Proteomic Characterization of Corneal Epithelial and Stromal Cell-Derived Extracellular Vesicles.

Communication between the different layers of the cornea (epithelium and stroma) is a complex, yet crucial element in the corneal healing process. Upon corneal injury, it has been reported that the bi-directional cross talk between the epithelium and stroma via the vesicular secretome, namely, extracellular vesicles (EVs), can lead to accelerated wound closure upon injury. However, the distinct protein markers of EVs derived from human corneal epithelial (HCE) cells, keratocytes (HCKs), fibroblasts (HCFs), and myofibroblasts (HCMs) remain poorly understood.

Ocular tear fluid biomarkers collected by contact lenses.

Purpose: To collect tear fluid biomarkers from contact lenses (CLs) and determine the impact of CL wear duration.

Methods: Rabbits were fitted with commercial etafilcon A CLs, which were collected after 1 min, 4 and 8 h (n = 4/time point). Tear fluid proteins and cytokines were extracted from the CLs and quantified.

Development and Characterization of a Photocrosslinkable, Chitosan-Based, Nerve Growth Factor-Eluting Hydrogel for the Ocular Surface.

Purpose: Recombinant human nerve growth factor (rhNGF; cenegermin-bkbj, OXERVATE) is the first and only U.S. Food and Drug Administration-approved treatment for moderate to severe neurotrophic keratopathy.

Contact lenses as novel tear fluid sampling vehicles for total RNA isolation, precipitation, and amplification.

The tear fluid is a readily accessible, potential source for biomarkers of disease and could be used to monitor the ocular response to contact lens (CL) wear or ophthalmic pathologies treated by therapeutic CLs. However, the tear fluid remains largely unexplored as a biomarker source for RNA-based molecular analyses. Using a rabbit model, this study sought to determine whether RNA could be collected from commercial CLs and whether the duration of CL wear would impact RNA recovery.

Topical Sustained Delivery of Miltefosine Via Drug-Eluting Contact Lenses to Treat Acanthamoeba Keratitis.

This study aimed to develop a miltefosine-eluting contact lens (MLF-CL) device that would allow sustained and localized miltefosine release for the treatment of Acanthamoeba keratitis. MLF-CLs were produced in three different miltefosine doses by solvent-casting a thin miltefosine-polymer film around the periphery of a methafilcon hydrogel, which was then lathed into a contact lens. During seven days of in vitro testing, all three formulations demonstrated sustained release from the lens at theoretically therapeutic levels.

Doxorubicin-Loaded Extracellular Vesicles Enhance Tumor Cell Death in Retinoblastoma.

Chemotherapy is often used to treat retinoblastoma; however, this treatment method has severe systemic adverse effects and inadequate therapeutic effectiveness. Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are important biological information carriers that mediate local and systemic cell-to-cell communication under healthy and pathological settings. These endogenous vesicles have been identified as important drug delivery vehicles for a variety of therapeutic payloads, including doxorubicin (Dox), with significant benefits over traditional techniques.

Extracellular Vesicles in Corneal Fibrosis/Scarring.

Communication between cells and the microenvironment is a complex, yet crucial, element in the development and progression of varied physiological and pathological processes. Accumulating evidence in different disease models highlights roles of extracellular vesicles (EVs), either in modulating cell signaling paracrine mechanism(s) or harnessing their therapeutic moiety. Of interest, the human cornea functions as a refractive and transparent barrier that protects the intraocular elements from the external environment.

Bibliometric and visualized analysis of ocular drug delivery from 2001 to 2020.

Objective: To perform a bibliometric analysis in the field of ocular drug delivery research to characterize the current international trends and to present visual representations of the past and emerging trends on ocular drug delivery research over the past decade.

Method: In this cross-sectional study, a bibliometric analysis of data retrieved and extracted from the Web of Science Core Collection (WoSCC) database was performed to analyze evolution and theme trends on ocular drug delivery research from January 1, 2001, to December 31, 2020. A total of 4334 articles on ocular drug delivery were evaluated for specific characteristics, such as publication year, journals, authors, institutions, countries/regions, references, and keywords.

A novel, sensitive, and widely accessible besifloxacin quantification method by HPLC-fluorescence: Application to an ocular pharmacokinetic study.

Besifloxacin has been embraced for the treatment of ocular bacterial infections. While LC-MS/MS has been used in investigating BSF pharmacokinetics, those costly instruments are not universally available and have complicated requirements for operation and maintenance. Additionally, pharmacokinetics of besifloxacin in dose-intense regimens are still unknown.

Dexamethasone-Eluting Contact Lens for the Prevention of Postphotorefractive Keratectomy Scar in a New Zealand White Rabbit Model.

Purpose: To evaluate the safety and efficacy of an experimental dexamethasone-eluting contact lens (DCL) for the prevention of postphotorefractive keratectomy (PRK) corneal haze in a New Zealand White (NZW) rabbit model.

Methods: Both eyes of 29 NZW rabbits underwent PRK. The rabbits were randomized to one of the 5 study arms for 4 weeks: tarsorrhaphy only, tarsorrhaphy and bandage contact lens (BCL) replaced weekly, tarsorrhaphy and BCL for 1 week plus topical 0.

Steroid-eluting contact lenses for corneal and intraocular inflammation.

Ocular inflammation is one of the leading causes of blindness worldwide, and steroids in topical ophthalmic solutions (e.g. dexamethasone eye drops) are the mainstay of therapy for ocular inflammation.

Topical sustained drug delivery to the retina with a drug-eluting contact lens.

Intravitreal injections and implants are used to deliver drugs to the retina because therapeutic levels of these medications cannot be provided by topical administration (i.e. eye drops).

Latanoprost-Eluting Contact Lenses in Glaucomatous Monkeys.

Purpose: To assess the ability of latanoprost-eluting contact lenses to lower the intraocular pressure (IOP) of glaucomatous eyes of cynomolgus monkeys.

Design: Preclinical efficacy study of 3 treatment arms in a crossover design.

Participants: Female cynomolgus monkeys with glaucoma induced in 1 eye by repeated argon laser trabeculoplasty.

In vivo performance of a drug-eluting contact lens to treat glaucoma for a month.

For nearly half a century, contact lenses have been proposed as a means of ocular drug delivery, but achieving controlled drug release has been a significant challenge. We have developed a drug-eluting contact lens designed for prolonged delivery of latanoprost for the treatment of glaucoma, the leading cause of irreversible blindness worldwide. Latanoprost-eluting contact lenses were created by encapsulating latanoprost-poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) films in methafilcon by ultraviolet light polymerization.

Effects of molecular weight and loading on matrix metalloproteinase-2 mediated release from poly(ethylene glycol) diacrylate hydrogels.

Herein, we report on continued efforts to understand an implantable poly(ethylene glycol) diacrylate (PEGDA) hydrogel drug delivery system that responds to extracellular enzymes, in particular matrix metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2) to provide controlled drug delivery. By attaching peptide as pendant groups on the hydrogel backbone, drug release occurs at an accelerated rate in the presence of active protease. We investigated MMP-2 entry and optimized parameters of the drug delivery system.

Critical factors affecting cell encapsulation in superporous hydrogels.

We recently showed that superporous hydrogel (SPH) scaffolds promote long-term stem cell viability and cell driven mineralization when cells were seeded within the pores of pre-fabricated SPH scaffolds. The possibility of cell encapsulation within the SPH matrix during its fabrication was further explored in this study. The impact of each chemical component used in SPH fabrication and each step of the fabrication process on cell viability was systematically examined.

Functional outcome of multiligamentous knee injuries treated arthroscopically in active duty soldiers.

Purpose: To evaluate variables unique to our military population to determine whether we can be better predict functional outcome and return to duty of active duty military soldiers with multiligament knee disruption following arthroscopically assisted reconstruction.

Materials And Methods: Twenty-four active duty Army personnel who underwent arthroscopically assisted reconstruction of multiple ligament disruption by the same surgeon were enrolled in this study. Postoperatively, a standardized knee joint questionnaire was administered and current vocational and recreational status was evaluated.

Open scapula resection in beach-chair position for treatment of snapping scapula.

We describe a technique of resecting the superomedial border of the scapula for treatment of "snapping scapula." We have performed 5 consecutive open resections with the patient in the beach-chair position, and results have been good. This technique may be of particular benefit in patients who undergo concomitant glenohumeral arthroscopy.

Acetabular labral tears: diagnostic accuracy of clinical examination by a physical therapist, orthopaedic surgeon, and orthopaedic residents.

Background: Previous studies have shown military physical therapists (PT) to have comparable clinical diagnostic accuracy (CDA) and interobserver agreement to orthopaedic surgeons (OS). However, no studies have examined hip pathology or used intraoperative findings as the reference standard for diagnosis.

Objective: To compare the CDA of physical examination findings among a PT, an OS, and two surgical orthopaedic residents (ORs) for hip labral tears.

Arthroscopic versus open distal clavicle excision: comparative results at six months and one year from a randomized, prospective clinical trial.

The purpose of this report is to compare outcomes after arthroscopic versus open distal clavicle excision in the treatment of refractory acromioclavicular joint pain. A randomized, prospective clinical trial comparing the 6-month and 1-year outcomes of patients undergoing open distal clavicle excision (group 1) with those undergoing arthroscopic distal clavicle excision (group 2) was carried out. The Modified American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons form, visual analog scale pain score, Short Form 36, and satisfaction questions were assessed preoperatively and at 6 months and 1 year postoperatively.

Repair of the adult acetabular labrum.

Although hip arthroscopy is a new technique, indications for its use are rapidly expanding. With better utilization and understanding of both radiologic assessment of hip pathology and clinical examination, specific intra-articular derangement is being identified. Longitudinal, peripheral, and intrasubstance anterior hip labral tears can be repaired using anterior paratrochanteric and anterior portals with standard hip arthroscopy equipment.

Giant cell tumor: a case report of recurrence during pregnancy.

Study Design: Descriptive.

Objective: To report a case of a recurrent giant cell tumor (GCT) of the lumbar spine during pregnancy.

Summary Of Background Data: GCT is a locally aggressive tumor that primarily occurs in young female adults.

Treatment of infected tibial nonunions with debridement, antibiotic beads, and the Ilizarov method.

This study of 10 patients presents the early results of a protocol of debridement, antibiotic bead placement, and use of the Ilizarov method with a circular external fixator for treatment of infected nonunions of the tibia in a military population. The nonunions resulted from high-energy fractures in nine cases and an osteotomy in one. The Ilizarov techniques used were transport (five cases), shortening and secondary lengthening (two cases), minimal resection with compression (one case), and resection with bone grafting (two cases).

Functional rehabilitation for degenerative lumbar spinal stenosis.

Nonoperative treatment for lumbar spinal stenosis must address anatomic and biomechanical factors. The entire functional kinetic chain and patient specific goals must be considered. In addition to passive modalities, manual therapy, and patient education, an active program consisting of flexion-based lumbar stabilization exercises, hip mobilization, proprioceptive training, and general conditioning should be initiated.