Unilateral Cytomegalovirus Retinochoroiditis and Bilateral Cytoid Bodies in a Bisexual Man with the Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome

Pathology of cytomegalovirus retinitis treated with sustained release intravitreal ganciclovir

BACKGROUND

An experimental sustained release intraocular device has been designed to deliver ganciclovir over a long period of time. As part of an efficacy trial, the ganciclovir intraocular device was used to treat cytomegalovirus (CMV) retinitis in patients with acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS).

METHODS

All patients had active CMV retinitis that had progressed despite intravenous ganciclovir therapy. The ganciclovir intraocular device was inserted into the vitreous cavity by making an inferotemporal full-thickness circumferential sclerotomy and anchored to the incision. Intravenous therapy was then discontinued and patients were followed up at 2-week intervals until death. Seven eyes from five patients were obtained 2 to 10 hours postmortem and submitted for histopathologic examination. Light and electron microscopic studies were performed and correlated to the clinical outcome. Follow-up period after device placement ranged from 16 to 82 days (median, 70 days).

RESULTS

All seven eyes showed clinical stabilization of the CMV retinitis. Light microscopy showed varying degrees of retinal atrophy with areas of gliosis. In addition, we observed syncytial megalic cells containing Cowdrey type A inclusions affecting all layers of the retina. Concurrent choroidal infections with Pneumocystis carinii (1) and Mycobacterium avium (2) also were seen. Electron microscopy showed virus particles located mostly at the junction of uninvolved and "healed" retinitis. No evidence of retinal toxic effects or inflammation at the site of ganciclovir intraocular device implant was noted.

CONCLUSION

The ganciclovir intraocular device appeared to be effective in controlling the progression of CMV retinitis. The clinical and pathologic results are similar to those observed in the eyes of patients with intravenously administered ganciclovir. The lack of toxic effects and sustained levels of intravitreal ganciclovir may provide an improved therapeutic method of local treatment of CMV retinitis.

Long-term outpatient treatment of CMV retinitis with ganciclovir in AIDS patients

Cytomegaloviral retinitis was diagnosed in nine eyes of seven patients with acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) on the basis of the characteristic ocular findings and a positive culture for cytomegalovirus (CMV) obtained systemically. Treatment with ganciclovir was begun on a protocol which provided two weeks of inpatient therapy at daily doses of 2.5 to 10 mg/kg followed by outpatient therapy at a reduced dosage three to six days per week. Outpatient maintenance dosage ranged from 15 mg/kg per week to 30 mg/kg per week. In seven eyes of six patients the treatment decreased retinal inflammation and stabilised the margins of the lesions. Six patients have tolerated long term maintenance therapy for 10-30 weeks. Six of seven patients (85%) in this study developed side effects from ganciclovir which required periods of a reduction in dosage or interruption of therapy. The side effects from ganciclovir included neutropenia, thrombocytopenia, drug fever, and neuropathy. Physicians using ganciclovir in AIDS patients must watch for the signs of drug toxicity and adjust treatment accordingly. Ganciclovir appears to be a promising therapy for CMV retinitis, but further work is necessary to determine the best regimen for optimal efficacy with minimal side effects.

Dual infection of retina with human immunodeficiency virus type 1 and cytomegalovirus

We examined retinal tissue from eight human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) seropositive patients with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) or AIDS-related complex for evidence of dual infection with HIV-1 and cytomegalovirus. Culture demonstrated simultaneous infection with HIV-1 and cytomegalovirus in two of 13 retinal specimens. This was confirmed by both immunofluorescence and immunohistochemical staining. Moreover, coinfection of individual cells with cytomegalovirus and HIV-1 was observed by immunohistochemical staining. Infection of retina with cytomegalovirus or HIV-1 alone occurred in one and six of the 13 retinal specimens, respectively. HIV-1 antigens were present on scattered cells in all layers of the retina and on retinal vascular endothelium. HIV-1 was isolated from retinal tissue derived from eyes both with and without gross ocular lesions. Cytomegalovirus antigens were found in all layers of the retina, but not on vascular endothelial cells. The atypically rapid clinical progression of retinitis in one of the patients with dual HIV-1 and cytomegalovirus infection suggests the possibility that interactions between these two viruses may influence retinal disease in patients with AIDS.

Atypical retinitis in patients with the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome

We examined three patients with AIDS who had large, sharply demarcated areas of thinned retina consistent with inactive cytomegalovirus retinitis and who were not treated with ganciclovir. These lesions appeared identical to clinically inactive areas of cytomegalovirus retinitis after effective antiviral treatment. All patients were receiving azidothymidine or ribavirin, or both, which have activity against the human immunodeficiency virus and which may improve immune function. All patients also received oral acyclovir at doses ineffective against cytomegalovirus retinitis.

Viral infections in the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome

The following communication is a tripartite synopsis of the role of viral infection in the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). The first section describes the impact of viral opportunistic infection in AIDS; for each virus, clinical presentation and diagnosis, laboratory diagnostic approaches (with emphasis on electron microscopy), and therapeutic interventions attempted to date are discussed. The second segment explores current theories on the pathogenesis of AIDS, and describes diagnostic and therapeutic approaches to the syndrome itself. The final section catalogues ultrastructural anomalies in the cells of AIDS patients, many of which have been mistakenly identified as etiologic agents.

Uveitis: a strategy for diagnosis

Uveitis may be the first presentation of a wide variety of underlying ocular and systemic diseases. It is important for the ophthalmologist to make a specific diagnosis in order to instigate specific therapy and give an accurate prognosis. The ability to recognise the clinical patterns of uveitis and to initiate appropriate investigations should form the basis of the ophthalmologist's management of the condition. To this end, we have considered uveitis under four major patterns of presentation--anterior uveitis, intermediate uveitis, posterior uveitis, and panuveitis--with subclasses within each of these four groups. We have outlined both the investigations which facilitate diagnosis of the possible underlying causes of inflammation and the interpretation of the results of such investigations.

Ganciclovir for the treatment and suppression of serious infections caused by cytomegalovirus

Ganciclovir is a congener of acyclovir with in vitro activity against cytomegalovirus. Ninety-seven patients with the acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) and a serious cytomegalovirus infection received ganciclovir, 3.0 to 15 mg/kg per day. Viremia cleared during drug therapy in 88 percent of patients. Viral shedding from urine and throat ceased or became inapparent during treatment in 78 percent and 68 percent of patients, respectively. Among patients with cytomegalovirus retinitis, 87 percent of evaluable patients had improvement in (30 of 60) or stabilization (22 of 60) of their disease. However, when the drug was discontinued, progression or recurrence of disease always occurred. Long-term suppressive therapy with ganciclovir, 5.0 mg/kg five to seven times weekly, prevented the recurrence of cytomegalovirus disease (p less than 0.001). The drug was eliminated by renal excretion, and in patients without renal impairment (creatinine clearance rates of more than 60 ml/minute/1.73 m2), ganciclovir has a mean half-life of 4.2 hours. Significant neutropenia and leukopenia occurred in 55 percent and 32 percent of patients, respectively.

Bone-marrow transplantation and toxoplasmic retinochoroiditis

A 33-year-old woman underwent bone-marrow transplantation following radiation and chemotherapy for chronic myelocytic leukemia (CML); immunosuppressive therapy was continued for graft-versus-host disease. Five months after successful transplantation, she developed necrotizing retinitis in both eyes with rapid progression over the following weeks. Due to her immunosuppressed state the patient developed pneumonia and died. Postmortem evaluation of the retinal lesions in both eyes disclosed infection by Toxoplasma gondii, which was also found in the brain and myocardium. Multiple viable toxoplasmic cysts were observed at the transition zone from a necrotic to a normal retina. Additionally, cysts of Toxoplasma gondii a normal retina. Additionally, cysts of Toxoplasma gondii were seen in the adjacent intact retina and in areas of necrosis with almost complete absence of retinal or choroidal inflammation. Toxoplasmosis should therefore be considered along with fungi and viruses in the differential diagnosis of necrotizing retinochoroiditis in immunocompromised patients.

Antiviral therapy for cytomegalovirus retinitis in AIDS with dihydroxy propoxymethyl guanine

Six patients (all male, five homosexual and one bisexual, 23 to 48 years old) with the acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) who had cytomegalovirus retinitis were treated with a new antiviral drug as a part of a prospective open-labeled trial for serious cytomegalovirus infections. The drug, 9-[2-hydroxy-1-(hydroxymethyl)ethoxymethyl] guanine (referred to as dihydroxy propoxymethyl guanine), a new acyclic nucleoside antiviral agent similar in structure to acyclovir, produced positive results. These patients treated with dihydroxy propoxymethyl guanine (2.5 mg/kg of body weight every eight hours) showed regression and often disappearance of the lesions of cytomegalovirus retinitis during and for several weeks after therapy, usually with concomitant resolution of viral shedding. The cytomegalovirus retinitis recurred in four patients (the other two were lost to follow-up), but retreatment usually led to remission. Adverse drug toxicity (reversible granulocytopenia) occurred in two patients.

Bilateral angle-closure glaucoma in association with the acquired immune deficiency syndrome

Two homosexual men, 35 and 42 years old, had bilateral acute angle-closure glaucoma in association with the acquired immune deficiency syndrome. In one patient, the angle-closure attack was the initial manifestation of AIDS. Choroidal effusion with secondary anterior rotation of the ciliary body at the scleral spur appeared to be the pathophysiologic mechanism. Pupillary block, angle crowding, and inflammatory synechial angle closure must be differentiated from anterior rotation of the ciliary body as the mechanism of the angle closure to provide optimal treatment. Whereas primary angle closures are treated with miotics and iridectomy, secondary angle closure may be worsened with this treatment. Cycloplegics and, if necessary, drainage of suprachoroidal fluid may be curative in AIDS-related angle closure associated with a choroidal detachment. Both patients died before the long-term efficacy of this treatment could be assessed.

Acquired immune deficiency syndrome. Pathogenic mechanisms of ocular disease

A gross, light, and electron microscopic study of the eyes from 35 consecutive autopsy cases of the acquired immune deficiency syndrome revealed cotton-wool spots (71% of cases), retinal hemorrhage in areas without cytomegalovirus infection (40%), cytomegalovirus retinitis (34%) with associated retinal detachment, Roth's spots (23%), retinal microaneurysms (20%), papilledema (14%), conjunctival Kaposi's sarcoma (9%), cryptococcal chorioretinitis (6%), Mycobacterium avium-intracellulare in retina and in choroidal granulomas (6%), ischemic maculopathy (6%), bilateral keratitis (3%), and herpes simplex retinitis (3%). Ocular infection with candida or toxoplasmosis were not found in this autopsy series. Immunocytologic studies demonstrated deposition of immunoglobulins in arteriolar walls, consistent with immune complex mediated disease. Ultrastructural studies showed a vasculopathy in the areas near cotton-wool spots. A mechanism is proposed linking the deposition of immune complexes with subsequent small vessel lesions, ischemia, cotton-wool spots and later spread of cytomegalovirus to retina via damaged vascular endothelium.

Ophthalmic involvement in acquired immunodeficiency syndrome

Forty patients with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) were examined for ocular abnormalities. Twenty of these patients died and the eyes were obtained for culture and histopathologic examination. These patients have multiple opportunistic infections and neoplasms as the result of a severe depression of cellular immunity. Fifty percent of all patients with AIDS and 75% of the autopsy group have ocular signs attributable to AIDS. Ocular findings were confined to four major categories: cytomegalovirus retinitis (10 patients), retinal cotton wool spots (11 patients), conjunctival Kaposi's sarcoma (2 patients) and neuro-ophthalmic motility abnormalities (3 patients). Cytomegalovirus retinitis was a significant cause of visual loss. Seven of 40 autopsy eyes had hand motion or worse visual acuity prior to the patients' death because of CMV retinitis. This necrotic retinitis showed minimal inflammation and progressed to involve the entire retina in three to six months, resulting in a gliotic retinal membrane. Therapy with antiviral agents was not effective. Recognizing the ocular signs of AIDS may facilitate the diagnosis. The ophthalmologist also has a major role in the observation of progression or regression of these ocular manifestations, and can assist in the evaluation of therapy in patients with AIDS.