Reversible Cortical Blindness as a Prominent Manifestation of Cerebral Embolism due to Infective Endocarditis

Introduction. Infective endocarditis in the left heart may be complicated by stroke, due to embolisation from infectious valvular vegetations. Infarction of both occipital lobes, which are supplied by the posterior cerebral arteries, is infrequent, and is the cause of cortical blindness from lesion of the visual cortex. Cortical blindness is characterized by intact pupillary reflexes, a normal fundoscopy, and, rarely, denial of visual loss. Case Presentation. We report the case of a 58-year-old woman, recipient of a mechanical aortic valve, who presented with fever, multiple organ dysfunction, and cortical blindness. Transesophageal echocardiography and blood cultures confirmed the diagnosis of infective endocarditis caused by methicillin-sensitive Staphylococcus aureus. Computed tomography of the brain without contrast revealed the presence of infarctions in both occipital lobes. It is noteworthy that the visual loss resolved after treatment of endocarditis. Conclusions. A stroke occurring in a patient presenting with fever and a history of valvular heart disease strongly suggests the presence of infective endocarditis. Bilateral thromboembolic infarcts of the occipital lobes cause cortical blindness, that can resolve after treatment of endocarditis

Orbital period behaviour of some semi-detached eclipsing binaries during the last decades

In this paper, the orbital period behaviour of the semi-detached eclipsing binaries RT And, AT Peg, V505 Sgr and TX UMa is examined using one of the recently proposed and very promising continuous methods for their (O-C) diagrams analysis, as they were constructed by observational data covering the last decades

Study of the contact binary AK Herculis: Light-curve analysis and orbital period investigation

AK Her is a very interesting contact binary exhibiting variable light curves and an obvious O'Connell effect, with max I greater than max II. In the present work an extensive study of this system is made covering not only its light curve analysis, but also its orbital period changes in an attempt to give a definite answer regarding the apsidal motion of AK Her. Photoelectric observations of AK Her, obtained between 1985-1987 at the National Observatory of Athens Greece, are presented, analysed and discussed. The light curve analysis was made with the W-D code and the geometric and photometric elements of the system were derived. The O'Connell effect was faced with a two dark spot model. Moreover, the orbital period of the system was examined and two periodicities were detected. Since the first one corresponds to the time interval for which observational data exist and the second was found to be half of the first, it turns out that none of them is true. Two other significant results that came from the present analysis are that the orbital period of AK Her does not follow a sinusoidal variation and that, from the times of minimum light at primary and secondary eclipses, it seems that there is no apsidal motion

Stauffer's syndrome as a prominent manifestation of renal cancer: a case report

Background: Renal cell carcinoma is associated with a wide spectrum of para-neoplastic syndromes, which may be precursors of primary or recurrent disease. Non-metastatic hepatic dysfunction in patients suffering from renal cell carcinoma is known as Stauffer's syndrome. It is associated with the production of cytokines by the tumour, and several biochemical abnormalities, including elevated serum alkaline phosphatase. Case presentation: We describe a 36-year-old woman presenting with various non-specific, systemic disease manifestations, and elevated liver enzymes due to cholestasis as the main laboratory abnormality. Imaging studies showed a solid mass in the left kidney, which, after surgical excision, was identified as renal cell carcinoma. No metastasis was found. Conclusion: Stauffer syndrome may precede other manifestations of renal cell carcinoma. In case of unexplained abnormal liver function, particularly in presence of systemic symptoms, underlying renal cell carcinoma should be excluded by focused investigations. © 2009 Kranidiotis et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd