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In this article in a generalization of our previous work (Farajollahi and Milani in Mod. Phys. Lett. A 25:2349-2362, ), we investigate the dynamics of the non-local F( R) gravity after casting it into local form. The non-singular bouncing behavior and quintom model of dark energy are achieved without involving negative kinetic energy fields. Two cosmological tests are performed to constrain the model parameters. In case of phantom crossing the distance modulus predicted by the model best-fits the observational data. In comparison with the CPL parametrization for drift velocity, the model in some redshift intervals is in good agreement with the data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Breast cancer is the most prevalent malignancy in females which needs chemotherapy treatment. Studies demonstrated that anti-cancer agents used for chemotherapy in cancer patient causes endothelium dysfunction. Several researches showed the efficacy of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors, Carvedilol and Spironolactone on improving endothelial function. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of the combination of Spironolactone, Carvedilol, and Captopril on endothelial function in breast cancer patients., Materials and Methods: This study is a prospective Randomized Clinical Trial in breast cancer patients who underwent chemotherapy. Patients were divided into two groups who received the combination of Captopril, Spironolactone, and Carvedilol or standard regimen for 3 months during chemotherapy. Before and after intervention, ejection fraction (EF), E/A ratio and e' and flow-mediated dilation (FMD) properties were calculated and then compared., Results: Fifty-eight patients with a mean age of 47.57 ± 9.46 years were evaluated. The mean FMD after the intervention is statistically different in case and controls (<0.001). E/A ratio and e' are not statistically different between groups after intervention. The mean EF was not statistically different between the two groups after intervention., Conclusion: Prescribing combination of Carvedilol, Spironolactone, and Captopril in breast cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy can improve endothelial function and may have beneficial effects on diastolic function., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright: © 2023 Advanced Biomedical Research.)

Purpose: To evaluate the role of monocanalicular intubation (MCI) in congenital nasolacrimal duct obstruction (CNLDO) in children older than 5 years of age., Methods: A retrospective case series study was done on children over 5 years of age diagnosed with CNLDO who underwent MCI. Success rates were evaluated subjectively by asking their parents about persistent symptoms and objectively using the dye disappearance test in clinical examination., Results: A total of 43 eyes of 37 patients with a mean age of 7.42 ± 2.33 (range, 5-15 years of age) were included. The success rate was 60.46%, and the rate of secondary surgical intervention was 25% of all cases (61.11% of failed cases)., Conclusion: Primary MCI maintains a reasonable success rate in incomplete complicated CNLDO regardless of age., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright: © 2022 Journal of Current Ophthalmology.)

Background: To assess the impact of brachytherapy on macular microvasculature utilizing optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) in treated choroidal melanoma., Methods: In this retrospective observational case series, we reviewed the recorded data of the patients with unilateral extramacular choroidal melanoma treated with ruthenium - 106 ( 106 Ru) plaque radiotherapy with a follow-up period of more than 6 months. Automatically measured OCTA retinal parameters were analysed after image processing., Results: Thirty-one eyes of 31 patients with the mean age of 51.1 years were recruited. Six eyes had no radiation maculopathy (RM). From 25 eyes with RM, nine eyes (36%) revealed a burnout macular microvasculature with imperceptible vascular details. Twenty-one non-irradiated fellow eyes from the enrolled patients were considered as the control group. Foveal and optic disc radiation dose had the highest value to predict the burnout pattern (ROC, AUC: 0.763, 0.727). Superficial and deep foveal avascular zone (FAZ) were larger in irradiated eyes in comparison to non-irradiated fellow eyes (1629 μm 2 vs. 428 μm 2 , P = 0.005; 1837 μm 2 vs 268 μm 2 , P = 0.021; respectively). Foveal and parafoveal vascular area density (VAD) and vascular skeleton density (VSD) in both superficial and deep capillary plexus (SCP and DCP) were decreased in all irradiated eyes in comparison with non-irradiated fellow eyes (P < 0.001). Compared with non-irradiated fellow eyes, irradiated eyes without RM had significantly lower VAD and VSD at foveal and parafoveal DCP (all P < 0.02). However, these differences at SCP were not statistically significant., Conclusion: The OCTA is a valuable tool for evaluating RM. Initial subclinical microvascular insult after 106 Ru brachytherapy is more likely to occur in DCP. The deep FAZ area was identified as a more critical biomarker of BCVA than superficial FAZ in these patients., (© 2021. The Author(s).)

Objectives: To report the spectrum and trends of isolated microorganisms and their antibiotic susceptibility profile in patients with infectious keratitis in a 6-year period at a referral centre in Tehran., Methods: The microbiology records of all corneal scrapings with a diagnosis of infectious keratitis were reviewed., Results: A total of 6282 corneal scrapings were performed during the study period, of which 2479 (39.5%) samples were culture positive. Pseudomonas aeruginosa was found to be the most common causative agent in patients with keratitis, although Streptococcus pneumonia was the most prevalently isolated microorganism in patients older than 50 years. Fusarium sp. was the most common responsible pathogen in patients with fungal keratitis. The prevalence of bacterial keratitis due to gram positive microorganisms increased over time, however the number of Pseudomonas keratitis decreased in the second half of the study. Gram negative organisms showed a good sensitivity to levofloxacin, however, 34.1% of S. aureus isolates and 29.7% of coagulase negative staphylococci were resistant to this antibiotic. The odds of ciprofloxacin and levofloxacin resistance increased 1.25 and 1.15 for each 1-year increase in culture date, respectively (P < 0.001, P = 0.004)., Conclusions: We documented an increasing trend in the percentage of gram positive bacteria. Levofloxacin monotherapy might still be a good option in patients with gram negative bacterial keratitis, however owing to increasing resistance of staphylococci to fluoroquinolones, a regimen consisting of a combination of fortified antibiotics may be more effective in staphylococcal keratitis., (© 2021. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to The Royal College of Ophthalmologists.)

Background: To evaluate the changes of macular vascular density in the superficial capillary (SCP) and the deep capillary plexus (DCP), foveal avascular area (FAZ), choroidal flow, and macular thickness after pan-retinal photocoagulation (PRP)., Methods: In this prospective interventional non-comparative case series, patients with very severe nonproliferative (NPDR) and early proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR) and no significant macular edema who were candidates for pan-retinal photocoagulation underwent measurement of corrected distance visual acuity (CDVA), optical coherence tomography (OCT), Optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) at the baseline, 1, and 6 months following completion of PRP treatment., Results: Thirty-nine eyes from 21 patients with diabetes were enrolled. Superficial and deep capillary plexus densities in the foveal and parafoveal area didn't change significantly 1 and 6 months post-PRP ( p  > 0.1 in all of them). The FAZ area constricted 6 months following PRP ( p  = 0.075). Based on the calculated circularity index, the FAZ became significantly more circular after 6 months of follow-up ( p  = 0.047). Although the choroidal flow area increased after PRP this increase wasn't statically significant neither at 1 month nor at 6 months post-PRP ( p  = 0.31 and 0.23, respectively)., Conclusion: Although OCTA parameters were not significantly affected by PRP at both short-term (1 month) and long-term (6 months) follow-ups, the FAZ area became significantly circular after PRP may be due to redistribution of blood flow in hypoperfused foveal capillary plexus.

Acanthamoeba keratitis is a serious infection of the eye that can result in permanent visual impairment or blindness, caused by free-living amoebae of the genus Acanthamoeba. Early diagnosis is necessary for effective treatment of Acanthamoeba keratitis. Acanthamoeba is abundant in nature and can be found in water, soil, and air. Acanthamoeba keratitis is usually diagnosed by culture from a scraping of the eye or by confocal microscopy. In this paper, two complicated Acanthamoeba keratitis cases are reported.

Purpose: To evaluate the changes on optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) in macula-off rhegmatogenous retinal detachments (RRD) treated with pars plana vitrectomy (PPV) and silicone oil (SO) 5000-cSt tamponade., Materials and Method: Forty-five eyes with macula-off RRD treated with PPV and SO tamponade were enrolled with the fellow eye being used as a control. OCT-A was obtained using the RTVue XR 100 Avanti (Optovue, Inc., Fremont, CA, USA) at the 1-week, 1-month, and 3-month postoperative visit. Retinal vascular density, choroidal flow area, retinal thickness, and foveal avascular zone area were evaluated at each follow-up visit. Changes in these parameters in the postoperative eye were tracked at each follow-up visit as were the relative differences between the postoperative eye and the contralateral eye., Results: Vascular density of parafoveal superficial capillary plexus and total retina demonstrated significant decrease in the postoperative silicone-filled eye when compared to the fellow eye (P < 0.0001). Although there was some improvement in these values at subsequent follow-ups, they remained less than the fellow eye. Foveal (P = 0.002) and parafoveal (P < 0.0001) thickness were less than the fellow eye. Choroidal flow area did not show a significant change in operated eye compared with the fellow eye., Conclusion: Eyes with macula-off RRD repaired with PPV and SO, at 3-month follow-up, demonstrated less retinal vascular density at parafoveal area as well as lower retinal thickness at fovea when compared to the healthy fellow eyes.

Purpose: A comprehensive review in congenital cataract management can guide general ophthalmologists in managing such a difficult situation which remains a significant cause of preventable childhood blindness. This review will focus on surgical management, postoperative complications, and intraocular lens (IOL)-related controversies., Methods: Electrical records of PubMed, Medline, Google Scholar, and Web of Science from January 1980 to August 2017 were explored using a combination of keywords: "Congenital", "Pediatric", "Childhood", "Cataract", "Lens opacity", "Management", "Surgery", "Complication", "Visual rehabilitation", and "Lensectomy". A total number of 109 articles were selected for the review process., Results: This review article suggests that lens opacity obscuring the red reflex in preverbal children and visual acuity of less than 20/40 is an absolute indication for lens aspiration. For significant lens opacity that leads to a considerable risk of amblyopia, cataract surgery is recommended at 6 weeks of age for unilateral cataract and between 6 and 8 weeks of age for bilateral cases. The recommended approach in operation is lens aspiration via vitrector and posterior capsulotomy and anterior vitrectomy in children younger than six years, and IOL implantation could be considered in patients older than one year. Most articles suggested hydrophobic foldable acrylic posterior chamber intraocular lens (PCIOL) for pediatrics because of lower postoperative inflammation. Regarding the continuous ocular growth and biometric changes in pediatric patients, under correction of IOL power based on the child's age is an acceptable approach. Considering the effects of early and late postoperative complications on the visual outcome, timely detection, and management are of a pivotal importance. In the end, the main parts of post-operation visual rehabilitation are a refractive correction, treatment of concomitant amblyopia, and bifocal correction for children in school age., Conclusions: The management of congenital cataracts stands to challenge for most surgeons because of visual development and ocular growth. Children undergoing cataract surgery must be followed lifelong for proper management of early and late postoperative complications. IOL implantation for infants less than 1 year is not recommended, and IOL insertion for children older than 2 years with sufficient capsular support is advised.