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An outbreak of acute hemorrhagic conjunctivitis occurred in French Guiana between April and July 2003, with approximately 6,000 cases in the two major cities Kourou and Cayenne. Since acute hemorrhagic conjunctivitis is not a notifiable disease in France, there was no registration of the number of cases. Therefore, these were estimated by comparing the consumption of antibiotic eye drops and ophthalmic ointments during 2002 and 2003. The outbreak rapidly spread into the Caribbean Islands, causing an outbreak in Guadeloupe in October. Viral isolates from conjunctival swabs of 16 patients were confirmed to be enterovirus by PCR directed to the 5' UTR of the genome. The isolates could not be neutralized by the Melnick intersecting pools, but were shown to be CV-A24 variant by limited sequencing within the VP1 and 3C regions of 12 strains. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that they were similar to the genotype III strains causing outbreaks in Korea 2002 and Malaysia 2003. The previous outbreak of conjunctivitis caused by CV-A24 in the Caribbean in the 1980s was also introduced from Asia, and disappeared after 3 years. This new introduction from Asia and its rapid spread into the Caribbean, where the infection disappeared after a few months, indicates that the CV-A24 variant has a different epidemiological pattern in this region compared to South East Asia, since it has not established an endemic infection. It had to be reintroduced from Asia, where it has been circulating since the 1970s.

Purpose To evaluate the long-term efficacy and safety of intravitreal implant of 0,7mg dexamathasone (ozurdex®) in diabetic macular edema(DME) Methods This was a retrospective, multicenter, study. 19 patients, with mean age of 67years, followed for at least 8 months (mean 10,7 months) were included in 5 French eye clinics (P1,5 network). The mean systolic blood pressure was 138 mmHg and the mean HbA1c was 7,2%. We monitored 2 systemic parameters: blood pressure and glycemic balance. Best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), central retinal thickness by spectralis OCT, intraocular pressure and cataract progression are studied at baseline and then at 1, 6 and 12 Months. Results Visual acuity significantly increased compared to baseline: at M1, M6 and M12, mean value of 8,7, 9,1 and 5,8 ETDRSletters, respectively. The improvement was ≥ 10 ETDRS letters in 46,7%, 57,9% and 58,3% of patients at M1, M6 and M12, respectively. The average CRT decrease was: 332μm at M1, 259μm at M6 and 296μm at M12. The average interval between two injections was of 5.6months. Ocular hypertension greater than 25 mmHg, managed by topical treatment, was observed in 13,4% of patients. None glaucoma surgery was necessary Conclusion Ozurdex® has an anatomical and functional effectiveness in the treatment of DME. Outcomes for naive patients and lower CRT suggest that the duration of diabetes mellitus and previous treatments are negative factors for recovery. Side effects are rare and manageable. Ozurdex® seems to be an effective treatment for visual impairment due to DME with a favorable safety profile. Patient follow-up must be adapted to half-life of the product with a control before M1 (intraocular pressure) and before M5 (DME recurrence) Commercial interest