David Meyer

Purpose: To describe ocular surface disorders associated with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Methods: Narrative review. Results: Ocular surface neoplastic conditions, such as Kaposi’s sarcoma, conjunctival lymphoma and ocular squamous cell carcinoma along with blepharitis, dry eye disease, and vernal keratoconjunctivitis, constitute ocular surface complications in HIV-infected individuals. Conclusion: This review will provide a summary of clinical presentations and treatment options for the most common HIV-related ocular surface diseases, indicating the need for a comprehensive ocular examination including ocular surface in all HIV patients 22 Sjo LD , Ralfkiaer E , Prause JU , et al. Increasing incidence of ophthalmic lymphoma in Denmark from 1980 to 2005. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2008;49:3283e8. doi:10.1167/iovs.08-1768. [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar] .

Both infective and neoplastic eyelid and orbital conditions in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infected patients are often the result of opportunistic or co-infections (OI). In most cases, these clinical findings in younger patients alert the physician to suspected underlying HIV infection. When the eyelids and periorbital skin are primarily involved in OI with varicella-zoster virus it is called Herpes Zoster Ophthalmicus. Co-infection with a Pox virus manifests as molluscum contagiosum eruptions. Orbital cellulitis is secondary to various organisms (Mycobacterium tuberculosis, Candida albicans, Aspergillus). Neoplastic disorders are also often associated with OI such as human herpes virus 8 in Kaposi Sarcoma, Epstein–Barr virus in Hodgkin Lymphoma and human papillomavirus 16 and 18 in squamous cell carcinoma. In this review we share our personal clinical experience with HIV disease in Sub-Saharan Africa over more than two decades and provide photographs of cases to illustrate pertinent aspects of the conditions discussed.

Purpose: To evaluate immunoblot (IB) and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to diagnose ocular- and neurosyphilis. Methods: Prospective cross-sectional study. Aqueous humor (AH) and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) samples were tested for treponemal DNA or antibodies to treponemal antigens. Results: Thirteen of 106 cases had positive syphilis serology of which 69.2% were HIV+ (median CD4+ = 181 cells/µL). Four cases met CDC criteria for neurosyphilis (3 confirmed, 1 probable) and 2 additional cases required neurosyphilis treatment according to UpToDate algorithms. All AH and CSF samples tested PCR negative. Five cases were CSF IB+ and 3 cases AH IB+. Using our classification, eight patients had confirmed neurosyphilis, one had probable neurosyphilis, three had confirmed ocular syphilis and nine had probable ocular syphilis. Conclusion: Our findings suggest that IB of AH and CSF provides additional evidence to diagnose ocular and neurosyphilis and allows us to classify them as probable or confirmed.

Purpose: To describe the patterns of uveitis in South Africa. Methods: Prospective cross-sectional study. Results: One hundred and six patients were enrolled and 37.7% had human immune-deficiency virus (HIV) infection. Anterior and panuveitis occurred most frequently. Infectious, non-infectious and idiopathic uveitis were diagnosed in 66.0%, 17.0% and 17.0% of all cases, respectively. Eighty percent of HIV+ cases had infectious uveitis. Overall, intraocular tuberculosis (IOTB), herpetic and syphilitic uveitis were the commonest infectious causes. Sarcoidosis and HLA-B27-associated uveitis were the commonest non-infectious causes. In anterior uveitis, HIV+ cases most frequently had probable IOTB, syphilitic or idiopathic uveitis while HIV- cases had possible IOTB, idiopathic or HLA-B27-associated uveitis. In panuveitis, HIV+ cases mostly had syphilis, probable IOTB, toxoplasma and varicella-zoster virus whereas HIV- cases mostly had possible IOTB, sarcoidosis and idiopathic uveitis. Conclusion: Infectious uveitis is common in South Africa, especially amongst HIV+ patients. Causes of anterior and panuveitis differ between HIV+ and HIV- patients.

Purpose: To use polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and Goldmann-Witmer coefficient (GWC) calculation to diagnose infectious uveitis. Methods: Prospective cross-sectional study. Results: Twenty-seven of 106 patients had positive PCR and/or GWC results on aqueous humor (AH) sampling and 15 of 27 (55.6%) were HIV-positive. Patients with non-anterior uveitis (NAU) were more likely to be HIV+ (p = 0.005). More than 1 possible pathogen was identified in 9 of 27 patients of whom 7 were HIV+. The final clinical diagnosis was discordant with AH findings in 9 of 27 cases. A positive EBV PCR result was associated with a discordant diagnosis (p = 0.001). All cases of herpetic anterior uveitis (42.9% HIV+) tested PCR-/GWC+ while all cases of herpetic NAU tested PCR+/GWC- (83.3% HIV+). All rubella virus cases were PCR+/GWC+. Conclusion: PCR is useful to diagnose herpetic NAU in HIV+ patients while GWC is useful to diagnose herpetic anterior uveitis.

(2017). Authors reply to Letter to the Editor– In Response to: “Smit D, Meyer D, Maritz J, et al. Polymerase Chain Reaction and Goldmann-Witmer Coefficient to Examine the Role of Epstein-Barr Virus in Uveitis”. Ocular Immunology and Inflammation. Ahead of Print.

Purpose: To use polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and Goldmann-Witmer Coefficient (GWC) calculation to search for evidence that Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) causes uveitis. Methods: A prospective cross-sectional study where participants with positive multiplex EBV PCR results were further investigated by: 1) real-time PCR for EBV viral loads (VL) and 2) EBV GWC. Results: Eleven of 106 consecutive uveitis patients (10.4%) had positive multiplex PCR for EBV on aqueous humor sampling and 7/11 (63.6%) were HIV-positive. Only 4/10 (40%) cases had detectable intraocular EBV VLs which were always lower than the blood or plasma VL. EBV GWC was negative in all 10 cases tested. In 9/11 (81.8%) of these cases an alternative, more plausible cause of uveitis was identified. Conclusion: We found no evidence of active intraocular replication or antibody production to prove that EBV caused uveitis in these cases. In most cases an alternative treatable cause of uveitis was identified.

Purpose: To compare QuantiFERON®-TB Gold and tuberculin skin testing as diagnostic tests for intraocular tuberculosis in HIV positive and negative patients.Methods: A prospective study evaluating two different tests to help diagnose intraocular tuberculosis.Results: Thirty-five of 106 patients (33.0%) were diagnosed with intraocular tuberculosis including 11 (31.4%) with HIV infection. Patients were 6.95 times more likely to have intraocular tuberculosis if TST alone was positive (p < 0.001) versus 2.19 times more likely if Quantiferon alone was positive (p = 0.04). Tuberculin skin testing showed superior specificity (60.3% vs 33.3%) (p = 0.001) but similar sensitivity (90.3% vs 85.7%), positive (54.9% vs 40.5%) and negative predictive values (92.1% vs 81.5%) compared to Quantiferon. Specificity did not increase significantly if both skin testing and Quantiferon were positive.Conclusions: In South Africa, with its high HIV burden and limited public health resources, Quantiferon testing should not replace tuberculin skin testing as it provides little additional diagnostic information.