Title : Story of the wandering worm
Abstract:
Introduction: A parasite may look docile and harmless but it can create havoc in human eyes. Early detection and timely treatment can prevent blindness. We report three cases of parasites in the eye with varying presentations.
Case 1: A 76-year-old gentleman, a pet lover and a gardening enthusiast reported with complaints of foreign body sensation in his left eye. Examination showed subconjunctival mobile worm in the inferior bulbar conjunctiva which was removed under topical anesthesia.
Case 2: A 10-year-old boy reported with complaints of gradual painless diminution of vision in his left eye for 6 months. Posterior segment examination showed a motile subretinal nematode with multimodal grey-white lesions in the outer retina suggestive of Diffuse unilateral subacute neuroretinitis. (DUSN). The worm was photocoagulated and the child was given a course of antihelminthic treatment.
Case 3: 40 year old gentleman a trekker, came with complaints of difficulty while reading. Visual acuity was 6/6 in each eye. The posterior segment of the left eye showed Retinal pigment epithelial track in a criss-cross fashion throughout the retina-sparing fovea(path taken by the nematode). An immobile coiled worm was seen in the pars plana region suggestive of a dead nematode.
Conclusion: It is important to suspect nematodes in tropical countries and refer patients to ophthalmologists for early detection and prevention of blindness.
