Acute paraparesis in HIV-infected patient after initiation of highly active antiretroviral therapy

Journal of NeuroVirology - Neurological syndromes occur in around 40–70% of HIV-infected people. Direct central nervous system involvement by the virus usually manifests as HIV encephalitis,...     

Treatment modalities in Duane’s Retraction Syndrome

AIM: To assess the influence of near work, time outdoor and parental myopia on the prevalence of myopia in school children in Aba, Nigeria.METHODS: Primary and secondary school children aged between 8 and 15y were randomly recruited from 12 schools in Aba. Information on family history, near work and outdoor activity was obtained using myopia risk factor questionnaire. Cycloplegic refraction was performed using autorefraction technique. Myopia was defined as spherical equivalent refraction (SER) ≤-0.50 D in the poorer eye. Data were analysed for 1197 (male: 538 and female: 659) children with full relevant data.RESULTS: Risk of developing myopia was positively associated with parental myopia [Odds ratio (OR): 6.80; 95%CI, 2.76-16.74; P<0.001) for one myopic parent and (OR: 9.47; 95%CI, 3.88-23.13; P<0.001) for two myopic parents, longer daily reading hour (OR: 1.21; 95%CI, 1.03-1.42; P<0.020) and less time outdoors (OR: 0.8; 95%CI, 0.74-0.87; P<0.001). CONCLUSION: Parental history of myopia was the most important risk factor associated with myopia. In addition, children with both parents being myopic had increased odds of developing myopia than those with one myopic parent. It is recommended therefore, that children spend more time outdoors as this could reduce the prevalence and progression of myopia.     

Preferred practice patterns for photorefractive keratectomy surgery

Over the past two decades, excimer laser-based refractive surgery procedures have been successfully established for their safety and satisfactory visual outcomes. Surface ablation procedures or photorefractive keratectomy (PRK) are practised commonly for the correction of refractive errors including myopia, astigmatism and hyperopia. Satisfactory visual outcomes are achieved in majority of cases, although a very small percentage have issues related to corneal haze, regression, and its associated visual disturbances. To ensure optimal outcomes and to minimize complications, certain keys to success have been designed on the basis of the current review of literature on surface ablation procedures.     

Discrepant Antibody Testing Results: Which One to Believe?

The impact of solid-phase immunoassay for HLA antibody detection on the field of transplantation has been extremely significant by providing the most sensitive and precise method for characterization of HLA antibodies. However, despite all the benefits, technical limitations and inherent artifacts represent significant challenges, particularly with Luminex-based single-antigen bead (SAB) assay. Discordant results between antibody detection (screening assay) and identification (SAB) is not uncommon. Positive SAB assay in the context of negative screening testing is well documented and attributed to altered tertiary structure of HLA molecules exposing new epitopes or detection of naturally occurring antibodies. However, there are few reports that addressed the opposite scenario when negative SAB appeared in the context of positive screening assay.In such discrepant results, unmissed HLA antibody has to be excluded with certainty by other tests; however, with the availability of variable assays it may be difficult to choose the best combinations that clarify discrepancy without adding more confusion. Here we describe the results of correlation between 2 antibody screening solid-phase immunoassays (LABScreen Mixed using Luminex and FlowPRA Screen) on conventional flow cytometry and compare their outcomes with SAB and crossmatch results.