Density and distribution of dendritiform cells in the peripheral cornea of healthy subjects using in vivo confocal microscopy.

Purpose: To establish in a large healthy cohort, dendritiform cell (DC) density and morphological parameters in the central and peripheral cornea using in vivo confocal microscopy (IVCM).

Methods: A prospective, cross-sectional, observational study was conducted in 85 healthy volunteers (n = 85 eyes). IVCM images of corneal center and four peripheral zones were analyzed for DC density and morphology to compare means and assess correlations (p < 0.

Scleral Contact Lenses in an Academic Oculoplastics Clinic: Epidemiology and Emerging Considerations.

Purpose: To describe the role and efficacy of scleral contact lenses (SCLs) in the treatment of progressive keratopathy in patients who have undergone periocular surgical procedures, to investigate the financial impact of these surgical interventions, and to demonstrate the role of oculoplastic surgery in improving scleral contact lens fit.

Methods: A retrospective medical record review was performed to identify patients who both received SCLs and were examined by the oculoplastics service at the University of Iowa between January 1990 and December 2015. Inclusion criteria also required a minimum of 12 months of patient follow up after being fit with a SCL.

Efficacy of an artificial tear emulsion in patients with dry eye associated with meibomian gland dysfunction.

Objectives: The aim of the study reported here was to assess the efficacy of an artificial tear emulsion for the treatment of dry eye associated with meibomian gland dysfunction (MGD).

Methods: At five clinics, patients completed a 1-week treatment with their habitual topical therapy and then a 4-week treatment with open-label study medication: Systane® Balance Lubricant Eye Drops (Alcon, Alcon Inc, Fort Worth, TX, USA). Subjective assessments included a preference survey, the Impact of Dry Eye in Everyday Life questionnaire, and the Work Productivity and Activity Impairment questionnaire.

Rapid image evaluation system for corneal in vivo confocal microscopy.

Purpose: To develop rapid image processing techniques for the objective analysis of corneal in vivo confocal micrographs.

Methods: Perpendicular central corneal volume scans from healthy volunteers were obtained via laser in vivo confocal microscopy. The layer in each volume scan that contained the nerve plexus was detected by applying software operators to analyze image features on the basis of their size, shape, and contrast.

Dendritic immune cell densities in the central cornea associated with soft contact lens types and lens care solution types: a pilot study.

Background: The purpose of this study was to assess whether differences in central corneal dendritic immune cell densities associated with combinations of soft contact lenses and lens care solutions could be detected by in vivo confocal microscopy.

Methods: Participants were adults naïve to contact lens wear (n = 10) or who wore soft contact lenses habitually on a daily-wear schedule (n = 38) or on a study-assigned schedule for 30 days with daily disposable silicone hydrogel lenses (n = 15). Central corneas were scanned using an in vivo confocal microscope.

Effects of fluorescein staining on laser in vivo confocal microscopy images of the cornea.

This study was designed to identify whether topical fluorescein, a common ophthalmic tool, affects laser in vivo confocal microscopy of the cornea, a tool with growing applications. Twenty-five eye care specialists were asked to identify presence or absence of fluorescein in 99 confocal micrographs of healthy corneas. Responses were statistically similar to guessing for the epithelium (48% ± 14% of respondents correct per image) and the subbasal nerve plexus (49% ± 11% correct), but results were less clear for the stroma.

Contact lens strategies for the patient with dry eye.

Dry eye is the most common reason for contact lens (CL) discontinuation, and the patient with pre-existing dry eye presents particular challenges to the CL fitter. Poor tear film quality/stability, oxygen deprivation, lens deposits, and adverse reactions to CL solutions all contribute to dry eye, and lid disease, allergies, environmental factors, and medications can further hamper successful CL wear by the patient with dry eye. Health and comfort of the ocular surface is affected by the water content, ionicity, oxygen permeability, and modulus of elasticity of the lens, as well as by surface characteristics, such as protein, lipid, and mucin deposition; protein adsorption; and wettability.