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Cataracts are caused by progressive, usually age-related, degeneration of the lens of the eye, resulting in diminished lens transparency; consequently, patients with cataracts develop blurred, distorted vision. However, they may be treated by extraction of the cataractous lens. Extracapsular cataract extraction removes the lens, but leaves the posterior lens capsule intact. Preservation of the posterior capsule assists in maintaining sterility in the anterior chamber (portion of the eye between the cornea and the lens) by forming a barrier to prevent organisms from reaching the vitreous humor behind the lens. A 1989 study reported a 29 percent bacterial contamination rate of the anterior chamber of the eye following extracataract extraction; the specific organisms and their numbers (quantification) were not determined. To determine the frequency of anterior chamber contamination, and to quantify and identify the species of the organisms involved, 30 patients who underwent uncomplicated cataract surgery were assessed. Aspiration of fluid was obtained from the anterior chamber near the end of the surgical procedure. Organisms were found in 13 aspirates (43 percent). There were 18 positive aspirates obtained from these 13 patients. The most commonly found organism was Staphylococcus species, occurring in 8 of the 18 isolates (44 percent). Despite the high number of patients having viable organisms in the eye, none of the patients developed endophthalmitis, an inflammatory condition of the internal eye in which the eye becomes red, swollen, painful and possibly filled with pus. In most cases the inoculum (concentration of organisms in the aspirated fluid) was small (10 to 20 colony-forming units per milliliter). These findings suggest that although there may be bacteria present in the anterior chamber of the eye after cataract surgery, if the inoculum is low, the bacteria will be cleared without the development of endophthalmitis. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Alterations in T-lymphocyte kinetics and/or activation have been implicated in burn and traumatic injury. This study evaluated concanavalin A (Con A) regulation of both intracellular Ca2+(Cai2+) and proliferation in T-lymphocytes harvested from spleens of septic rats. Rats were implanted with fecal pellets containing Escherichia coli(150 colony forming units (CFU)) and Bacteroides fragilis(104CFU). T-cell [Ca2+]iwas measured before and after treatment of cells with Con A, using Fura-2 and microfluorophotometry. Splenic lymphocytes were cultured for 72 h with Con A to assess their proliferative response. As compared to sterile-implanted rats, the septic rat T-lymphocytes Cai2+response to Con A significantly decreased on days 1 and 2 after implantation. A significant decrease in T-cell proliferative response to Con A, compared to sterile controls, was found in septic rats on day 2 but not on day 1. These results suggest that Con A-mediated proliferation in T-cells occurs secondarily to a decrease in cellular Ca2+signalling. The depression in the T-cell proliferative response during sepsis could contribute to a decrease in host's resistance against sepsis.

• Therapeutically unresponsive erosive or ulcerative lesions caused by the herpes simplex virus developed in five patients with advanced cutaneous T-cell lymphoma. The chronic progressive character of the herpetic infection probably was the consequence of immunosuppression resulting from advanced lymphoma or its treatment. Herpes simplex infection should be considered in the differential diagnosis of cutaneous ulcerations in patients with cutaneous T-cell lymphomas.(Arch Dermatol 116:1018-1022, 1980)