NEW TRENDS IN THE MANAGEMENT OF OCULAR MANIFESTATIONS OF ACQUIRED IMMUNODEFICIENCY SYNDROME (AIDS)

Abstract

Twenty years ago, the Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome was unknown to medical science. Now, it is the leading cause of death in the United States of America and has a profound impact on the health of the people worldwide. The ocular manifestations of AIDS occur in about 70% ofthe patients and are increasingly recognized as important features of the disease. The immunocompromised host is susceptible to a variety of viral, bacterial, parasitic and fungal infections, which involve the eye. Since the AIDS pandemic began in 1981, ophthalmologists have increasingly reported not only the reappearance of previous rare infections, but also atypical manifestations of familiar microorganisms. When the virus was first discovered, a mood of pessimism was set up due to the absence of specific treatment as the medications subscribed regarding the virus itself or the opportunistic infections result only in suppression rather than curing the disease. Nowadays, a new understanding of the virology, biology, and therapy of the virus has set a new mood of optimism whether to the researchers and clinicians studying cases or patJ<:nts infected with these v1ruses. All the people worldwide, whether researchers, clinicians and patients are standing hand in hand together in an attempt to limit spreading the disease which is regarded as the plague of this century.