Bilateral, multifocal orbital cysticercosis

Cysticercosis in ophthalmology

Cysticercosis is caused by Taenia solium, a cestode or tapeworm that preferentially affects the subcutaneous tissue, brain, muscle, and the eye. It is traditionally a disease of low socioeconomic regions, but large-scale population migration has made it a matter of global concern. Its ocular invasion is a potentially blinding disease. In the last two decades, there has been considerable discussion of cysticercosis; however, most comes from a limited number of case observations. Thus, to overcome this limitation, we summarize and analyse twenty years of medical literature (from 2000 to 2020) on cysticercosis in ophthalmology.

Disseminated cysticercosis with multiple bilateral orbital cysts

The authors report 2 cases of cysticercosis with widespread involvement of both orbits and subcutaneous tissue and muscles of the head, face, and neck. These cases highlight the severity of orbital involvement in patients with disseminated disease without signs of orbital infection. To the best of our knowledge, such an extensive involvement of both orbits has never been reported.

Unifocal, subconjunctival twin cysticercosis cysts

We report a case of multiple, unifocal, subconjunctival cysticercosis in an 8-year-old boy. Two cysts, each with a scolex, were in the subconjunctival space. They were removed surgically, and histopathologically proven to be Cysticercus cellulosae. This is only the second report of twin cysticercus in the literature, to the best of our knowledge.

Atypical presentations of orbital cysticercosis

We describe three patients with orbital cysticercosis who presented with atypical clinical or radiologic features previously unreported. All three patients had a cyst with a scolex on imaging studies. After 6 weeks of treatment, all three had almost complete resolution of their features.