Retinal findings and characteristics in AIDS patients with systemic Mycobacterium avium-intracellulare complex and toxoplasmic encephalitis.

Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1997. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.

Retinal findings and characteristics in AIDS patients with systemic Mycobacterium avium-intracellulare complex and toxoplasmic encephalitis.

Ophthalmic Surg Lasers. 1997 Jan;28(1):50-4. Unique Identifier : AIDSLINE MED/97183166
Arevalo JF; Quiceno JI; Garcia RF; McCutchan JA; Munguia D; Nelson JA; Freeman WR; Department of Ophthalmology, Shiley Eye Center, La Jolia, CA; 92093-0946, USA.

Abstract: BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the incidence and characteristics of retinal and choroidal manifestations of toxoplasmosis and/or Mycobacterium avium-intracellulare complex (MAC) in patients with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). PATIENTS AND METHODS: The authors analyzed their prospectively collected data and found 120 patients with new retinal lesions (group A) that were diagnosed 3 months or longer following the diagnosis of MAC and/or toxoplasmic encephalitis. The authors also performed a point prevalence study of retinal/choroidal findings in 25 consecutive AIDS patients (group B) without known eye disease who had been recently treated for toxoplasmic encephalitis and/or disseminated MAC infections. In addition, the characteristics of retinochoroidal toxoplasmosis scars in 5 AIDS patients were studied and compared with the characteristics of scars in 18 immunocompetent patients. RESULTS: In this study the incidence of ocular manifestations of MAC was zero (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.0% to 3.8%). Two of 25 patients (8%) (95% CI 1% to 26%) in group A and 2 of 11 patients (18.1%) (95% CI 3.3% to 51.8%) in group B had toxoplasmic retinochoroiditis. CONCLUSION: In AIDS patients, ocular manifestations of toxoplasmosis are more common than ocular MAC. In addition, when compared with immunocompetent patients, AIDS patients tend to have retinochoroidal scars with less retinal pigment epithelium hyperplasia (1.8+ vs 3+) (P = 03).

Keywords: *AIDS-Related Opportunistic Infections/ETIOLOGY *Bacteremia/COMPLICATIONS *Encephalitis/PARASITOLOGY *Eye Infections, Bacterial/ETIOLOGY *Mycobacterium avium-intracellulare Infection/COMPLICATIONS *Retinal Diseases/PARASITOLOGY *Toxoplasmosis, Cerebral/COMPLICATIONS *Toxoplasmosis, Ocular/ETIOLOGY
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