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Between December 2014 and March 2015, 12 cases of ocular syphilis were reported from two major cities, San Francisco and Seattle. Subsequent case finding indicated more than 200 cases reported over the past 2 years from 20 states. The majority of cases have been among HIV-infected MSM; a few cases have occurred among HIV-uninfected persons including heterosexual men and women. Several of the cases have resulted in significant sequelae including blindness.
Ocular syphilis can involve almost any eye structure, but posterior uveitis and panuveitis are the most common. Additional manifestations may include anterior uveitis, optic neuropathy, retinal vasculitis and interstitial keratitis. Ocular syphilis may lead to decreased visual acuity including permanent blindness. Ocular syphilis can be associated with neurosyphilis. Both ocular syphilis and neurosyphilis can occur at any stage of syphilis, including primary and secondary syphilis. While previous research supports evidence of neuropathogenic strains of syphilis, it remains unknown if some Treponema pallidum strains have a greater likelihood of causing ocular infections.
Pre-antibiotic clinical samples (whole blood, primary lesions and moist secondary lesions, CSF or ocular fluid) should be saved and stored at -80°C immediately upon collection for molecular typing.
If you need advice from CDC regarding the clinical management of ocular syphilis, contact Dr. Kimberly Workowski at 404-639-1898 or [email protected]. If you are planning on collecting clinical specimens for molecular typing and need assistance with the collection procedure or shipment of samples, please contact Dr. Allan Pillay at 404-639-2140 or [email protected].
Content source: Division of STD Prevention (/std/dstdp), National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention (/nchhstp), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention(/)
Steve Blazejewski is the President & CEO of Katena Products, Inc. With over 25 years in the global medical technology industry, Steve leads all critical strategic, financial, and operational performance initiatives for the company. Most recently, he was President of the $12 billion Medical Solutions global business unit at Cardinal Health. Prior to that, he was President of the $4.5 billion Patient Monitoring & Recovery global business at Medtronic and led the divestiture of the Patient Recovery business to Cardinal. From 2012-2015, Steve was President of Covidien’s $2 billion General Surgical Products global business prior to Medtronic’s acquisition, and has held a variety of sales, sales management, marketing, and general management roles. He is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania.
Bob Earley is the Chief Financial Officer at Katena. Most recently, Bob was CFO of Laborie Medical Technologies, a Toronto, Ontario based medical device manufacturer. Prior to Laborie, Bob was President and CFO for Bridgeport Tank Trucks, a Texas based oil field services company. Bob holds a B.S. in finance from The Ohio State University and an M.B.A. from Case Western Reserve.
Arun Mohan is the Vice President of Global Marketing at Katena. With over 12 years in the global medical technology industry, he leads all global marketing efforts focused on strategy, product management, customer programs, product development and professional education globally for the company. Prior to Katena, he was the Global Head of Product Marketing at Asensus Surgical in the abdominal surgical robotics space. Arun holds a B.S. and M.S. degrees in Biomedical Engineering from Purdue University, and an M.B.A. from Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management.
Jack Simmons is the Vice President of Global Sales at Katena. With over 11 years of leading customer-centric commercial models and delivering above market growth in the global medical technology industry, Jack leads the direct selling, distributor partnership, commercial operations, and customer service activities globally for the company. Prior to Katena, Jack was the National Vice President, Commercial Services at WaveMark™ a Cardinal Health Company. Jack holds a B.S. and M.Ed. in business and marketing management from the University of Minnesota.
Roger Tyler is the Managing Director of Katena’s global single use instruments business, Blink Medical Ltd based in the UK. With over 30 years of commercial experience in the ophthalmic medical device industry, Roger founded Blink Medical 18 years ago as the world’s first stand-alone supplier of single use ophthalmic surgical instruments. He leads Katena’s global commercial and operational efforts for the company’s single use ophthalmic instruments portfolio as part of the Katena senior leadership team.
Julie Eigenrauch is the Director of Human Resources at Katena responsible for leading Katena’s overall HR strategy in alignment with Katena’s business goals. Julie oversees Katena’s approach to employee engagement, recruitment, compensation & total rewards programs, employee benefits, performance management, and proactive workforce planning. For the past 10+ years, Julie has served as a strategic and accountable HR leader, driving commercial and operational excellence initiatives at large and mid-sized healthcare companies. Julie holds a B.S. in Biochemistry from Cornell University.
Carolyn Zdenek is the Vice President of Operations at Katena. With over 20 years of operational leadership and experience in the global medical device and technology industry, Carolyn leads all supply chain management, manufacturing, and operations for the company globally. Prior to Katena, Carolyn was with Zimmer Biomet where she led the global Advanced Manufacturing Organization for the Orthopedic Division. Carolyn holds a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from New Jersey Institute of Technology and an M.B.A. from Rutgers University.
Bryan Weinmann is the Vice President of Quality and Regulatory Affairs at Katena. With 30 plus years of Quality/Regulatory Compliance experience in the medical device industry, Bryan ensures Katena’s on-going successful regulatory compliance track record globally. Prior to Katena, Bryan was with Stryker’s Orthopedics Division (Osteonics) where he played an instrumental role in Stryker's achievement of ISO certification and CE mark authorization. Bryan holds a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from New Jersey Institute of Technology.
Nauman Chughtai is the Vice President of Information Technology at Katena. With over 25 years of experience in infrastructure, enterprise systems, analytics, databases, and system engineering, Nauman leads all IT related systems and initiatives globally for the company. Prior to Katena, he was Director of IT Services at Verisk Analytics where he led the standardization of ITIL processes. Nauman holds a B.S. in computer engineering from University of Central Florida and an M.B.A. from Rutgers University.