Pancreatic Cancer, Purtscher Retinopathy
Conditions
Brief summary
AN UNUSUAL ASSOCIATION BETWEEN PANCREATIC CANCER AND PURTSCHER-LIKE RETINOPATHY
Detailed description
Purtscher's retinopathy may cause sudden loss of vision of varying severity, secondary to head or chest injury. Its pathophysiology is unclear. Purtscher's-like retinopathy has more attenuated clinical and objective features and can be associated with many non-neoplastic pathologies. Otherwise, an association of this kind of retinopathy with malignancies has been described once in the Literature (multiple myeloma). We present a case report on a unique association between pancreatic cancer and Purtscher-type retinopathy.
Interventions
DRUGMethylprednisolone
1 g. of methylprednisolone in saline solution 250 cc once a day for 5 days, and one eye drops of Diclofenac per eye 3 times a day for 30 days
Sponsors
University of Catania
Study design
Observational model
CASE_ONLY
Time perspective
PROSPECTIVE
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
MALE
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
NONE -
Exclusion criteria
NONE \-
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| funduscopic examination | at the onset of symptoms | At the funduscopic examination the back of the eye showed large yellow spots and retinal hemorrhages in the superficial retina. In the early stages, fluorescein angiography showed hypofluorescence in the area of the yellow-white patches while the late stages showed hyperfluorescence |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| abdominal CT-scan | at the onset of symptoms | CT scan of the abdomen revealed a large mass in the tail of the pancreas with direct extension to the vessels of splenic hilum and splenic vein thrombosis. A secondary invasion of the gastric wall and left adrenal gland was also demonstrated. Percutaneous needle biopsy was performed and histopathology showed moderate to poorly differentiated mucinous pancreatic adenocarcinoma. |
Other
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Unusual association between Purtscher-like retinopathy and a malignant disease (pancreatic cancer) | at the diagnosis | Ocular history and medical history were irrelevant. |
| Therapy | after 1 month from diagnosis | An improvement of the macular edema and of the sight was reported after one-month administrating 1 g. of methylprednisolone in saline solution 250 cc once a day for 5 days, and one eye drops of Diclofenac per eye 3 times a day. The patient was not found fit for surgical treatment of his pancreatic cancer and therefore oncologic palliative medical treatment was performed. |
Countries
Italy
Outcome results
None listed