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Purpose: To assess the relationship between glaucoma and allostatic load (AL), an established framework for quantifying the physiologic effects of chronic stress through measurements of systemic biomarkers., Design: Retrospective case-control study., Methods: Participants of the National Institutes of Health All of Us (AoU) Research Program with complete AL biomarker data between December 1984 to June 2022 and with (cases) or without (controls) primary glaucoma were identified. AL scores were calculated using the adapted Seeman AL scale consisting of 10 systemic biomarkers: body mass index, systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, total cholesterol, triglycerides, glomerular filtration rate, albumin, C-reactive protein, and homocysteine. AL score was defined as the number of biomarkers with measurements in the highest risk quartiles. Age was calculated as the median age at time of biomarker measurements. Logistic regression analysis was performed to assess the association between the earliest possible AL score and glaucoma adjusted for race/ethnicity. Mediation analysis was performed to estimate the relationship between race/ethnicity and glaucoma mediated by AL score., Results: The study cohort consisted of 349 (16.1%) cases and 1,819 (83.9%) controls with 52.7% females, 2.2% Asians, 10.7% Blacks, 10.0% Hispanics, and 72.5% non-Hispanic Whites. At the earliest timepoint (median [IQR] = 6.4 [1.9-12.2] years prior to diagnosis), cases had higher AL score than controls (3 [1-4] versus 2 [1-3], respectively; p<0.001). On multivariable analysis, higher AL score (OR=1.09 per point), Black race (OR=2.58), and Hispanic ethnicity (OR=2.12) conferred higher risk of glaucoma (p≤0.02). AL score partially mediated higher glaucoma risk among Blacks (7.5%) and Hispanics (5.0%) compared to non-Hispanic Whites. On subgroup analysis, higher AL score was significantly associated with primary open angle glaucoma (POAG; OR=1.11; p=0.01) but not primary angle closure glaucoma (PACG; p=0.87)., Conclusion: AoU participants with glaucoma had greater AL 6.4 years prior to diagnosis, and AL score partially mediated racial/ethnic differences in glaucoma risk. These findings suggest chronic stress may increase risk for glaucoma and contribute to racial disparities in glaucoma burden., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier Inc.)

Purpose: The high prevalence of allergic conjunctivitis in Japan necessitates novel, easy-to-use treatment options for prophylactic use. We evaluated the safety and efficacy of a newly-developed 0.5% epinastine topical eyelid cream to prevent the development of allergic conjunctivitis., Study Design: This was a phase 3, single-centre, double-masked, intra-patient randomised trial in asymptomatic adults (aged 20-65 years) with seasonal allergic conjunctivitis in Japan., Methods: The left and right eyes of eligible patients were randomised to receive a topical application of either 0.5% epinastine cream (~ 30 mg per dose) to one eye or placebo cream to the other (on the outer skin of the upper and lower eyelids) after a conjunctival antigen challenge (CAC) test. Symptom severity was assessed up to 24 h post-treatment. Primary efficacy endpoints were mean ocular itching and conjunctival hyperaemia severity scores in each eye; safety endpoints included adverse events (AEs) and adverse drug reaction (ADRs)., Results: In total, 30 patients (60 eyes) were included in the study. The 0.5% epinastine topical eyelid cream reduced mean ocular itching scores (difference in least squares means ± standard error, - 1.12 ± 0.214; p < 0.0001) and mean conjunctival hyperaemia scores (- 0.54 ± 0.197; p = 0.0097) 24 h after treatment versus placebo. The 0.5% epinastine topical eyelid cream was well tolerated, with no AEs or ADRs reported., Conclusion: With its novel route of administration, 0.5% epinastine topical eyelid cream may be considered a unique, easy-to-use, once-daily treatment option to prevent the onset of seasonal allergic conjunctivitis., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Purpose: To determine if intravitreal injection of antibiotics alone versus early pars plana vitrectomy (PPV) plus injection of intravitreal antibiotics predicted better or worse visual outcomes for patients with endophthalmitis after anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (anti-VEGF) injections., Design: Retrospective cohort study PARTICIPANTS: Patients developing endophthalmitis after receiving an intravitreal anti-VEGF injection from the American Academy of Ophthalmology IRIS® Registry between 2016 and 2020., Methods: Inclusion criteria were endophthalmitis diagnosis within 1 to 28 days after anti-VEGF injection and a recorded visual acuity (VA) at baseline, on the day of diagnosis, and post-treatment. Patients in the Injection Only group underwent intravitreal injection of antibiotics alone and in the Early Vitrectomy group received PPV with intravitreal antibiotics or intravitreal injection followed by PPV within 2 days of diagnosis. Patients were excluded if they had cataract surgery during the study, intravitreal steroids before endophthalmitis, or intermediate/posterior uveitis or cystoid macular edema. The study created a 1:1 matched cohort using Mahalanobis Distance Matching, accounting for the differences in VA at baseline and diagnosis., Main Outcome Measures: Post-treatment logMAR VA RESULTS: 1,044 patients diagnosed with post-injection endophthalmitis met the inclusion and exclusion criteria. In the unmatched cohort, there were 935 patients in the Injection Only and 109 in the Early Vitrectomy group. In 1:1 matched cohort 218 patients (109 in each group) were included; the median logMAR VAs were 0.32 [20/40-20/50] at baseline, 0.88 [∼20/150] at diagnosis, and 0.57 [20/70-20/80] post-treatment. There were no statistically significant differences in the visual outcomes between the two matched treatment groups (b = 0.05, p = 0.23); including the subgroup of patients with VA worse than 1.0 logMAR (b = 0.05, p = 0.452)., Conclusions: There was no significant difference in final VA outcomes between patients receiving Injection Only and those treated with Early Vitrectomy for post-injection endophthalmitis. The findings support the use of either treatment strategy., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier Inc.)

Objective: This study aims to provide data on the effects of glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor (GLP-1R) agonists on intraocular pressure (IOP)., Design: Retrospective clinical cohort study., Setting: Multicenter., Study Population: 1247 glaucoma surgery and treatment naïve eyes of 626 patients who were initiated on GLP-1R agonists compared to 1083 glaucoma surgery and treatment naïve eyes of 547 patients who were initiated on other oral antidiabetics., Observation Procedures: The University of California Health Data Warehouse was queried for patients exposed to GLP-1R agonists or other oral antidiabetics. Index date was defined as the date of first exposure to the medication. Eyes with at least one pre-exposure and one post-exposure tonometry record within 365 days of the index date were included in the analysis. Clinical and laboratory data elements were extracted from the database. Eyes were censored from the analysis upon exposure to glaucoma hypotensive medication or glaucoma surgery. ∆IOP was analyzed using a paired t-test. Regression analysis was conducted using generalized estimating equations (GEE) accounting for inter-eye correlation. Sensitivity analyses were performed to assess the robustness of the findings., Main Outcome Measures: Primary outcome measure was ∆IOP after exposure to the medication., Results: The median age of all included subjects was 66.2 years [IQR=18.3]; 607 (51.7%) were female, and 667 (56.9%) were Caucasian. Median pre-exposure IOP, HbA1c, and BMI were 15.2 mmHg [IQR=3.8], 7.5 [IQR=2.4], and 29.8 [IQR=9.4], respectively. 776 individuals (66.1%) had diabetes, with the median number of active oral antidiabetics being 1.0 [IQR=1.0], and 441 (37.5%) being insulin users. Several pre-exposure characteristics significantly differed between the GLP-1R agonist and the control group. The mean ∆IOP was -0.4±2.8 mmHg (paired t-test p<0.001) and -0.2±3.3 mmHg (paired t-test p = 0.297) in the GLP-1R agonist and other antidiabetics groups, respectively. Pre-exposure IOP was the only independent predictor of ΔIOP in multivariable GEE. Sensitivity analyses yielded similar results., Conclusions: Although GLP-1R agonists were significantly associated with a decrease in IOP in the paired analysis, they were not associated with ΔIOP in multivariable GEE. Moreover, the difference between the ΔIOP in the two groups was small. Future prospective studies following a standardized dose and delivery method may provide further insights., Competing Interests: Conflict of Interest Dr. Baxter reports consulting fees from Topcon and equipment support from Topcon and Optomed outside the submitted work. Dr. Cui reports a provisional patent application related to the topic of this study (publication number: US20220193201A1). SH, WH, and BGC: None. Dr. Weinreb reports consulting fees from Abbvie, Alcon, Balance, Editas, Eyenovia, iSTAR Medical, Nicox, and Topcon outside the submitted work. He also has stock options from Balance, Eyenovia, Iantrek, Implandata, and Toku outside the submitted work and intellectual property licensed from UCSD to Toromedes outside the submitted work., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier Inc.)

Diagnostic ultrasonography has evolved to become an indispensable imaging tool that permits non-invasive evaluation of the whole body. In this narrative review, we present a historical timeline of the invention, development, and evolution of diagnostic medical ultrasound. It includes interesting fun facts that may help the reader identify with many of the incredible researchers in this field. This review is a tribute to the researchers who contributed to this amazing invention., (© 2024 The Author(s). Journal of Clinical Ultrasound published by Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

A complete understanding of neural crest cell mechanodynamics during ocular development will provide insight into postnatal neural crest cell contributions to ophthalmic abnormalities in adult tissues and inform regenerative strategies toward injury repair. Herein, single-cell RNA sequencing in zebrafish during early eye development revealed keratin intermediate filament genes krt8 and krt18a.1 as additional factors expressed during anterior segment development. In situ hybridization and immunofluorescence microscopy confirmed krt8 and krt18a.1 expression in the early neural plate border and migrating cranial neural crest cells. Morpholino oligonucleotide (MO)-mediated knockdown of K8 and K18a.1 markedly disrupted the migration of neural crest cell subpopulations and decreased neural crest cell marker gene expression in the craniofacial region and eye at 48 h postfertilization (hpf), resulting in severe phenotypic defects reminiscent of neurocristopathies. Interestingly, the expression of K18a.1, but not K8, is regulated by retinoic acid (RA) during early-stage development. Further, both keratin proteins were detected during postnatal corneal regeneration in adult zebrafish. Altogether, we demonstrated that both K8 and K18a.1 contribute to the early development and postnatal repair of neural crest cell-derived ocular tissues.

Objective: Describe the clinical characteristics, treatment strategies, and outcome data of children with papilledema associated with Lyme disease at a large tertiary care pediatric hospital., Methods: Retrospective cohort study of children 1-18 years old who received care at our institution between 1995 and 2019 with concurrent diagnoses of papilledema and Lyme disease. Data were abstracted from records and prospective family surveys., Results: Among 44 children included (median age 9.7 years), 66% (29/44) had additional cranial neuropathies, and 78% (32/41) had cerebrospinal fluid pleocytosis. All children were treated with antibiotics (39% oral, 55% intravenous, 7% both); 61% (27/44) were also treated with oral acetazolamide. Symptoms fully resolved in 86% (30/35) of children with follow-up data. Proportion recovered did not significantly differ by antibiotic administration route or presence/absence of cerebrospinal fluid pleocytosis., Conclusions: Papilledema in Lyme disease may occur with or without cerebrospinal fluid pleocytosis. Most children recover without residual deficits following treatment, although exceptions exist., Competing Interests: Declaration of Conflicting InterestsThe authors declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Purpose: To determine if host urinary biomarker profiles could distinguish between tubercular uveitis (TBU) and other uveitic diseases (OUD) in patients with and without HIV infection., Methods: Concentrations of 29 different host biomarkers were measured in urine samples using the Luminex platform. Data were analyzed to describe differences between patients diagnosed with and without TBU and with and without HIV co-infection., Results: One-hundred-and-eighteen urine samples were collected and 39% participants were diagnosed as TBU+. Mean age TBU+ was 39.3±13.6 years with 45.7% males. Anterior and panuveitis and unilateral involvement were most common. 32.6% were TBU+HIV+ (median CD4+=215) while 40.2% were OUD+HIV+ (median CD4+=234). Only sVEGF3 was decreased in TBU+ versus OUD+ (p=0.03), regardless of HIV status. Some biomarkers were significantly raised in HIV+ TBU+ compared to HIV- TBU+: sIL-6Rα, CD30, sRAGE , sTNFR I&-II, IP-10, MIP-1β, sEGFR and Ferritin. HIV+ OUD+ had increased sVEGFR3, CD30, sIL-6Rα, IP-10, sTNFR I&-II, Ferritin and Haptoglobin compared to HIV- OUD+. VEGF-A (p = 0.04) was decreased in HIV+ OUD+ versus HIV- OUD+., Conclusion: Decreased urinary concentrations of VEGFR3 were observed in TBU+ compared to TBU-. HIV+ individuals demonstrated increased concentrations of multiple urinary analytes when compared to HIV- patients with uveitis., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors have no conflicts of interest to report., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

Aim: Despite promising results from technological therapies like intense pulsed light application, warm compress therapy is a mainstay in meibomian gland dysfunction (MGD). However, applying warm compresses (WC) to the eyelids is palliative rather than curative and not always dispensed with specific instructions. The range of eyelid warming treatments available and lack of clear directives for use creates uncertainty for patients accustomed to explicit dosage information. This report examines data from clinical studies across the past 20 years to identify effective protocols for three types of WC-hot towel, microwavable eye mask, and self-heating eye mask (EM)., Method: Literature search for studies on WC and MGD published between 2004 and 2023 in English was conducted. Studies wherein hot towel, microwavable EM, and self-heating EM were used in a treatment arm were included and those wherein they served only as control or were used in conjunction with another intervention were excluded. 20 resulting studies were separated into 3 groups: 5 on temperature profiles of WC, 6 with single application of WC, and 9 with repeated applications. Study methods and outcomes were tabulated, and a qualitative review was performed, attending to WC protocol and efficacy, as indicated by measures of tear film, meibomian gland health, and dry eye questionnaires., Results: Data from the aforementioned studies revealed that each method can achieve target eyelid temperature of 40 °C. A single application of WC-ranging from 5 to 20 min-can significantly improve tear quality, while repeated applications significantly relieve symptoms associated with dry eyes from MGD and, in most studies, significantly improve meibomian gland health. Hot towels, however, require frequent reheating to maintain eyelid temperatures above 40 °C, rendering them relatively ineffective in longitudinal studies. Microwavable EM retain heat well across 10 min and were found to improve tear break-up time and/or meibomian gland score. Self-heating EM have variable activation times and were typically applied for longer periods, showing benefits akin to microwavable EM in short-term studies. Studies monitoring compliance indicate greater deviation from protocol with higher application frequencies or longer-term use. Evidence suggests superior heat retention and therapeutic effects on specific contributing factors in MGD (such as Demodex) with moist-heat compress., Conclusion: Considering decreased patience adherence to therapy with increased usage frequencies, and balancing needs to provide succinct instructions for various compress types, an advisable strategy is for patients to apply a moist-heat generating EM (microwavable or self-heating) to each eye for at least 10 min, prepared according to manufacturer's instructions., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Purpose: To investigate whether patients with craniosynostosis exhibit higher rates of nasolacrimal duct obstruction (NLDO) and to explore potential risk factors., Methods: Retrospective review including all craniosynostosis patients treated at both the Divisions of Ophthalmology and Plastic, Reconstructive, and Oral Surgery at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia between 2009 and 2020 was conducted. Synostosis characteristics, lacrimal disorders, and genetic data were collected. Main outcome measures were the rate of NLDO and associations with anatomical and syndromic/genetic risk factors., Results: The total of 767 participants had a mean age of 2.8 ± 3.8 years, 465 (60.6%) were males, 485 (63.2%) had no syndromic association; 631 (82.3%) had one major suture involved, 128 (17%) had involvement of 2 to 4 major sutures, and 429 (55.9%) underwent craniofacial surgery. Forty-eight (6.2%) patients had NLDO, which more prevalent in the genetic/syndromic group (11.0% vs. 3.5%, respectively, p < 0.001), with the highest prevalence observed in patients with Apert syndrome (n = 4, 30.8%). The genetic variants most associated with NLDO were EFNB1 (n = 1, 100%) and FGFR2 (n = 6, 19.4%). There was no association between NLDO and the number or types of sutures involved or a history of craniofacial surgery., Conclusions: Nasolacrimal duct obstruction is more common in patients with craniosynostosis compared to the general population. Having a putative syndrome or a putative genetic variant and female sex were risk factors for NLDO. Ophthalmic evaluations for all craniosynostosis patients and careful assessments of any symptoms of tearing are recommended., Competing Interests: The authors have no financial or conflicts of interest to disclose., (Copyright © 2024 The American Society of Ophthalmic Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Inc.)

Background: Ocular inflammatory events following COVID-19 vaccination have been reported in the adult population., Methods: Multinational case series of patients under the age of 18 diagnosed with ocular inflammatory events within 28 days of COVID-19 vaccination., Results: Twenty individuals were included. The most common event was anterior uveitis ( n  = 8, 40.0%), followed by intermediate uveitis (7 patients, 35%), panuveitis (4 patients, 20%), and posterior uveitis (1 patient, 5%). The event was noticed in the first week after vaccination in 11 patients (55.0%). Twelve patients (60.0%) had a previous history of intraocular inflammatory event. Patients were managed with topical corticosteroids ( n  = 19, 95.0%), oral corticosteroids ( n  = 10, 50.0%), or increased dose of immunosuppressive treatment ( n  = 6, 30.0%). Thirteen patients (65.0%) had a complete resolution of the ocular event without complications. All patients had a final visual acuity unaffected or less than three lines of loss., Conclusion: Ocular inflammatory events may happen in the paediatric population following COVID-19 vaccination. Most events were successfully treated, and all showed a good visual outcome.

Purpose: Evaluating the presence of class 3, 4, and 5 genetic variants in inherited retinal disease (IRD) genes in patients with retinopathy of unknown origin (RUO)., Methods: Multicentric retrospective study of RUO cases diagnosed between January 2012 and February 2022. General and ophthalmologic history, complete ophthalmologic examination, antiretinal antibodies, and IRD gene panel results were analyzed in every patient. Four RUO categories were defined: nonparaneoplastic autoimmune retinopathy, unilateral pigmentary retinopathy, asymmetrical pigmentary retinopathy, and acute zonal occult outer retinopathy., Results: The authors included 12 patients (9 females) across these four RUO categories. Mean age at inclusion was 45.6 years (20-68 years). Seven patients demonstrated class 3 variants in IRD genes. Of these, two also demonstrated class 5 variants in other IRD genes. The remaining five patients had negative panel results. IRD gene panel analysis allowed diagnosis refinement in 1 (8.3%) nonparaneoplastic autoimmune retinopathy patient in the RUO cohort. When considering the nonparaneoplastic autoimmune retinopathy subpopulation only, a higher diagnostic yield of 20% (1/5 patients) was achieved., Conclusion: Every suspected nonparaneoplastic autoimmune retinopathy patient should benefit from gene panel testing to not overlook undiagnosed IRDs. By contrast, unilateral pigmentary retinopathy, asymmetrical pigmentary retinopathy, and acute zonal occult outer retinopathy subpopulations did not benefit from genetic testing in this study.

Background: Both the anterior chamber and posterior chamber phakic intraocular lenses (pIOLs) implantation are acceptable refractive surgical approaches in keratoconus patients with high anisometropia, contact lens intolerance, or who prefer spectacle and contact lens independent. They are beneficial for correcting anisometropia in stable keratoconus cases or following corneal procedures such as intrastromal corneal ring segments (ICRS), collagen cross-linking (CXL), and keratoplasty. They are suitable for eyes without advanced keratoconus with acceptable best-corrected distance visual acuity (BCDVA) or without highly irregular astigmatism, high comma, and higher-order aberrations (HOAs). Combined procedures for irregular astigmatism reduction and corneal regularization with either ICRS or topography/wavefront-guided transepithelial PRK (with or without CXL) can be associated in advance with pIOLs implantation to improve BCDVA in these cases., Aim: To study and report the evidence regarding the safety and efficacy of pIOLs for KC patients' visual and refractive rehabilitation, we have analyzed the scientific evidence published within the last 10 years (from 2012 onwards)., Results: No randomized controlled trials but only eleven retrospective case series and two prospective case series were identified. Satisfactory visual rehabilitation was achieved regarding uncorrected and corrected distance visual acuity (CDVA) and predictability of the refractive correction. Both types of pIOL (iris claw and posterior chamber pIOLs) offer very good results in terms of safety and efficacy with indexes close to or even exceeding 1., Conclusion: pIOLs implantation is a valid refractive therapeutic approach for correcting stable keratoconus with moderate-to-high refractive errors, especially anisometropia associated with regular or mildly irregular astigmatism, and good CDVA., Competing Interests: Declaration of conflicting interestsThe authors have no financial interest in any product or or instrument, or drug mentioned in this article. The authors have not received any contribution as consultants, reviewers for any of the devices, or instruments mentioned in this article.

Purpose: To report a case of progressive ischemic retinopathy and optic neuropathy in a patient with heavy chain deposition disease (HCDD), a rare form of monoclonal immunoglobulin deposition disease (MIDD)., Observations: Our case describes a 74-year-old woman diagnosed with IgG1 lambda HCDD. After treatment with daratumumab and intravenous IVIG therapy, the patient developed worsening ischemic retinopathy and optic neuropathy, neovascular glaucoma, and bilateral sequential vitreous hemorrhages, necessitating surgical intervention. We present multimodal imaging from the onset of ischemic retinopathy to end-stage maculopathy illustrated by optical coherence tomography (OCT) angiography. Despite discontinuing treatment with daratumumab and providing maximal ocular interventions to control the complications of neovascular disease, the patient's condition progressed, resulting in profound vision loss., Conclusions and Importance: Our case illustrates the potential for HCDD to cause end-organ disease, including ischemic retinopathy and optic neuropathy, possibly worsened by the patient's underlying cardiovascular risk factor status and medications. Daratumumab, a humanized IgG1 kappa monoclonal antibody that binds to CD38 used to treat specific blood cancers, has been reported to cause disturbances in retinal blood flow, including retinal artery and vein occlusions. It remains to be determined whether careful patient selection or dose adjustments and timing of HCDD treatments could protect vision by reducing the risk of these rare yet severe ocular complications., Competing Interests: Declaration of conflicting interestsThe authors declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Advancements in diagnostic methods and surgical techniques for keratoconus (KC) have increased non-invasive treatment options. Successful surgical planning for KC involves a combination of clinical science, empirical evidence, and surgical expertise. Assessment of disease progression is crucial, and halting the progression should be the focus if it is progressive. While surgeons used to rely on experience alone to decide the surgical method, comparing the network of primary factors, such as visual acuity, across studies can help them choose the most appropriate treatments for each patient and achieve optimal outcomes. Meticulous tabulation methods facilitate interpretation, highlighting the importance of selecting the correct surgical and rehabilitation approach based on each patient's condition and stage of the disease. We detail the outcomes of a comprehensive network meta-analysis comparing the effectiveness of various combined therapeutic refractive treatments for KC at identical stages of the disease, spanning 4 distinct follow-up intervals. Additionally, the comprehensive analysis suggests that for corneas with optimal best corrected visual acuity (BCVA) preoperatively (classified as regular), combining phakic intraocular lenses with intracorneal ring segments (ICRS) and corneal cross-linking (CXL) could offer the best therapeutic approach provided the disease stage does not exceed stage 3. For irregular corneas, although initial follow-ups show a significant difference in BCVA with surface ablation, longer-term follow-ups recommend combining surface ablation with ICRS and CXL, especially at higher stages., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest On behalf of all authors and as the corresponding author, I hereby declare that there has been no conflicting interests of any type, at any time during the conduction of this project., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Purpose: To report on the occurrence of postoperative visual axis opacification (VAO) in children younger than 5 years of age operated for cataract in Sweden, and to analyse correlations with age at surgery and surgical method., Methods: Data were derived from the Swedish Pediatric Cataract Register (PECARE). All children operated on between 1 January 2007 and 31 December 2020 were included. Follow-ups at 1, 2 and 5 years of age were analysed., Results: Cataract surgery were performed on 770 eyes belonging to 549 children (n = 282 boys, 51.4%); 327/770 (42.5%) of the children underwent surgery before 3 months of age and 216/770 (28%) before 6 weeks of age. Data on 881 follow-up visits were registered. At the follow up-visits at 1, 2 and 5 years of age, VAO was present in 154/349 (44.1%), 41/323 (12.7%) and 25/208 (12%). The majority of the children with VAO underwent cataract surgery before age 6 months, with a predominance before age 2 months. Primary IOL was implanted in 601/770 (78%) of eyes; 40.8% had an acrylic one-piece lens, 31.8% had a bag-in-the-lens IOL, 21.9% were aphakic and 5.2% had an acrylic three-piece lens. Implantation of a bag-in-the-lens IOL was related to a significantly lower occurrence of VAO compared to other types of IOL, including aphakia (p < 0.0002)., Conclusion: Our results are in accordance with the literature. Primary bag-in-the-lens IOL implantation before 2 years of age seems adequate and safe, with a low occurrence of VAO, and can thus be continued as routine in Sweden., (© 2024 The Authors. Acta Ophthalmologica published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Acta Ophthalmologica Scandinavica Foundation.)

Competing Interests: The authors report no conflicts of interest.

Purpose: An increase in fungal and particularly filamentous keratitis has been observed in many geographic areas, mostly in contact lens wearers. This study seeks to characterize long-term trends in fungal keratitis in a continental climate area to provide guidance for diagnosis and treatment., Design: Retrospective multicentric case series., Methods: Cases of microbiology-confirmed fungal keratitis from 2003 to 2022 presenting to tertiary care centers across Canada were included. Charts were reviewed for patient demographics, risk factors, visual acuity, and treatments undertaken., Results: A total of 138 patients were identified: 75 had yeast keratitis while 63 had filamentous keratitis. Patients with yeast keratitis had more ocular surface disease (79% vs 28%) while patients with filamentous keratitis wore more refractive contact lenses (78% vs 19%). Candida species accounted for 96% of all yeast identified, while Aspergillus (32%) and Fusarium (26%) were the most common filamentous fungi species. The mean duration of treatment was 81 ± 96 days. Patients with yeast keratitis did not have significantly improved visual acuity with medical treatment (1.8 ± 1 LogMAR to 1.9 ± 1.5 LogMAR, P = .9980), in contrast to patients with filamentous keratitis (1.4 ± 1.2 LogMAR to 1.1 ± 1.3 LogMAR, P = .0093)., Conclusions: Fungal keratitis is increasing in incidence, with contact lenses emerging as one of the leading risk factors. Significant differences in the risk factors and visual outcomes exist between yeast keratitis and filamentous keratitis which may guide diagnosis and treatment., (Crown Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Purpose: We investigated potential risk factors for visual prognosis in Japanese patients with exogenous endophthalmitis., Methods: In this retrospective observational multicenter cohort study, risk factors for legal blindness at 12 weeks after treatment initiation were evaluated based on patient characteristics, initial BCVA, causative events, pathogens, ocular symptoms, duration from symptom onset to initial treatment, and selected treatments., Results: Overall, 23.1% of eyes developed legal blindness. The six risk factors for legal blindness were presence of eye pain, pathogen identification, poor BCVA at the initial visit, longer duration from symptom onset to initial treatment, type of causative event, and type of causative pathogen. Regarding the type of causative pathogen, coagulase-negative staphylococci was associated with a better visual impairment outcome., Conclusion: Exogenous endophthalmitis remains a severe ocular infection; however, it can be managed with rapid treatment, as well as other advances in medical knowledge and technology.

Background: The clinical features of maculopathies and optic neuropathies often overlap: Both present with decreased visual acuity and variable loss of color vision; thus, maculopathy can be misdiagnosed as optic neuropathy, leading to patient harm. We aimed to determine what findings and/or tests were most helpful in differentiating between optic neuropathy and maculopathy., Methods: A retrospective chart review of consecutive patients over 4.5 years who were referred to neuro-ophthalmology clinics with the diagnosis of optic neuropathy but whose final diagnosis was maculopathy. Patient demographics, mode of presentation, clinical profile, complete ophthalmological examination, results of all ancillary testing, and final diagnosis were recorded., Results: A total of 47 patients (27 women) were included. The median age was 55 years (range, 18-85). Most referrals were by ophthalmologists (72.3%) and optometrists (12.8%). The diagnosis of maculopathy was made in 51.1% of patients at the time of first neuro-ophthalmic consultation. Only 6.4% patients (3) had relative afferent pupillary defect. Benign disc anomalies (tilted, myopic, small, or anomalous discs) were present in 34.0%, and 21.3% had pathologic disc changes unrelated or secondary to maculopathy. Macular ocular coherence tomography (OCT) was abnormal in 84.4% (with outer retinal pathology in 42.2% and inner retina pathology in 17.8%). Retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) thickness was normal in 82.6% of patients., Conclusions: Macular OCT is a high-yield test in differentiating between optic neuropathy and maculopathy and should be obtained in patients with suspected optic neuropathies who have normal RNFL thickness. Macular dystrophies, particularly cone dystrophies, unspecified retinal disorders, and macular degeneration were the most common mimics of optic neuropathy. The diagnosis was often present on OCT of the macula. The presence of coexistent benign and pathological disc anomalies may lead to maculopathy being misdiagnosed as optic neuropathy., Competing Interests: The authors report no conflicts of interest., (Copyright © 2023 by North American Neuro-Ophthalmology Society.)

Current approaches to developing artificial intelligence (AI) models for widespread glaucoma screening have encountered several obstacles. First, glaucoma is a complex condition with a wide range of morphological and clinical presentations. There exists no consensus definition of glaucoma or glaucomatous optic neuropathy. Further, training effective deep learning algorithms poses numerous challenges, including susceptibility to overfitting and lack of generalizability on external data. Therefore, training data should ideally be sourced from large, well-curated, multi-client cohorts to ensure diversity in patient populations, disease presentations, and imaging protocols. However, the construction of centralized repositories for multimodal data faces hurdles such as concerns regarding data sharing, re-identification, storage, regulations, patient privacy, and intellectual property. Federated learning (FL) has emerged as a proposed solution to address some of these concerns by enabling data to remain locally hosted while facilitating distributed model training. This article aims to provide a comprehensive review of the existing literature on FL in the context of its applications for AI tasks related to glaucoma., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier Inc.)

Background: Implantation of intraocular lens in the capsular bag has become the standard of care in aphakic state. However, in the absence of capsular support, several techniques and intraocular lenses are available. Our study aims to report the safety, efficacy, and clinical outcomes of transconjunctival intrascleral intraocular lens fixation with Yamane's double-needle technique and flanged haptics., Methods: Prospective, observational study with some retrospective data collection. The study enrolled 13 patients (16 eyes) who underwent transconjunctival intrascleral fixation of an intraocular lens with Yamane's technique between June 2017 and April 2019 at Dhahran Eye Specialist Hospital and King Fahd University Hospital. All patients underwent preoperative and postoperative comprehensive evaluation, including uncorrected and best-corrected vision, intraocular pressure, slit-lamp examination, dilated fundus examination, and ultrasound biomicroscopy. We excluded patients with visually significant coexistent pathology such as retinal diseases, glaucoma, follow-up less than three months, and combined surgery such as keratoplasty., Results: The mean preoperative uncorrected visual acuity was 1.50 logMAR, and it improved to 0.60 logMAR. The mean preoperative best-corrected visual acuity was 0.70 logMAR, and it improved to 0.40 logMAR. The median safety index was 2.0, and the median efficacy index was 1.58. The postoperative complications included iris capture by the intraocular lens in one eye (7.7%), haptic extrusion in one eye (7.7%), and transient cornea edema in one eye (7.7%). There were no detected reports during the follow-up period of postoperative retinal detachment, choroidal detachment, elevation of the intraocular pressure (> 25 mmHg), hypotony, hyphema, vitreous hemorrhage, or endophthalmitis., Conclusions: The transconjunctival intrascleral fixation of an intraocular lens is safe and effective with a short learning curve and was not associated with significant intraoperative or postoperative complications., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Purpose of Review: This review aims to summarize and discuss the ethical considerations regarding large language model (LLM) use in the field of ophthalmology., Recent Findings: This review of 47 articles on LLM applications in ophthalmology highlights their diverse potential uses, including education, research, clinical decision support, and surgical assistance (as an aid in operative notes). We also review ethical considerations such as the inability of LLMs to interpret data accurately, the risk of promoting controversial or harmful recommendations, and breaches of data privacy. These concerns imply the need for cautious integration of artificial intelligence in healthcare, emphasizing human oversight, transparency, and accountability to mitigate risks and uphold ethical standards., Summary: The integration of LLMs in ophthalmology offers potential advantages such as aiding in clinical decision support and facilitating medical education through their ability to process queries and analyze ophthalmic imaging and clinical cases. However, their utilization also raises ethical concerns regarding data privacy, potential misinformation, and biases inherent in the datasets used. Awareness of these concerns should be addressed in order to optimize its utility in the healthcare setting. More importantly, promoting responsible and careful use by consumers should be practiced., (Copyright © 2024 Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved.)

This study aimed to determine the difference in macular thickness among patients with diabetes mellitus (DM) with and without peripheral retinal vessel whitening (PRVW). PRVW was defined by retinal vessel whitening outside the standard seven ETDRS fields. Subjects were divided into DM with PRVW, DM without PRVW, and normal age-matched controls. Optical coherence tomography scans were divided into total, inner, and outer retinal layer thicknesses and were compared in the macula's central, inner, and outer rings. Forty-seven eyes were included: DM with PRVW = 15, DM without PRVW = 16, and Controls = 16. Overall, the mean retinal thickness in patients with DM with PRVW was lower than in patients with DM without PRVW and controls. In the inner macula, DM patients with PRVW showed a significantly lower mean inner superior, nasal, inferior, and temporal macula compared to DM patients without PRVW (p = 0.014, 0.008, 0.005, < 0.001, respectively). DM patients with PRVW also showed a significantly lower mean outer superior, nasal, inferior, and temporal macula than controls (p = 0.005, 0.005, 0.016, 0.025, respectively). This study demonstrates that PRVW in DM patients may be associated with global structural changes to the macular region, promoting a decrease in inner and outer retinal thickness. Further studies should investigate the functional correlation with PRVW in DM patients in order to better understand its potential implications in diabetic patients., (© 2024. The Author(s).)