Humanitarian missions and visual outcomes in cataract surgery: A literature review

The limited accessibility to ophthalmological services in remote regions of developing countries poses a significant challenge in visual healthcare. Cataracts and refractive errors are prominent causes of visual impairment, and surgery, despite being an efficient option, faces barriers in developing countries due to financial and geographical constraints. Humanitarian missions play a vital role in addressing this issue. The improvement in the accuracy of calculating IOL power through techniques such as keratometry and biometry is a fundamental step towards optimizing surgical outcomes and the quality of life for patients in these underserved regions. In this context, the consideration of keratometry and immersion ultrasound biometry as preoperative assessment standards in cataract surgeries in developing countries is presented as a pertinent and advisable strategy.

Budget impact analysis of the XEN®63 for the treatment of primary openangle glaucoma in Spain

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the economic impact in Spain derived from the introduction of the XEN®63 implant as a surgical alternative in the management of primary open angle glaucoma (POAG) with or without cataract in refractory patients.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A budget impact analysis was designed to estimate the costs of surgical treatment of POAG from the perspective of the Spanish National Health System (NHS), over a time horizon of 1 year. The comparators considered (trabeculectomy, deep non-penetrating sclerectomy, Ahmed valve, iStent inject, Preserflo® microshunt and XEN®45) correspond to those used in Spanish public clinical practice. For the calculation of the target population, market shares and resource use in terms of follow-up visits, additional procedures and post-surgery complications, data from the literature were used and validated with a panel of 4 experts. Unit costs (€ 2021) were obtained from the ESALUD database.

RESULTS

The inclusion of XEN®63 could generate savings of €2,569,737 after one year since its introduction, derived from savings in the cost of the implant and procedure (-€423,120; -0.7%), follow-up visits (-€777,407; -4.5%), additional procedures (-€1,048,145; -20.6%) and post-surgery complications (-€321,065; -14.2%).

CONCLUSIONS

The incorporation of XEN63®in the surgical arsenal for the treatment of refractory POAG with and without cataracts could generate savings for the NHS.

Repeatability and comparability of a new swept-source optical coherence tomographer in optical biometry

PURPOSE

To evaluate the reproducibility in the measurement of ocular biometric parameters using a new swept-source optical coherence tomographer and its comparability with an optical low coherence reflectometry biometer.

DESIGN

An observational, descriptive, cross-sectional study.

METHODS

45 right eyes of 45 patients diagnosed with cataract were included. Three successive biometric measurements with Anterion and one with Lenstar LS900 were performed on each patient. The following variables were collected: axial length (AXL), anterior chamber depth (ACD), flat K (K1), steep K (K2), central corneal thickness (CCT), lens thickness (LT) and white-to-white distance (WTW). The intrasubject standard deviation (S_w) and the coefficient of Pearson "R" were calculated in order to assess the repeatability. The intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) and the concordance correlation coefficient (CCC) were obtained to evaluate the comparability between devices. A Bland-Altman plot was performed for each variable.

RESULTS

The coefficient of Pearson was excellent and statistically significant in the evaluation of the repeatability in all the variables. The highest values were 0.987 (AXL), 0.983 (CCT) and 0.942 (ACD). There were no statically significant differences between repeated measurements with Anterion in all the parameters. The ICC and CCC were excellent in the evaluation of AXL, CCT and ACD, and were also good in regard to K1, K2, LT and WTW.

CONCLUSIONS

Performing biometry with the SS-OCT Anterion is a reliable and reproducible procedure, and it is comparable with the Lenstar LS900.

Citation network analysis of the various types of multifocal intraocular lenses

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE

The implantation of multifocal intraocular lens (IOL) has increased in recent years, allowing patients to achieve good quality vision at all distances, independence from use of glasses, and consequently, an increase in quality of life. The main purpose of this study was to analyse the links between publications and authors via citation networks, as well to as identify the different research areas and determine the most cited publications.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

The publication search was performed through the Web of Science database, using the terms «Multifocal intraocular lens», «Bifocal intraocular lens», «Trifocal intraocular lens», «Diffractive intraocular lens», «Refractive intraocular lens», «Accommodative intraocular lens» and «Extended depth of focus intraocular lens», for a time interval from 1989 to August 2020. The software used to analyse the publications was the Citation Network Explorer.

RESULTS

A total of 1293 publications were found, with 11,730 citations generated in the network, and 2019 had the highest number of publications of any year. The most cited publication was «European multicenter study of the AcrySof ReSTOR apodized diffractive intraocular lens» by Kohnen et al., published in 2006. Four groups about different research areas in this field were found using the Clustering functionality: visual quality, IOL designs, ocular aberrations, or defocus curves.

CONCLUSIONS

The citation network offers an objective and comprehensive analysis of the main articles on the different designs and classes of multifocal IOL.

Citation network analysis of the various types of multifocal intraocular lenses

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE

The implantation of multifocal intraocular lens (IOL) has increased in recent years, allowing patients to achieve good quality vision at all distances, independence from use of glasses, and consequently, an increase in quality of life. The main purpose of this study was to analyse the links between publications and authors via citation networks, as well to as identify the different research areas and determine the most cited publications.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

The publication search was performed through the Web of Science database, using the terms «Multifocal intraocular lens», «Bifocal intraocular lens», «Trifocal intraocular lens», «Diffractive intraocular lens», «Refractive intraocular lens», «Accommodative intraocular lens» and «Extended depth of focus intraocular lens», for a time interval from 1989 to August 2020. The software used to analyse the publications was the Citation Network Explorer.

RESULTS

A total of 1293 publications were found, with 11730 citations generated in the network, and 2019 had the highest number of publications of any year. The most cited publication was «European multicenter study of the AcrySof ReSTOR apodized diffractive intraocular lens» by Kohnen et al., published in 2006. Four groups about different research areas in this field were found using the Clustering functionality: visual quality, IOL designs, ocular aberrations, or defocus curves.

CONCLUSIONS

The citation network offers an objective and comprehensive analysis of the main articles on the different designs and classes of multifocal IOL.

Chronic fluid misdirection syndrome of aqueous humor after phacoemulsification: diagnosis, treatment and asscociated factors

The chronic fluid misdirection syndrome of aqueous humor is a rare and serious condition if not treated promptly. The case is presented of a woman attending the emergency department with an intraocular pressure of 43.00mmHg and shallow anterior chamber in her left eye. As clinical history of interest, she had cataract surgery in that eye several weeks before. Following the suspicion of malignant glaucoma, a capsulotomy and iridotomy were performed with an unfavourable outcome. For this reason, it was decided to perform a central vitrectomy, but the patient did not respond to this surgical treatment either. A second surgery was then performed with peripheral vitrectomy, anterior hyaloidectomy, zonulectomy, and iridectomy, obtaining good results. Finally, a decrease in intraocular pressure, and an opening of camerular angle were achieved. Thus, if malignant glaucoma is not resolved in medical consultation with iridotomy and capsulotomy, a vitrectomy, creating a unique chamber that restores the fluid mechanics of the aqueous humor, will be needed.

Plasma proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 9 inhibitors and cataract risk: A systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

The marked decrease in LDL-C levels produced by the inhibitors of the plasma proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 9 (iPCSK9) could be associated with an increased risk of cataracts.

METHODS

A meta-analysis was performed that included randomised clinical trials controlled with iPCSK9, alone, or in combination with other lipid-lowering drugs, which reported new cases of cataracts, by searching PubMed/Medline, databases of EMBASE and Cochrane Clinical Trials. A fixed-effect model was used, and a meta-regression was carried out evaluating the relationship between intra-treatment LDL-C and the risk of developing cataracts.

RESULTS

Five eligible studies of iPCSK9 including 83,492 patients were taken into account for the analysis, and 531 new cases of cataracts in iPCSK9 group vs. 532 in placebo group were diagnosed. The iPCSK9 therapy was not associated with an increased risk of cataracts [OR: 0.96, 95% CI: 0.85-1.08; P=.86, I²: 0%]. Likewise, no significant association was found between on-treatment LDL-C levels, differences between study arms, and new cases of cataracts.

CONCLUSION

In this analysis, the use of iPCSK9 was not associated with an increased risk of cataracts.

Lens density measurement with Scheimpflug camera in vitrectomised eyes

OBJETIVE

To determine whether vitrectomised eyes have a higher lens optical density, when measured with a Scheimpflug camera, compared to non-vitrectomised eyes.

METHOD

The peak and linear Scheimpflug optical density (DOS), and area of both eyes were measured in a sample size of 81 vitrectomised phakic patients. A comparison was made between the DOS of the vitrectomised eye lens and the contralateral non-vitrectomised eye using the Student-t test.

RESULTS

A significantly higher linear DOS and area was obtained in the 81 vitrectomised phakic eyes when compared to the non-vitrectomised eyes (P<.001). The peak DOS is not significantly increased in respect to non-vitrectomised eyes (P=.59).

CONCLUSIONS

The lens DOS in vitrectomised eyes is higher than in non-vitrectomised eyes. The importance of the vitreous in the maintenance of lens transparency is emphasised.