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      The Eye as a Window to Systemic Infectious Diseases: Old Enemies, New Imaging

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          Abstract

          Background: Syphilis, tuberculosis and toxoplasmosis are major infectious diseases worldwide; all of them are multisystem pathologies and share a possible ocular involvement. In this context, a fundamental help for the definitive diagnosis is provided by the ophthalmologist, through clinical evaluation and with the aid of a multimodal imaging examination. Methods: We hereby describe selected cases who came to our attention and were visited in our eye clinic. In all clinics, the use of retinal and optic disc multimodal imaging during ophthalmological evaluation allowed to make a diagnosis of an infectious disease. Results: In our tertiary referral center more than 60 patients with syphilis, tuberculosis and toxoplasmosis have been evaluated in the last two years: In 60% of cases the ophthalmological evaluation was secondary to a previous diagnosis of an infectious disease, while in the remaining cases the ophthalmologist, with the help of a multimodal imaging examination and clinical evaluation, represented the physician who leads to the diagnosis. Conclusion: Our results confirm how in these life-threatening pathologies a prompt diagnosis is mandatory and may benefit from a multidisciplinary and multimodal imaging approach, especially during ophthalmological evaluation.

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          Most cited references64

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          Intraocular tuberculosis--an update.

          The lack of any uniform diagnostic criteria for intraocular tuberculosis, in either immunocompetent or immunocompromised individuals, has contributed to the confusion regarding diagnosis and management. However, recent studies addressing the clinical significance of purified protein derivative test results, computerized tomography of the chest, and molecular diagnostic procedures have provided a new approach to establishing the diagnosis of ocular tuberculosis. The current review focuses on the diagnostic modalities used for the clinical management of intraocular tuberculosis, with the emphasis on diagnostic criteria, various clinical features, and treatments recommended in recent publications. Furthermore, the current review addresses the diagnostic criteria for intraocular tuberculosis, the spectrum of tuberculosis in patients with AIDS and in those on anti-tumor necrosis factor agents, and management of drug-resistant tuberculosis.
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            A review on human toxoplasmosis.

            Toxoplasmosis is a worldwide infection caused by the intracellular parasite Toxoplasma gondii. At least a third of the world human population are infected with the parasite, making it one of the most successful parasitic infections. Primary maternal infection may cause health-threatening sequelae for the foetus, or even cause death in uterus. Reactivation of a latent infection in immune deficiency conditions such as AIDS and organ transplantation can cause fatal toxoplasmic encephalitis. Toxoplasmosis is a major cause of retinochoroiditis, especially in individuals with an impaired immune system. Despite the usually 'asymptomatic' nature of the infection, a significant burden imposed by the parasite necessitates the implementation of effective means for the prevention, diagnosis, and management of this disease. Laboratory diagnosis, i.e. PCR and serologic assays, plays the main role in the diagnosis of congenital infection and assists in the confirmatory diagnosis of toxoplasmic encephalitis and ocular toxoplasmosis. Here, we briefly review general aspects of Toxoplasma infection and focus on the diagnostic methods currently used in medical laboratories for the diagnosis of Toxoplasma infection.
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              Ocular toxoplasmosis past, present and new aspects of an old disease.

              Ocular toxoplasmosis (OT) is considered the most frequent form of infectious posterior uveitis and is caused by the protozoan parasite Toxoplasma gondii. The resulting vision loss frequently incapacitates patients and places a considerable socio-economic burden on societies in particular in developing countries. Although, toxoplasmic retinochoroiditis is a world-wide phenomenon stark regional differences with regard to prevalence and presumably route of infection exist. This review will discuss our current clinical understanding of OT including typical and atypical manifestations, patient characteristics which influence the course of disease and treatment options. Even though, congenital and acquired OT are not regarded as separate entities, certain differences exist, which will be assessed and evaluated in detail. A strong focus is laid on the disease causing parasite T. gondii, since solving the mystery of OT aetiology and the development of improved therapies will not be possibly with clinical science alone, but rather requires a precise understanding of parasitological and immunological pathomechanisms. Additionally, the biology and genetics of T. gondii form the foundation for novel and sophisticated diagnostic methods. Scientific advances in the recent years have shed some light on the different role of T. gondii strains with regard to OT manifestation and severity of disease. Genetic and environmental factors influencing OT will be presented and commonalities between OT and toxoplasmic encephalitis will be briefly discussed. Furthermore, the laboratory tools to study OT are crucial in our understanding of OT. In vivo and in vitro experimental approaches will be summarised and evaluated extensively. Finally, a brief outlook is given in which direction OT research should be headed in the future.
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                Author and article information

                Journal
                J Clin Med
                J Clin Med
                jcm
                Journal of Clinical Medicine
                MDPI
                2077-0383
                05 September 2019
                September 2019
                : 8
                : 9
                : 1392
                Affiliations
                Eye Clinic, Polytechnic University of Marche, 60126 Ancona, Italy (V.P.) (S.D.T) (A.R.) (A.F.) (C.C.) (M.N.) (C.M.)
                Author notes
                [* ]Correspondence: paopel@ 123456hotmail.it
                Author information
                https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6024-0183
                Article
                jcm-08-01392
                10.3390/jcm8091392
                6780210
                31492008
                72bbe7c5-3d07-4d79-b553-8c59e361e20f
                © 2019 by the authors.

                Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license ( http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

                History
                : 13 August 2019
                : 02 September 2019
                Categories
                Article

                infectious uveitis,syphilis,tuberculosis,toxoplasmosis,fluorescein angiography,indocyanine green angiography,optical coherence tomography,optical coherence tomography angiography,fundus autofluorescence

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