David Shoch

Cataract Surgery in Patient Who Sneezes-Reply

In Reply.— Drs Gross and Hoffer recommend phacoemulsification cataract extraction for the patient described in the original question. I would agree that an extracapsular extraction is safer for this man, and I would prefer it to an intracapsular procedure. The question as to whether phacoemulsification is safer than a planned extracapsular is somewhat moot. It is true that phacoemulsification can be done through a 3-mm incision, but since we all agree that an intraocular lens is appropriate, the incision would have to be enlarged to 7 mm to insert the lens. Planned extracapsular cataract surgery can be done comfortably through a 10-mm incision. There may be some advantage to an incision 3 mm smaller, but I do not believe this is critical. The essential point is the one with which we all agree—an extracapsular procedure would be safer than intracapsular extraction. As to general anesthesia for this patient, I agree

Histology of the Human Eye: An Atlas and Textbook

It is no exaggeration to say that there is no understanding of the function of that marvelous organ of primary sensory contact, the eye, without a detailed knowledge of its compact, elegant, and mysterious structure. For years the standard for this study was Salzmanns Anatomie und Histologie des menschlichen Augapfels , published in 1912. (Fortunately, for nonpossessors of German, an authorized English translation by E. V. L. Brown appeared the same year.) Since that time new textbooks have appeared—Duke-Elder, Textbook of Ophthalmology volume 1, Wolffs Anatomy of the Eye and Orbit , Duke-Elder, System of Ophthalmology volume 2—but these were in essence only Salzmann with color added or with photographs instead of drawings. Now is published the first really new book on histology of the eye in 60 years. It appears on the surface to be only histology as seen through the electron rather than the light microscope. However, even a casual

Applied Anatomy of the Eye.

The late Dr. Kestenbaum was known primarily for his interest in neuro-ophthalmology and his textbook on clinical methods of neuro-ophthalmological examinations has been a standard in the field for the past 15 years. It is now apparent that he was just as deeply involved in the anatomy of the end organ as he was in the central connections of the eye. This is a most unusual book. It is not a detailed study of ocular structures like Duke-Elder or Whitnall or Wolff but it is certainly more than a mere outline of eye anatomy. Perhaps it is best described as an architectonic approach to the subject, that is, an attempt to systematize the known facts and give them a physiological interpretation. To this end there is much more emphasis on structural and physiological optics than is found in the usual eye anatomy text. (This must have delighted Dr. Arthur Linksz