TY - JOUR
T1 - Retinal changes in visceral leishmaniasis by retinal photography
AU - Maude, Richard James
AU - Ahmed, Bum Wahid
AU - Rahman, Abu Hayat Md Waliur
AU - Rahman, Ridwanur
AU - Majumder, Mohammed Ishaque
AU - Menezes, Darryl Braganza
AU - Abu Sayeed, Abdullah
AU - Hughes, Laura
AU - MacGillivray, Thomas J
AU - Borooah, Shyamanga
AU - Dhillon, Baljean
AU - Dondorp, Arjen M
AU - Faiz, Mohammad Abul
PY - 2014/9/30
Y1 - 2014/9/30
N2 - BACKGROUND: In visceral leishmaniasis (VL), retinal changes have previously been noted but not described in detail and their clinical and pathological significance are unknown. A prospective observational study was undertaken in Mymensingh, Bangladesh aiming to describe in detail visible changes in the retina in unselected patients with VL.METHODS: Patients underwent assessment of visual function, indirect and direct ophthalmoscopy and portable retinal photography. The photographs were assessed by masked observers including assessment for vessel tortuosity using a semi-automated system.RESULTS: 30 patients with VL were enrolled, of whom 6 (20%) had abnormalities. These included 5 with focal retinal whitening, 2 with cotton wool spots, 2 with haemorrhages, as well as increased vessel tortuosity. Visual function was preserved.CONCLUSIONS: These changes suggest a previously unrecognized retinal vasculopathy. An inflammatory aetiology is plausible such as a subclinical retinal vasculitis, possibly with altered local microvascular autoregulation, and warrants further investigation.
AB - BACKGROUND: In visceral leishmaniasis (VL), retinal changes have previously been noted but not described in detail and their clinical and pathological significance are unknown. A prospective observational study was undertaken in Mymensingh, Bangladesh aiming to describe in detail visible changes in the retina in unselected patients with VL.METHODS: Patients underwent assessment of visual function, indirect and direct ophthalmoscopy and portable retinal photography. The photographs were assessed by masked observers including assessment for vessel tortuosity using a semi-automated system.RESULTS: 30 patients with VL were enrolled, of whom 6 (20%) had abnormalities. These included 5 with focal retinal whitening, 2 with cotton wool spots, 2 with haemorrhages, as well as increased vessel tortuosity. Visual function was preserved.CONCLUSIONS: These changes suggest a previously unrecognized retinal vasculopathy. An inflammatory aetiology is plausible such as a subclinical retinal vasculitis, possibly with altered local microvascular autoregulation, and warrants further investigation.
U2 - 10.1186/1471-2334-14-527
DO - 10.1186/1471-2334-14-527
M3 - Article
C2 - 25270641
SN - 1471-2334
VL - 14
SP - 527
JO - BMC Infectious Diseases
JF - BMC Infectious Diseases
IS - 1
ER -