Psychological aspects of living with an artificial eye.

Purpose: Artificial eye clinics address physical and aesthetic aspects of orbital prostheses, but psychological effects may not be formally addressed. In general, without effective coping mechanisms, stress can lead to anxiety and depression. This study aims to determine, in the context of having an artificial eye, whether coping strategies, as well as perception of illness and other demographic and clinical variables are associated with anxiety or depression.

The BElfast Retinal Tear and detachment Score (BERT Score).

Purpose: To establish a scoring system to triage patients presenting with symptoms of flashes and floaters to allow safe differentiation between those with retinal tears and detachments, versus uncomplicated posterior vitreous detachments (PVDs).

Methods: Prospective and retrospective audits of 153 patients presenting to eye casualty and vitreoretinal clinics to ascertain the clinical features most likely to be associated with retinal pathology, rather than simple PVD. We then developed a scoring system, which was applied to 160 patients in a further prospective audit.

Treatment of choroidal neovascularisation secondary to membranoproliferative glomerulonephritis type II with intravitreal ranibizumab.

Membranoproliferative glomerulonephritis type II (MPGN II) is characterised by electron-dense deposits of complement components in the glomerular basement membrane and retinal pigment epithelium. Approximately, 10% of affected individuals develop serious ocular complications similar to age-related macular degeneration such as choroidal neovascularisation (CNV), which has been managed with photocoagulation or photodynamic therapy; however, these treatments can impact visual acuity. We report the case of a 42-year-old woman with MPGN II presenting with decreased visual acuity and paracentral scotoma in her left eye due to an extrafoveal choroidal neovascular membrane (growth of new vessels under the retina).