Journal of Ophthalmic and Vision Research
Volume:17 Issue: 2, Apr-Jun 2022

To assess the clinical and microbiological characteristics of nontuberculous mycobacterial (NTM) keratitis and to evaluate their response to medical therapy.

Sixteen patients of NTM keratitis were retrospectively reviewed from May 2014 to May 2019. Laboratory diagnosis were made using Ziehl-Nielsen acidfast staining, routine culture method of isolation of nontuberculous mycobacteria and further identification of species by PCR (polymerase chain reaction)-based DNA sequencing targeting the heat shock protein-65 (hsp-65) gene.

Sixteen patients of microbiologically proven NTM keratitis were included. The average age at the time of presentation was 43.56 years (range, 24–73 years). The mean duration of symptoms was 2.23 months. The commonest risk factor was injury with organic material (43.7) followed by ocular surgery (25%). The majority of the nontuberculous mycobacteria were Mycobacterium abscessus (87.6%) followed by M. fortuitum (6.2%) and M. chelonae (6.2%). The in vitro sensitivity showed maximum sensitivity to Amikacin (AMK; 100%) followed by Azithromycin (AZM; 85.7%), and Clarithromycin (CLR; 85.7%). Out of a total of 16 patients, 12 (75%) had total success with medical therapy while 4 (25%) required surgical intervention.

This study is focused on rapid and reliable identification of NTM keratitis through PCR-based identification method to enable effective medical management. The antibiotic susceptibility testing of different subspecies of NTM further reduced the need for surgical intervention. The effective role of AMK either alone or in combination with macrolide antibiotics is also highlighted in this study.

Multiple glaucoma treatment modalities seek to lower IOP by bypassing or removing a portion of the juxtacanalicular trabecular meshwork. These procedures often require expensive implants or specialized surgical instruments. The authors developed a technique for ab interno goniectomy utilizing a standard disposable 25-gauge hypodermic needle. The surgical procedure—termed bent ab interno needle goniectomy (BANG)—and preliminary results are presented here.

A retrospective chart review was performed for all patients who underwent goniotomy using a modified hypodermic needle by one of the three authors between July 2017 and June 2018. The mean and standard deviation pre- and postoperative IOP and the number of glaucoma medications were calculated. The student paired t-test was used to compare pre- and postoperative data. A P-value of <0.05 was considered statistically significant.

At postoperative month six, the mean IOP was 13.3 ± 2.5 mmHg (P = 3.6 × 10−7) on 0.5 ± 0.8 topical glaucoma medications (P = 0.01). A ≥20% reduction in IOP was achieved in 73% of patients. Seventy-three percent of patients required ≥1 fewer medication, while 73% of patients required no medications for IOP control. Forty-one percent of those treated achieved IOP ≤12 mmHg.

The BANG procedure is a low-cost MIGS technique available to surgeons around the world with preliminary outcomes similar to more expensive alternatives.

To evaluate the ray tracing method’s accuracy employing Okulix ray tracing software and thin-lens formulas to calculate intraocular lens (IOL) power using a swept-source optical coherence tomography (SS-OCT) biometer (OA2000).

A total of 188 eyes from 180 patients were included in this study. An OA-2000 optical biometer was used to collect biometric data. The predicted postoperative refraction based on thin-lens formulas including SRK/T, Hoffer Q, Holladay 1, and Haigis formulas and the ray tracing method utilizing the OKULIX software was determined for each patient. To compare the accuracy of approaches, the prediction error and the absolute prediction error were determined.

The mean axial length (AL) was 23.66 mm (range: 19–35). In subgroup analysis based on AL, in all ranges of ALs the ray tracing method had the lowest mean absolute error (0.56), the lowest standard deviation (SD; 0.55), and the greatest proportion of patients within 1 diopter of predicted refraction (87.43%) and the lowest absolute prediction error compared to the other formulas (except to SRK/T) in the AL range between 22 and 24 mm (all P < 0.05). In addition, the OKULIX and Haigis formulas had the least variance (variability) in the prediction error in different ranges of AL.

The ray tracing method had the lowest mean absolute error, the lowest standard deviation, and the greatest proportion of patients within 1 diopter of predicted refraction. So, the OKULIX software in combination with SSOCT biometry (OA2000) performed on par with the third-generation and Haigis formulas, notwithstanding the potential for increased accuracy in the normal range and more consistent results in different ranges of AL.

To examine the association between the use of topical non-steroidal antiinflammatory (NSAID) medication, systemic statin therapy, and the incidence rate of two of the most common postsurgical procedures in adult patients undergoing cataract surgery in Finland between January 1, 2010 and December 31, 2016.

This retrospective, nationwide cohort study considered 176,052 cataract operations coded with the International Classification of Disease coding: early adult (H25.0), normal (H25.1), other senile (H25.8), pre-senile (H26.02), or other (related to trauma, other eye disease, or medication). Operations were linked to purchased and reimbursed medications using Anatomical Therapeutic Chemical codes. The incidence rate of intravitreal anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) injections, and neodymium-doped yttrium aluminum (Nd:YAG) laser treatments of posterior capsular opacification were evaluated using the Poisson regression model.

In our registry cohort, patients with a prescription of topical NSAID (ketorolac) at the time of cataract surgery were less likely treated with intravitreal anti-VEGF injections after surgery (adjusted Poisson regression model IRR 0.3; 95% CI: 0.15–0.60, P = 0.0007), and also had reduced incidence of Nd:YAG laser (0.59, CI: 0.43–0.81, P = 0.0011) treatments. Unlike topical NSAID, the use of systemic statin therapy was not associated with these two most common surgical procedures (RR 1.04, 95% CI: 0.96–1.12, P = 0.33).

The use of topical NSAIDs is associated with reduced rates of intravitreal anti-VEGF injections and Nd:YAG laser treatments after cataract surgery. More observational and experimental studies are warranted to confirm possible benefits of topical NSAID administration after cataract surgery

This cross-sectional study aimed to compare changes in scleral thickness between eyes injected with repeated anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (anti-VEGF) drugs and fellow injection naive eyes using optical coherence tomography (OCT).

A total of 79 patients treated with three intravitreal anti-VEGF injections in one eye versus no injections in the fellow eye were included. Anterior segmentOCT measured scleral thickness in the inferotemporal quadrant 4 mm away from the limbus.

Injected eyes had a mean scleral thickness of 588 ± 95 μm versus 618 ± 85 μm in fellow naïve eyes (P < 0.001). Comparing injected eyes to fellow naïve eyes stratified by injection number showed a mean scleral thickness of 585 ± 93 μm versus 615 ± 83 μm in eyes with 3–10 injections (n = 32, P = 0.042); 606 ± 90 μm versus 636 ± 79 μm in eyes with 11–20 injections (n = 24, P = 0.017); and 573 ± 104 μm versus 604 ± 93 μm in eyes with >20 injections (n = 23, P = 0.041). There was no significant correlation between injection number and scleral thickness change (r = –0.07, P = 0.26). When stratified by indication, subjects with retinal vein occlusions showed a statistically significant difference in scleral thickness between injected and fellow naïve eyes (535 ± 94 μm and 598 ± 101 μm, respectively, P = 0.001).

Compared to injection naive eyes, multiple intravitreal injections at the repeated scleral quadrant results in scleral thinning. Consideration of multiple injection sites should be considered to avoid these changes.

To evaluate the effect of interocular axial length (AL) difference on outcomes of treatment for anisometropic amblyopia in comparison with normal participants.

In this historical cohort study, 83 patients with anisometropic amblyopia were divided into two age groups, 70 children (mean, 7.86 ± 1.56 and range, 5–15 years) and 13 adults (mean, 26.46 ± 10.87 and range, 16–45 years). The control group consisted of 43 non-amblyopic children and 17 non-amblyopic adults. Treatment outcomes after a period of one year were defined as successful or unsuccessful when posttreatment amblyopic corrected distance visual acuity (CDVA) was reported as ≤0.9 versus CDVA ≤ 0.8, respectively. AL was measured using a Lenstar LS900 (Haag-Streit AG, Switzerland).

Fifty-nine patients showed satisfactory treatment outcomes (55 children and 4 adults), while unsuccessful treatment outcomes were observed in 24 patients (15 children and 9 adults). The mean of amblyopia treatment duration was 1.24 ± 0.76 years. The mean of interocular AL difference in all patients, control, successful and unsuccessful treatment outcome groups were 0.49 ± 0.70mm (range, 0.00–3.89 mm), 0.12 ± 0.07 mm (range, 0.02–0.41), 0.33 ± 0.23 mm (range, 0.00–0.99 mm), and 1.81 ± 0.80 mm (range, 1.14–3.89 mm), respectively. In both age groups, the mean of interocular AL difference in patients with unsuccessful treatment outcomes was greater than those with successful treatment outcomes and that of the control group (P < 0.001).

The results of this study suggest that the outcome of anisometropic amblyopia treatment may depend on the interocular AL difference.

To evaluate varied aspects of binocular function in multiple gaze positions.

In 2018, this cross-sectional study was conducted on 21 participants (male = 11) with an age range of 19–25 years. Having emmetropia and 10/10 visual acuity in both eyes were conditions of the inclusion criteria for the crosssectional study. The following aspects of binocular function including amplitude of accommodation (AA), near point of convergence, near phoria, and monocular accommodative facility were evaluated in five gazes (primary, upward, downward, left, and right) for all subjects.

Near point of convergence values showed significant differences in all gaze positions (P < 0.001). The lowest near point of convergence value was seen in the primary gaze (2.69 cm) and the downward gaze (3.47 cm) and the highest near point of convergence value was seen in the left gaze (7.5 cm). There was also a significant difference in the amplitude of accommodation among the upward, downward, and the primary gaze (P < 0.001) positions but no difference was observed among the temporal, nasal, and the primary gaze positions. There was a significant difference in near phoria between the upward gaze and the primary gaze (P = 0.008) while no significant differences were observed among the other gazes. There was no significant variance in the monocular accommodative facility among the different gaze positions (P = 0.175).

The results of this study indicated variations that exist in the convergence and accommodation reflex functions in multiple gaze positions, which proved to be more prominent in the convergence system. Although the accommodative sufficiency evaluation was inconsistent among the multiple gaze positions, the accommodative facility evaluation was consistent in all gazes.

To assess the impact of color and polarity in predicting the changes of visual resolution for different text backgrounds with increasing contrast ratios.

Text-background designs of eight contrast ratios (0.15, 0.30, 0.47, 0.52, 0.57, 0.60, 0.70, and 0.78) and two text polarities (positive; black text and negative; white text) were compared with and without the presence of background color (blue, green, orange, and red). The visual resolution was measured in logMAR using Landolt C. The rate of changes in visual resolution measurements was analyzed using linear regression as contrast ratios increased with and without background color.

Visual resolution varied significantly with and without the background color element under both polarity investigations (P < 0.05). Contrast ratio accounts for 77.4% of the variation within the visual resolution measurement with a color background [F(1,6) = 20.76, P < 0.01]. Contrast ratio accounts for 97.16% of the variation in visual resolution measurements without a color background [F(1,6) = 205.63, P < 0.01].

As contrast decreases, color plays a more significant role than the non-color factor in the resolution of fine details in both polarities as it influences the visual resolution outcome which is reflected in the measurements in logMAR units.

To describe the prevalence and causes of avoidable blindness in people aged 50 and over in the areas of influence of doctors in social service during the years 2018–2019.

This observational, descriptive, cross-sectional study, with analysis of association of variables, was conducted on patients 50 years and older at the national level, selected under simple random sampling, where sociodemographic variables, background, and clinical characteristics were studied. An ophthalmological clinical examination was performed with prior informed consent, and the information was processed and analyzed using Epi Info 7.2 statistical package and SPSS version 25.

Overall, 7992 people were evaluated, with a mean age of 62 years; 60.8% (4861) were women and 39.2% (3131) were men. The prevalence of blindness for both eyes was 4.5% (356/7992, 95% CI: 4.1–5.1%, p < 0.001). The prevalence of severe and moderate visual impairment was 1.5% (118/127) and 12.9% (1029)/12.6% (1004) for the right and left eyes, respectively. The main causes of blindness were cataract, refractive error, and glaucoma.

The prevalence of avoidable blindness found in the study was higher than expected and the respective causes were consistent with previous studies. Consequently, it is recommended to implement health policies aimed at the prevention and management of avoidable blindness.

To identify the psychological impact of coronavirus disease on ophthalmologists practicing in Iran between August and December 2020.

In this cross-sectional online survey, a standard Patient Health Questionnaire9 (PHQ- 9) was completed by 228 ophthalmologists who were practicing in Iran. The PHQ- 9 questionnaire was revised by adding two additional questions specifically applicable for the assessment of the psychological impact of coronavirus disease on the Iranian ophthalmologists. An organized classification regarding the assessment of different depression severities identified as no (0–4), mild (5–9), moderate (10–14), or severe (15–21) was then considered for data analysis.

The mean age of our participants was 49.0 ± 15.61 years and the majority of them (67.1%) were male. Depression was discovered in 73.68% (n = 168) with different severities ranging from mild (n = 61, 26.75%), moderate (n = 63, 27.63%), and severe (n = 44, 19.3%). It was found that participants with depression were older as compared to those without depression (P = 0.038). Higher percentages of severe depression were noticed in the high-risk regions contaminated with corona virus as compared to the other low-risk regions (P = 0.003). Based on multivariable models, we determined that ophthalmologists who were somewhat concerned about their training/ profession (OR: 0.240; 95% CI: 0.086–0.672; P = 0.007) and those with no concerns about their income had lower association with depression (OR: 0.065; 95% CI: 0.005–0.91; P = 0.042).

High prevalence of depression was observed among older aged Iranian ophthalmologists living in high-risk contaminated regions who possessed serious concerns with respect to their training/profession and income. It is recommended that the health policymakers of Iran pay more attention to the ophthalmologists who experience the aforementioned factors.

To investigate the pattern of ocular involvement in Behcet’s disease (BD) with predictors of patients’ final state of vision.

This historical cohort encompassed the clinical records of 200 patients diagnosed according to the International Criteria for BD (ICBD), over a period of 17 years between 2004 and 2021.

The prevalence of Behcet’s uveitis (BU) was more common in females and patients in the fourth decade of life. Ninety-five patients (47.5%) had evidence of ocular involvement in the initial ophthalmologic evaluation, and 171 patients (85.5%) manifested evidence of BU during the follow-up visits of which bilateral non-granulomatous panuveitis was the most common anatomical pattern of involvement (32.9%) followed by posterior (27.6%), anterior (26.5%), and intermediate (13.8%) uveitis. The prevalent accompanying signs were oral aphthous (67%), skin lesions (29%), and genital ulcers (19.5%). Cystoid macular edema (CME) was the most frequent ocular complication (62%), followed by cataract (57.5%) and epiretinal membranes (ERM) (36.5%). Univariate analysis showed the following determinants: male gender, younger age at onset, panuveitis, posterior uveitis, retinal vasculitis, and longer duration of uveitis as poorer visual prognostic factors of the disease. Multivariate analysis demonstrated a higher chance of poor visual prognosis of BD in patients with panuveitis, posterior uveitis, retinal vasculitis, and longer duration of uveitis.

This cohort study demonstrated an overview on epidemiological patterns of BU along with the visual prognostic factors in Iranian patients.

Peripheral ulcerative keratitis (PUK) is a rare but serious ocular condition that is an important clinical entity due to its ophthalmological and systemic implications. It is characterized by progressive peripheral corneal stromal thinning with an associated epithelial defect and can be associated with an underlying local or systemic pro-inflammatory condition, or present in an idiopathic form (Mooren ulcer). Associated conditions include autoimmune diseases, systemic and ocular infections, dermatologic diseases, and ocular surgery. Cell-mediated and autoantibody-mediated immune responses have been implicated in the pathogenesis of PUK, destroying peripheral corneal tissue via matrix metalloproteinases. Clinically, patients with PUK present with painful vision loss, a peripheral corneal ulcer, and often adjacent scleritis, episcleritis, iritis, or conjunctivitis. Diagnostic evaluation should be focused on identifying the underlying etiology and ruling out conditions that may mimic PUK, including marginal keratitis and Terrien marginal degeneration. Treatment should be focused on reducing local disease burden with topical lubrication, while simultaneously addressing the underlying cause with antimicrobials or anti-inflammatory when appropriate. Existing and emerging biologic immunomodulatory therapies have proven useful in PUK due to autoimmune conditions. Surgical treatment is generally reserved for cases of severe thinning or corneal perforation.

Uveitis is one of the most common causes of vision loss and blindness worldwide. Local and/or systemic immunosuppression is often required to treat ocular inflammation in noninfectious uveitis. An understanding of safety and efficacy of these medications is required to individualize treatment to each patient to ensure compliance and achieve the best outcome. In this article, we reviewed the effectiveness of systemic biologic response modifiers and local treatments commonly used in the management of patients with noninfectious uveitis.

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought the entire world to a standstill. Wearing of mask and time-to-time sanitization have become a customary daily practice. Additionally, as the outdoor activities and movements have been curtailed, concept of work from home is being widely adopted. Hence, the screen exposure time has considerably increased. All these conditions have directly or indirectly impacted the health of eye. This article emphasizes on the repercussions of this pandemic on eye health. It also focuses on the precautions that may be taken to prevent them as well as some solutions to manage them.

To report a case of optic neuropathy (ON) following botulinum toxin A (BTA) injection into the medial rectus muscle.

We describe a 37-year-old man with unilateral ON after a BTA injection into the left medial rectus for treatment of traumatic sixth nerve palsy. Oral prednisolone was prescribed for 14 days. After two weeks, his visual acuity returned to 20/20.

Botulinum toxin-induced neuropathy is a rare and vision-threatening complication of BTA. In patients with recent injection of BTA who present with visual complaints, botulinum toxin-induced neuropathy should be considered.

Candida spp. is the most common cause of endogenous fungal endophthalmitis. The diagnosis of this rare disease is based on clinical findings supported by positive blood culture. Recently, it has been shown that optical coherence tomography (OCT) characteristic findings are beneficial in making a correct diagnosis of fungal infection in cases with endogenous endophthalmitis. The current photo-essay aims to highlight the role of OCT in diagnosis of Candida endogenous endophthalmitis where OCT imaging of one of the retinal lesions disclosed a pre-retinal hyper reflective lesion with overlying punctate vitreous opacities. We propose “inverted snowing-cloud” sign for this OCT pattern considering the resemblance of the vitreous opacities to snowflakes.