A Comprehensive Guide To AIDS And The Optometrist, Including A Study Investigating Ocular Involvement In The AIDS Virus.

Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome, (AIDS) was first diagnosed in the United States in June 1981. Since this initial case, the number of AIDS reported infections has escalated to 55,000 as of May 1988. No effective cure has been found, with over half of those infected now deceased. Common systemic conditions include generalized lymphadenopathy, Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia, Karposi's sarcoma, Cryptococcal meningitis, chronic Herpes Simplex and Toxoplasmosis gondii. Ocular manifestations of the human immunodeficiency virus are cotton wool spots, retinal hemorrhages, Cytomegalovirus retinopathy, ocular Herpes Simplex and Herpes Zoster. Current treatments employed include
azidothymidine, (AZT), ribavirin, acyclovir, dextran sulfate, and diethyldithiocarbamate have been effective only in hampering the progression of the virus. A study of 19 HIV infected subjects were followed over a nine month course. Ocular effects of the HIV infection were investigated in all 19 subjects. The majority of the subjects in the study were asymptomatic
with no ocular signs. Our investigation showed that only subjects late in the disease process had ocular signs characteristic of AIDS. Topics also covered include statistics and demographics of AIDS, general background on the course of AIDS infections, precautionary measures to take in the office and what an optometrist can do if he/she suspects a patient may be infected with the virus.