The suction was then increased to the maximum, and the cyst was pulled out of the eye through one of the sclerotomies. Cysticercosis is a parasitic disease seen in countries where swine have access to human refuse. The disease in its normal life cycle does not usually cause major problems for the human. However, when a human ingests the eggs excreted by himself or another human, cysts form in his tissues. If a cyst is in the eye, it will continue to enlarge until it destroys the eye.
Surgical excision is the only way to save vision.
I reported my surgery in a video tape at the 1987 American Academy of Ophthalmology meeting. It was also described in a book chapter. Until now, however, there has been no place were I could post a video showing how the cyst moved under the retina. In the two second digitized video clip you can access below, the walls of the cyst are seen to undulate. The bright spot moving inside the cyst is its scolex.