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HIV

Ocular Kaposi Sarcoma Associated With Systemic Disease and Complete Resolution After Medical Therapy

To identify the key insights or developments described in this article
1 Credit CME

A man in his mid-50s with previously untreated HIV 1 infection presented with bilateral, violaceous, caruncular lesions. Examination of the left eye showed a violaceous, firm, pedunculated mass protruding nearly 10 mm, extending into the adjacent conjunctiva, and additional eyelid lesions with mild edema (Figure, A). Pathologic examination of similar-appearing oral mucosa lesions showed vascular and spindle cell proliferation with fascicles of atypical spindle cells that stained strongly for human herpesvirus 8, CD31, and erythroblast transformation specific–related gene, confirming a diagnosis of Kaposi sarcoma.1 Further evaluation revealed a CD4 helper T-cell count of 13 cells/μL and bilateral lung and possible liver involvement. The patient started highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) and liposomal doxorubicin treatment given the presence of concurrent systemic disease. Nearly 8 months later, examination showed complete regression of bilateral ocular lesions (Figure, B). Ocular Kaposi sarcoma is rarely described as an AIDS-defining illness.2,3 Importantly, active eye disease may be associated with systemic disease.

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Article Information

Corresponding Author: Amy M. Huang, MD, Department of Ophthalmology, University of Colorado Hospital, 1675 Aurora Ct, MS F731, Aurora, CO 80045 (amy.m.huang@cuanschutz.edu).

Conflict of Interest Disclosures: None reported.

Additional Contributions: We thank the patient for granting permission to publish this information and Loes Nardi-Korver, MD, University of Colorado, for her help with the pathology image. No one was financially compensated for their contribution.

References
1.
Grayson  W , Pantanowitz  L .  Histological variants of cutaneous Kaposi sarcoma.   Diagn Pathol. 2008;3(1):31. doi:10.1186/1746-1596-3-31PubMedGoogle ScholarCrossref
2.
Donovan  C , Patel  H , Shetty  S , Bierman  L , Lustbader  JM , Oboh-Weilke  AM .  Aggressive conjunctival Kaposi sarcoma as the initial manifestation of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome.   Am J Ophthalmol Case Rep. 2020;19:100832. doi:10.1016/j.ajoc.2020.100832PubMedGoogle ScholarCrossref
3.
Jin  C , Minhas  H , Kaur  A , Kodali  S , Gotlieb  V .  A case of ocular Kaposi’s sarcoma successfully treated with highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) combined with docetaxel.   Am J Case Rep. 2018;19:1074-1077. doi:10.12659/AJCR.910374PubMedGoogle ScholarCrossref
AMA CME Accreditation Information

Credit Designation Statement: The American Medical Association designates this Journal-based CME activity activity for a maximum of 1.00  AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

Successful completion of this CME activity, which includes participation in the evaluation component, enables the participant to earn up to:

  • 1.00 Medical Knowledge MOC points in the American Board of Internal Medicine's (ABIM) Maintenance of Certification (MOC) program;;
  • 1.00 Self-Assessment points in the American Board of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery’s (ABOHNS) Continuing Certification program;
  • 1.00 MOC points in the American Board of Pediatrics’ (ABP) Maintenance of Certification (MOC) program;
  • 1.00 Lifelong Learning points in the American Board of Pathology’s (ABPath) Continuing Certification program; and
  • 1.00 CME points in the American Board of Surgery’s (ABS) Continuing Certification program

It is the CME activity provider's responsibility to submit participant completion information to ACCME for the purpose of granting MOC credit.

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