Infection, oxygen, and immaturity: interacting risk factors for retinopathy of prematurity.

Background: Interactions among known risk factors for retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) remain to be clarified.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to identify risk factors associated with ROP and to explore the interrelationships between prominent risk factors for ROP.

Methods: From an institutional cohort of 1,646 very preterm newborns with gestational age <30 weeks or birth weight <1,501 g, we selected infants with a gestational age <30 weeks who met the criteria for ROP screening (n = 622) for a nested case-control analysis.

Cystoid macular edema without macular thickening: a retrospective optical coherence tomographic study.

Background: This is a retrospective observational case series of 37 eyes of 32 patients meeting the inclusion criteria intended to describe the appearance, prevalence, and associated risk factors for cystoid macular edema in eyes with normal foveal thickness and contour as determined by optical coherence tomography (OCT).

Methods: A retrospective review of all patients with macular disease who underwent OCT evaluation at the New England Eye Center from January to March 2007 and met the study inclusion criteria was performed. Optical coherence tomography scans were evaluated for the presence of intraretinal cystic fluid or cystoid macular edema but with normal retinal thickness and foveal contour.

Noninsertional Achilles tendinopathy: pathology and management.

Many patients present to their physician's office with the chief complaint of pain at the Achilles tendon. This review discusses the pathology, diagnosis, and treatment of Achilles tendinopathy. Achilles tendinopathy is generally caused by chronic stress to the tendon, leading to a defective arrangement of collagen fibers in the Achilles tendon.

Matrix metalloproteinase gelatinase B (MMP-9) coordinates and effects epithelial regeneration.

We studied the role of the matrix metalloproteinase gelatinase B (gelB; MMP-9) in epithelial regeneration using the gelB-deficient mouse. We report the novel finding that, in contrast to other MMPs expressed at the front of the advancing epithelial sheet in wounds of cornea, skin, or trachea, gelB acts to inhibit the rate of wound closure. We determined this to be due to control of cell replication, a novel capacity for MMPs not previously described.