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Biomedical subjects

I Rutherford

Publications and source records attributed to I Rutherford.

23 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMedDate not supplied

Acanthamoeba and disinfection of soft contact lenses.

The association between acanthamoeba keratitis and the use of soft contact lenses is firmly established. Despite alerts and warnings, education of eye-care professionals and patients, and identification of risk factors that are associated with the use of soft contact lenses, acanthamoeba keratitis remains a threat. It is presumed that in some cases, the soft contact lens is the vector by which Acanthamoeba is introduced to the cornea. This presumption has spurred concern regarding the efficacy of systems used for the disinfection of soft contact lenses in killing the organism. Many questions have been raised regarding the proficiency of disinfection. These have stemmed from a poor understanding of the interactions among soft contact lenses, soft contact lens paraphernalia, and Acanthamoeba. Another issue to be addressed is the need for standardized testing of the efficacy of contact lens disinfection systems against Acanthamoeba. Only through a concerted and focused effort by eye-care and other concerned health care professionals can these questions be answered.

Acanthamoeba↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Predictive value of serologic tests for syphilis in otology.

Otologic syphilis (luetic inner ear disease) usually is diagnosed by positive serologic tests and by exclusion of other possible causes. Because the FTA-ABS for syphilis is exquisitely sensitive in all but early primary cases, a positive FTA-ABS result and coincident inner ear disease often are thought to be diagnostic of syphilitic inner ear disease. The result is a management dilemma: are there false-positive results in misdiagnosed cases? Over 4 years, the authors performed a prospective study with time-matched controls to determine the predictive value of serologic tests and prevalence of syphilis in otology. Thirty-one cases of otologic syphilis were diagnosed in 5,439 new (different) patients with otologic complaints. In the geographic area studied, this prevalence (570/100,000) was 25-fold greater than that of all reported cases of syphilis in the general population (22.7/100,000). The defined sensitivity of the FTA-ABS (100%) was nearly twofold greater than the measured sensitivity of the rapid plasma reagin (RPR, 55%) in otologic syphilis. Specificities were comparable; therefore, a positive FTA-ABS had higher predictive value than a positive RPR. The prevalence-related predictive value of a positive FTA-ABS (22%) was more than twice that of the RPR (9%) in otology. The predictive value of a positive FTA-ABS in otology was 11-fold greater than that of the FTA-ABS in the general population (2%). Therefore, in suspect cases the FTA-ABS should be used to screen for otologic syphilis in an otologic practice. At a prevalence of 570 cases in 100,000 patients, only 22% of otologic patients with positive FTA-ABS results actually have otologic syphilis. Because disease morbidity can be far worse than treatment morbidity, however, positive results should be considered true-positives to avoid misdiagnosis in potentially infected patients. In suspect cases with positive FTA-ABS, therefore, treatment should be recommended unless specific contraindications exist.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Corneal microsporidioses: characterization and identification.

Two ocular infectious disorders attributed to Microsporidia have been observed. They differ in that one infection involves the corneal stroma leading to corneal ulceration and suppurative keratitis whereas the other infection involves the conjunctival and corneal epithelium. The corneal stromal infection is caused by a binucleated oval spore that is Nosema-like in character. The conjunctival and corneal epithelial infection occurs in HIV-sero-positive individuals and is caused by a spore containing a single nucleus that is a member of the genus Encephalitozoon. Characteristics of these genera and the above-mentioned infections are presented.

Adult↗