title: A Case of Proliferative Diabetic Retinopathy with HIV Infection in Which HAART Possibly Influenced the Prognosis of Visual Function.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  We report on a patient with proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR) and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection who exhibited extremely active PDR followed by a rapid onset of blindness in the right eye. The progression of visual disturbance in the patient's left eye was slowed after starting highly active anti-retroviral therapy (HAART), and vision in that eye was rescued after vitrectomy.
  
  
  METHODS
  A 72-year-old male developed pneumocystis carinii pneumonia stemming from an HIV infection and began HAART at the Department of Hematology, Osaka Medical College, Takatsuki City, Japan. Prior to HAART, the patient had shown rapidly progressing retinopathy in the right eye accompanied by vitreous hemorrhage, tractional retinal detachment, and neovascular glaucoma, ultimately leading to early-onset blindness. After starting HAART, the progression of the retinopathy in the left eye became slower compared to the right eye, with corrected visual acuity improving to 0.6 after vitrectomy, despite being accompanied by vitreous hemorrhage. The patient's overall condition has remained stable following the operation, and the condition of the ocular fundus in the left eye has also settled.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Significant differences were found in the progression rate of PDR with HIV infection between before and after starting HAART. Our findings suggest that early administration of HAART to HIV patients with diabetic retinopathy is crucial for maintaining visual function.
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Osaka Medical College, Takatsuki, Japan.
authors.forename: Takakuni
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kitagaki
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Osaka Medical College, Takatsuki, Japan.
authors.forename: Takaki
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Sato
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Osaka Medical College, Takatsuki, Japan.
authors.forename: Junko
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hirai
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Osaka Medical College, Takatsuki, Japan.
authors.forename: Daisaku
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Kimura
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Osaka Medical College, Takatsuki, Japan.
authors.forename: Keigo
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kakurai
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Osaka Medical College, Takatsuki, Japan.
authors.forename: Masanori
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fukumoto
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Osaka Medical College, Takatsuki, Japan.
authors.forename: Kensuke
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Tajiri
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Osaka Medical College, Takatsuki, Japan.
authors.forename: Takatoshi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kobayashi
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Osaka Medical College, Takatsuki, Japan.
authors.forename: Teruyo
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kida
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Osaka Medical College, Takatsuki, Japan.
authors.forename: Shota
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kojima
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Osaka Medical College, Takatsuki, Japan.
authors.forename: Tsunehiko
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ikeda
keywords: HAART; HIV; Highly active anti-retroviral therapy; Human immunodeficiency virus; PDR; Proliferative diabetic retinopathy; Vitrectomy