (logMAR) (p < 0.001), time from onset to initial intravitreal antibiotics (IVAs) (p < 0.001), and positive culture of highly virulent pathogens (p = 0.018) displayed significantly positive associations with the final BCVA (logMAR). Adjunctive use of intravitreal corticosteroids and systemic antibiotics were unrelated to a favorable final BCVA. In conclusion, the severity of the visual condition at baseline, as well as delayed treatment, are risk factors for poor visual outcomes in APSE.

Consensus and controversies in the science of endophthalmitis management: Basic research and clinical perspectives

Infectious endophthalmitis is a severe intraocular infection caused by bacteria, or less commonly by fungi. It can occur after penetrating eye procedures, trauma, or the spread of infection from contiguous structures or via emboli from distant organs. Because of the time-critical nature of the treatment, endophthalmitis is treated with the clinical diagnosis and modified by the microbiological report of the intraocular contents. The current strategy for managing endophthalmitis relies on pre-clinical literature, case series, and one large multi-center randomized clinical trial on post-cataract surgery endophthalmitis. Culture-susceptibility of the microorganisms from undiluted vitreous guides the definitive treatment in non-responsive cases. Strategies to reduce the incidence of endophthalmitis after penetrating eye procedures have been developed concurrently with refined means of treatment. Despite these advances, outcomes remain poor for many patients. Although consensus articles have been published on managing endophthalmitis, treatment patterns vary, and controversies remain. These include (1) the use of newer methods for early and precise microbiological diagnosis; (2) the choice of intravitreal antibiotics; (3) the need for systemic therapy; (4) early and complete vitrectomy. Here, we review the current consensus and address controversies in diagnosing and managing endophthalmitis. This review is intended to familiarize physicians and ophthalmologists with different aspects of endophthalmitis management to make informed decisions.

Evaluation of the Clinical Course of Endogenous Endophthalmitis

Purpose: To evaluate the presentations, clinical course, treatments, and outcomes of endogenous endophthalmitis cases. Methods: Consecutive medical records from 2016 to 2021 of a county hospital and an academic, private hospital in Dallas, Texas were retrospectively reviewed. This study comprised 37 eyes of 31 patients with endogenous endophthalmitis. Collected data included demographic factors, identifiable risk factors, medical history, presenting symptoms, infectious data, complications, and best-corrected visual acuity (VA) throughout the clinical course. Results: Twenty-two eyes had bacterial endophthalmitis, 7 had fungal endophthalmitis, and 8 had infections that could not be classified. Of the bacterial cases, 5 eyes had panophthalmitis with associated cellulitis. The most common organisms were Staphylococcus aureus, Candida albicans, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The most common presenting symptoms were decreased vision (70%), eye redness (41%), and eye pain (38%). Among all cases, there was no significant difference in the presenting logMAR VA (1.86) before treatment and the most recent logMAR VA (1.75; P = .70) after treatment. However, fungal infections demonstrated better logMAR VA than bacterial infections 6 months after diagnosis (mean logMAR VA, 0.93 vs 2.54, respectively; P = .016) and at most recent follow-up (mean logMAR VA, 0.76 vs 2.3, respectively; P = .004). There was also a strong correlation between presenting VA and most recent VA (r2 = 0.81; P < .01). Conclusions: Visual outcomes of endogenous endophthalmitis cases were poor. Our study found 2 components to be predictive of final VA: (1) whether the infecting organism was bacterial or fungal and (2) a patient's presenting VA.

Erythema nodosum in Behçet's disease in remission: Think COVID-19?

The coronavirus disease has several manifestations related to the activation of the immune system. Because of such activation, autoimmune diseases, including vasculitis, have been reported to occur. Behçet's disease, a variable vessel vasculitis, has been discussed in the context of coronavirus disease. Rarely, the induction of Behçet's disease flare or exacerbation has been reported necessitating aggressive treatment. The presentation of Behçet's disease flares secondary to coronavirus disease is variable, including mucocutaneous lesions and eye or joint involvement. We highlight the case of a 35-year-old woman with pre-existing Behçet's disease in remission on colchicine presenting with new onset erythema nodosum-like lesions on her right shin being diagnosed with coronavirus disease infection a few days after. Despite treatment with systemic corticosteroid, the lesions did not resolve, necessitating the initiation of anti-interleukin-6 therapy.

Rare case of bilateral blindness caused by Streptococcus dysgalactiae spp equisimilis endophthalmitis in the setting of meningitis

Endogenous endophthalmitis (EE) is a rare infectious disease of the intraocular tissues with a major risk of significant visual loss. We describe a case of a female patient who presented with altered mental status and vision loss. The patient was found to have bacteraemia, meningitis and bilateral EE caused by Streptococcus dysgalactiae spp equisimilis The patient was clinically stabilised but continued to demonstrate profound visual loss at 5-month follow-up. To our knowledge, this is the first case report of this organism causing meningitis complicated by EE. Furthermore, this infection may have heralded a diagnosis of cancer.

Clinical Practice Update: Management of Infectious Endophthalmitis After Intravitreal Anti-VEGF Injection

Although infectious endophthalmitis after intravitreal antivascular endothelial growth factor injections is rare, it is the most feared and potentially devastating complication of this procedure. There is no high-level evidence to provide definitive guidance on the management of endophthalmitis occurring after intravitreal injection (IVI). This clinical practice update reviews the published literature regarding post-IVI endophthalmitis and highlights areas in which further research is needed to better guide its management.