Tiakumzuk Sangtam

Retinopathy of prematurity in Asian Indian babies weighing greater than 1250 grams at birth: Ten year data from a tertiary care center in a developing country.

Background: Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) is an important cause of childhood blindness in developing countries. Aim: To report the spectrum of ROP and associated risk factors in babies weighing > 1250 g at birth in a developing country. Setting and Design: Institutional, retrospective, non-randomized, observational clinical case series. Materials and Methods: Retrospective analysis (10 years) of 275 eyes (138 babies) with ROP. Statistical Analysis: Qualitative data with the Chi-square test. Quantitative data using the unpaired t test or the ANOVA and further tested using multivariate logistic regression. Results: The mean birth weight was 1533.9 g (range 1251 to 2750 g) and the mean period of gestation was 30.9 weeks (range 26 to 35). One hundred and twenty-four of 275 eyes (45.1%) had threshold or worse ROP. Risk factors for threshold or worse disease were, ′outborn babies′ ( P < 0.001), respiratory distress syndrome ( P = 0.007) and exchange transfusion ( P = 0.003). The sensitivity of the American and British screening guidelines to pick up threshold or worse ROP in our study group was 82.4% and 77.4% respectively. Conclusions: Severe ROP is often encountered in babies weighing greater than 1250 g at birth in developing countries. Western screening guidelines may require modifications before application in developing countries.

Laser treatment for retinopathy of prematurity through the incubator wall.

In this era of early treatment for retinopathy of prematurity, sick infants who develop aggressive diseases or remain oxygen and temperature dependent may be treated while they are inside the incubator itself, thus avoiding unnecessary delays. This article describes the treatment of eight infants with retinopathy of prematurity who were dependent on an incubator by using a laser indirect ophthalmoscope delivery system through the slanting transparent wall of the incubator. In this series, which is the largest to date, the relative advantages and disadvantages of the procedure are discussed.

Survey on the knowledge of age-related macular degeneration and its risk factors among Singapore residents

Purpose:  To assess the awareness of age‐related macular degeneration (AMD) and its risk factors among Singapore residents.

Prevalence of myopia in Danish conscripts: a response.

Goldschmidt E (1968): [On the aetiolog of myopia. An epidemiological study.] Acta Ophthalmol (Copenh) 98 (Suppl): 11–137. Jacobsen N, Jensen H & Goldschmidt E (2007): Prevalence of myopia in Danish conscripts. Acta Ophthalmol Scand 85: 165–170. Jacobsen N, Jensen H & Goldschmidt E (2008): Does the level of physical activity in university students influence development and progression of myopia? A 2-year prospective cohort study. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci 49: 1322–1327. Sangtam T, Bakthavatsalu M & Kah-Guan AE (2008): Prevalence of myopia in Danish conscripts: a response. Acta Ophthalmol [E-pub ahead of print]. Tscherning M (1882): Studier over Myopiens Aetiologi. [In Danish]. Thesis. Copenhagen: C Myres Boghandel.

Resolution of an abnormal preferential hyperacuity perimetry test result resulting from epiretinal membrane after successful surgical removal.

PURPOSE To report resolution of an abnormal preferential hyperacuity perimetry test result resulting from idiopathic epiretinal membrane after successful pars plana vitrectomy and membrane peeling. METHODS An observational case report. PATIENT A 51-year-old otherwise healthy woman presented with a gradual decrease in vision and metamorphopsia in her left eye for a duration of 3 months without any antecedent history of ocular surgery, trauma, or disorder. RESULTS The Snellen best-corrected visual acuity was 20/80 at presentation resulting from an epiretinal membrane on the posterior pole in the left eye. The preferential hyperacuity perimetry test was abnormal preoperatively but after successful pars plana vitrectomy and membrane peeling, the abnormality resolved completely. The final best-corrected visual acuity was 20/30 at 14 weeks postoperatively along with improvement in her metamorphopsia. CONCLUSION Epiretinal membrane can produce abnormal preferential hyperacuity perimetry findings that may disappear after its successful surgical removal. The preferential hyperacuity perimetry may be useful to monitor metamorphopsia in epiretinal membrane before and after surgery. Further investigation is warranted.

Eccentric macular hole formation associated with macular hole surgery

can comment on the true incidence of ocular motility dysfunction following this complication. Therefore, it may be misleading to conclude that ‘the migrating encircling band is not usually linked to ocular motility disturbance’. We suggest that it is important to consider migration of encircling elements in the differential diagnosis of diplopia in patients with previous scleral buckling procedures to ensure that important clinical signs are not overlooked in examination.