Objectives To evaluate macular morphological changes in patients with retinitis pigmentosa (RP) by spectral domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) and to assess their correlation with visual acuity.Setting and design A prospective observational comparative study was conducted in Tiba Eye Center (T. E. C.), Assiut, Egypt, from August 2013 to July 2014.Patients and methods A total of 13 consecutive patients experiencing RP (26 eyes) were recruited. An age-matched control group of 13 healthy volunteers was also recruited. All patients and volunteers underwent SD-OCT evaluation by SPECTRALIS OCT.Results Overall, 26 (13 patients) eyes in the RP group and 26 (13 volunteers) eyes in the control group were included. In RP group, the mean central macular thickness (CMT) at 1 mm was 180.6±22.18 µm, whereas the mean best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) was 0.11±0.08. In the control group, the mean CMT was 222.6±10.9 µm, whereas the mean BCVA was 0.9±0.11. By SD-OCT, foveal atrophy was found in 14 (53.8%) eyes, cystoid macular edema in five (19.2%) eyes, epiretinal membrane in six (23.1%) eyes, and lamellar macular hole in one (3.8%) eye in patients with RP. In nine (34.6%) eyes, there was interruption of the inner segment-outer segment junction and the external limiting membrane in the subfoveal region. There was a statistically significant positive correlation between CMT and BCVA among the RP group (r=0.813, P=0.000). BCVA categories among RP group were significantly associated with foveal atrophy (P=0.003) and inner segment-outer segment junction interruption (P=0.000).Conclusion SD-OCT is an important tool in the evaluation of macular morphological changes in patients with RP.
Purpose: To evaluate the efficacy of switching to aflibercept in diabetic macular edema (DME) with suboptimal response to previous anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (anti-VEGF) injections.Methods: A prospective interventional case series study recruited patients from a single center diagnosed with DME with suboptimal response to anti-VEGF injections.Three consecutive monthly injections of aflibercept were performed.The primary outcome measure was mean change in visual acuity after switching to aflibercept.Results: Forty-two patients (42 eyes) were included.Baseline logarithm of the minimum angle of resolution (logMAR) visual acuity was 0.87 ± 0.23 and improved significantly to 0.62 ± 0.29, 0.56 ± 0.34, and 0.46 ± 0.35 at 1, 2, and 3 months, respectively, after the first injection.Mean baseline retinal thickness was 451.57± 107.09 μm and decreased significantly at 1, 2, and 3 months after switching to aflibercept (346.52 ± 79.03, 328.24 ± 81.98, and 313.71 ± 85.79 μm, respectively).Both visual improvement and mean change in retinal thickness were significant in patients with pre-aflibercept best-corrected visual acuity less than 1.0 logMAR but were not significant in patients with best-corrected visual acuity more than 1.0 logMAR.Conclusions: Switching to aflibercept in DME patients with an unsatisfactory response to previous anti-VEGF injections provided acceptable short-term visual and retinal architectural improvement.
To evaluate the different IOP readings by Goldmann applanation tonometer (GAT), ICare rebound tonometer, and Tono-Pen in keratoconus patients after MyoRing implantation. To assess the influence of central corneal thickness (CCT) and thinnest corneal location (TCL) on IOP measurements by different tonometers.Prospective observational study was conducted in two private centers in Egypt from February 2015 to November 2016.Seventeen eyes of 10 patients suffering from keratoconus and who underwent MyoRing implantation were recruited. All subjects underwent GAT, ICare, and Tono-Pen IOP measurements in random order. Central corneal thickness and thinnest corneal location were assessed by Pentacam. Difference in mean in IOP readings was assessed by T-test. Correlation between each pair of devices was evaluated by Pearson correlation coefficient. The Bland-Altman analysis was used to assess intertonometer agreement.Seventeen eyes (10 patients) were evaluated. The mean IOP reading was 13.9 ± 3.68, 12.41 ± 2.87, and 14.29 ± 1.31 mmHg in GAT, ICare, and Tono-Pen group, respectively. There was a significant difference between IOP readings by GAT/ICare and Tono-Pen/ICare (p value: 0.032 and 0.002, respectively) with no significant difference between GAT/Tono-Pen (p value: 0.554). Mean difference in IOP measurements between GAT/ICare was 1.49 ± 2.61 mmHg, Tono-Pen/ICare was 1.89 ± 2.15 mmHg, and GAT/Tono-Pen was -0.39 ± 2.59 mmHg. There was no significant correlation between the difference in IOP readings among any pair of devices and CCC or TCL. The Bland-Altman analysis showed a reasonable agreement between any pair of tonometers.
Purpose: To compare effect of topical Nepafenac versus intravitreal Ranibizumab on macular thickness after cataract surgery in diabetic patients with no preoperative macular edema. Patients and methods: A prospective randomized controlled study recruited diabetic patients with visually significant cataract and no diabetic macular edema (DME). Patient underwent uncomplicated phacoemulsification with IOL implantation and were randomly assigned to receive post-operative topical Nepafenac, intra-operative intravitreal Ranibizumab, or no prophylactic treatment. Changes in subfoveal and perifoveal macular thickness were assessed by SD-OCT. Results: The mean central macular thickness showed a significant increase in all study groups 1 week and 1 month postoperative when compared to baseline. At 3 months postoperative, there was a significant difference between Nepafenac and Control group ( p = 0.017), Ranibizumab and Control groups ( p = 0.009) with no significant difference between Nepafenac and Ranibizumab group ( p = 0.545) regarding CMT. Comparable results could be detected as regarding peri-foveal macular thickness changes. Concerning BCVA, there was a significant difference between topical Nepafenac/control ( p = 0.001) and intravitreal Ranibizumab/control ( p = 0.004) at 1-week visit. No significant difference in BCVA was observed between Nepafenac and Ranibizumab group throughout the whole study period. In postoperative visits, cystoid macular edema occurred in three patients (7.9%) in Nepafenac group, one patient (2.7%) in Ranibizumab group, and seven patients (17.07%) in control group. Conclusion: Both postoperative topical Nepafenac and intra-operative intra-vitreal Ranibizumab are effective adjunctive to phacoemulsification in diabetic patients for prophylaxis of macular edema.
Abstract Background High myopia represents a health issue and leads to the development of complications that threaten vision. The study of macular changes in high myopia patients has undergone great advances with updated technology via new spectral optical coherence tomography (OCT) and Optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA). Most of related studies have focused on the adults and additional studies need to investigate macular changes in children and adolescents. This study aimed to evaluate the changes in the macular structure by OCT and the macular vessel density in high myopia in children and adolescents by OCTA. Methods A cross-sectional comparative study. The population was divided into two groups: group 1 (4–11 years) and group 2 (12–18 years). The results were comparable to those of control study of the same age group. The two high myopia groups and the control groups were examined by macular OCT and OCTA to evaluate macular thickness and vessel density in the superficial and deep capillary plexuses. Results OCT measurements of patients in group 1 revealed that central macular thickness was significantly lower in high myopia group than in the control group and measured 220.91 ± 27.87 μm and 258.23 ± 17.26 μm, respectively, ( P < 0.0001). However, in group 2 the central macular thickness in the high myopia group and control group was 236.32 ± 27.76 μm and 247.09 ± 16.81 μm respectively, and the difference was not statistically significant ( P = 0.09). The parafoveal macular thickness and the perifoveal macular quadrants thickness were significantly lower in high myopic children and high myopic adolescents ( P < 0.0001) than age matched controls. The parafoveal and perifoveal vessel densities in the superficial and deep capillary plexuses were lower in the high myopia groups than in the age-matched controls in both groups with a few segment exceptions in group 1. The FAZ was significantly wider in group 1 than in the age-matched emmetropes ( P = 0.02). The FAZ was wider in group 2 than controls, but the difference was not statistically significant, ( P = 0.75). Conclusion High myopic children and adolescents have thinner macular thickness than comparable age-matched emmetropes and have less vessel density in superficial and deep capillary plexuses with a wider FAZ.
Purpose The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of adding ketorolac to peribulbar anesthesia versus conventional peribulbar anesthesia in cataract surgery. Patients and methods This is a prospective randomized comparative study that recruited patients with visually significant cataract and no other ocular or systemic conditions that may influence the ocular sensation. Patients were scheduled for phacoemulsification. They were randomly assigned into three groups. In the first group (GI), an anesthetic mixture of lignocaine, bupivacaine, hyaluronidase, and ketorolac was utilized. In the second group (GII), a mixture of lignocaine, bupivacaine, and hyaluronidase was used, whereas in the third group (GIII), a mixture of lignocaine, bupivacaine, and ketorolac was used. The onset of globe anesthesia and akinesia and the duration of globe akinesia were recorded. In addition, intraoperative pain and postoperative pain experienced by the participants were assessed using the numerical rating scale after patient instructions. Results The study included 114 patients. The onset of globe anesthesia was significantly faster in GI (6.5±1.3 min) compared with GII and GIII (8.1±1.5 and 8.8±1.9 min, respectively, P <0.0001). A significantly faster onset of globe akinesia was recorded in GI (9.5±1.4 min) and GII (9.6±1.4 min) compared with GIII (11.2±1.8 min) ( P <0.0001). Concerning globe akinesia, there was no significant difference among the study groups ( P =0.191). In addition, no significant difference was reported among the study groups regarding pain scores throughout the procedure. Conclusion Ketorolac was an effective adjuvant to peribulbar block. It effectively shortened the onset of globe anesthesia, with no significant effect on globe akinesia.
The aim of the present work was to present the frequency of ocular surface manifestations in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients and to determine its correlation with disease activity and duration. This cross-sectional study included 70 RA patients. Disease activity score (DAS-28) was scored. All patients underwent complete ophthalmic evaluation including assessment of visual acuity. Ocular surface assessment by Rose Bengal (RB) stain, and Schirmer test (ST) was carried out. Seventy patients (137 eyes) were studied; 3 eyes were excluded due to previous eye surgery. Patients were 67 women and 3 men with a mean age of 47.96 ± 10.8 years, and disease duration 9.19 ± 6.26 years. The mean DAS28 was 4.1 ± 0.77. Rheumatoid factor was positive in 39 (55.7%). Mean best-corrected visual acuity was 0.47 ± 0.33, ST was 10.6 ± 6.1 mm/5 min and RB score was 6.8 ± 3.6. 70% had ocular manifestations in the form of dry eye (54.7%), pterygium (16.1%), posterior blepharitis (5.8%), scleritis (1.3%), corneal thinning (13.9%), filamentary keratitis (8.7%) and maculopathy (11.7%). There was a significant correlation between ST and disease duration (r = −0.17, p = 0.04). Morning stiffness had a significant correlation with both ST (r = −0.2, p = 0.02) and RB (r = 0.22, p = 0.01) and remained significant on regression analysis. DAS-28 was not significantly associated with any of the ocular surface abnormalities. Ocular manifestations are significant in patients with RA. The most common ocular manifestation is dry eye. Ocular manifestations are significantly associated with the disease duration and should be expected regardless of disease activity in RA patients.
To quantify the intraoperative parameters and postoperative outcomes after using the phaco chop technique in one eye and drill-and-crack technique in the other eye in patients with bilateral dense brunescent cataract.The Lens Opacities Classification System III grading system was used to select 132 eyes of 66 patients with bilateral nuclear opalescence (NO) grade NO4 or grade NO5. One eye in each patient with bilateral dense brunescent cataract was subjected to phacoemulsification using the phaco chop technique, while the other eye was subjected to phacoemulsification with the drill-and-crack technique for nucleus disassembly. The intraoperative parameters were quantified. Surgical outcome was assessed preoperatively and 1 day, 4 weeks and 12 weeks postoperatively, and the outcomes of the two techniques were compared.There was no significant difference between the techniques in operative parameters [cumulative dissipated energy (p = 0.74), surgical time (p = 0.68) or surgical difficulty during nucleus disassembly (p = 0.80)]. There was no significant difference in the postoperative change in central corneal thickness between the techniques at day 1, 4 weeks and 12 weeks or in corneal endothelial cell density loss at 4 and 12 weeks (p > 0.05). There was no significant difference between the techniques in the mean corrected distance visual acuity (logarithm of the minimum angle resolution) at 4 weeks postoperatively (p = 0.25).The phaco chop and drill-and-crack techniques are equally effective for disassembly of hard NO4 and NO5 cataracts.
Salivary gland ultrasound (SGUS) is a reliable technique for assessing the salivary glands in patients with primary Sjögren's syndrome (SS); however, the role of SGUS for diagnosis of secondary SS (sSS) in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) was not examined.To assess the diagnostic value of SGUS for sSS in patients with SLE, and to investigate the relationship between SGUS findings with clinical and laboratory characteristics of patients with SLE.This cross-sectional study included 49 patients with SLE. The diagnosis of sSS was confirmed according to the 2016 ACR/EULAR criteria. Salivary gland US was performed for all patients and graded using a validated Hočevar scoring system. A complete clinical and laboratory workup for SLE was assessed. Schirmer's test and the ocular staining were performed.Of the 49 patients with a mean age of 30.2 ± 9.6 years, 98% were female. 19 (38.8%) had sSS. SGUS changes consistent with sSS (≥17) were found in 29 (59.2%) of the patients. Patients with higher SGUS score had more sicca findings as well as positive anti-Ro, anti-La antibodies, and poorer psychological stress (p < 0.05). The SGUS (≥17) showed a sensitivity of 84.2% and a specificity of 56.7% for sSS diagnosis, with an area under the curve of 0.77 (95% CI: 0.63, 0.91).We propose salivary gland ultrasound as a non-invasive method in the diagnostic workup for sSS in patients with SLE. Further studies to confirm the diagnostic value of SGUS in a larger sample of patients with sSS will be necessary.