Comparative Evaluation of the Corneal Sensitivity Thresholds between the Novel Non-Contact and Cochet-Bonnet Esthesiometers.

Purpose: Primarily, to evaluate the repeatability and reproducibility of the new non-contact esthesiometer (NCE) in healthy subjects. Secondarily, the corneal sensitivity threshold measurements of the NCE were compared with those of the Cochet-Bonnet esthesiometer (CBE).

Design: Assessment reliability study.

Retinal transplant immunology and advancements.

Several gaps and barriers remain for transplanting stem cells into the eye to treat ocular disease, especially diseases of the retina. While the eye has historically been considered immune privileged, recent thinking has identified the immune system as both a barrier and an opportunity for eye stem cell transplantation. Recent approaches leveraging scaffolds or cloaking have been considered in other tissues beyond immune suppression.

Delayed presentation of surgically induced scleral necrosis after I-BRITE procedure treated with immunosuppressive therapy.

Surgically induced scleral necrosis (SISN) is an uncommon complication of ocular procedures. Cosmetic eye-whitening surgery involves conjunctival and Tenon's capsule dissection, cautery, and mitomycin C application. We report the case of a 36-year-old white woman referred to our clinic for severe pain, scleral inflammation, and necrosis in both eyes 9 years after I-BRITE, an elective eye-whitening procedure.

Open-Source Automated Segmentation of Neuronal Structures in Corneal Confocal Microscopy Images of the Subbasal Nerve Plexus With Accuracy on Par With Human Segmentation.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to perform automated segmentation of corneal nerves and other structures in corneal confocal microscopy (CCM) images of the subbasal nerve plexus (SNP) in eyes with ocular surface diseases (OSDs).

Methods: A deep learning-based 2-stage algorithm was designed to perform segmentation of SNP features. In the first stage, to address applanation artifacts, a generative adversarial network-enabled deep network was constructed to identify 3 neighboring corneal layers on each CCM image: epithelium, SNP, and stroma.

Ocular surface disease: a known yet overlooked side effect of topical glaucoma therapy.

Ocular surface disease (OSD), a disorder affecting the lacrimal and meibomian glands and the corneal and conjunctival epithelium, is a well-known complication of topical glaucoma therapy. OSD can present as a new or pre-existing condition that virtually any anti-glaucoma formulation can exacerbate. As such, both glaucoma and OSD frequently coexist.

Validation of the C-DU(KE) Calculator as a Predictor of Outcomes in Patients Enrolled in Steroids for Corneal Ulcer and Mycotic Ulcer Treatment Trials.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to validate the C-DU(KE) calculator as a predictor of treatment outcomes on a data set derived from patients with culture-positive ulcers.

Methods: C-DU(KE) criteria were compiled from a data set consisting of 1063 cases of infectious keratitis from the Steroids for Corneal Ulcer Trial (SCUT) and Mycotic Ulcer Treatment Trial (MUTT) studies. These criteria include corticosteroid use after symptoms, visual acuity, ulcer area, fungal etiology, and elapsed time to organism-sensitive therapy.

Increasing Rates of Herpes Zoster Ophthalmicus and the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Purpose: This epidemiologic study evaluates the variance in incidence of Herpes Zoster (HZ) and Herpes Zoster Ophthalmicus (HZO) within a single healthcare system with an aim to analyze their relationship to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods: All patients attending the Duke University Health System (DUHS) from January 1, 2018, to December 31, 2021, were included. General and COVID-related trends of HZO and HZ were analyzed based on new ICD-9 or ICD-10 diagnosis codes, compared with the total number of patients seen at DUHS during this period, and the number of reported COVID-19 cases in North Carolina obtained using the CDC data tracker.

Noxious effects of riot control agents on the ocular surface: Pathogenic mechanisms and management.

Riot Control Agents (RCAs) are chemical compounds used by law enforcement agencies to quell violent demonstrations as an alternative to lethal force and as part of police/military training. They are also known as tear gases because of the hallmark ocular irritation and lacrimation they cause. The most common RCAs include oleoresin capsicum (contained in Mace and pepper spray), chlorobenzylidene malononitrile, dibenzoxazepine, and chloroacetophenone (previously the main content of Mace); some of which have been in use for decades.

Fluorescein CorneoGraphy (FCG): Use of a repurposed fluorescein imaging technique to objectively standardize corneal staining.

Punctate epithelial erosion (PEE) is a corneal sign of dry eye disease (DED), which is observable via staining with fluorescein on slit lamp as a standard of clinical practice and clinical research. There are currently many limitations for detecting PEE, such as lack of optimal excitation with cobalt blue light, difficulty to focus on the whole cornea, observer dependency and no available automatized quantification. We propose to reduce these limitations through repurposing the use of fluorescein angiography mode of optical coherence tomography (OCT, Heidelberg Spectralis II, Germany), as “fluorescein corneography” (FCG) for imaging PEE.

Establishment of a bi-layered tissue engineered conjunctiva using a 3D-printed melt electrowritten poly-(ε-caprolactone) scaffold.

Purpose: To utilize melt electrowriting (MEW) technology using poly-(ε-caprolactone) (PCL) coupled with a 2-step co-culturing strategy for the development of a conjunctival bi-layer synthetic construct.

Methods: Melt electrowritten scaffolds using PCL were fabricated using an in-house-built MEW printer. Human conjunctival stromal cells (CjSCs) and epithelial cells (CjECs) were isolated from donor tissue.

Ocular Surface Inflammatory Disorders (OSID): A Collective of Systemic Etiologies Which Cause or Amplify Dry Eye Syndrome.

The ocular surface inflammatory disorders (OSID) are caused by systemic disorders that conduct a persistent inflammatory reaction in the ocular adnexal connective tissues, such as the conjunctiva, lacrimal gland (LG) and meibomian glands (MGs), which cause an inflammatory dry eye. The etiologies of OSID are a subset of systemic pathologies such as graft versus host disease, Sjögren's syndrome, allergies, cicatrizing conjunctivitis, and more. These cause a purely inflammatory dry eye syndrome as a consequence of the persistent surrounding inflammation in the adnexal tissues, which is distinct from the age-related dry eye disease.

A multicenter report of the use of plasma rich in growth factors (PRGF) for the treatment of patients with ocular surface diseases in North America.

Purpose: To investigate the efficacy and safety of plasma rich in growth factors (PRGF) eyedrops in the management of patients with ocular surface diseases in North America.

Methods: Multicenter interventional case series of patients using PRGF eyedrops for the first time. A cohort of patients was analyzed for corneal staining score at initial visit and at 3 months of therapy with PRGF.

C-DU(KE) Calculator: A Clinical Tool for Risk Stratification in Infectious Keratitis.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to identify characteristics of infectious keratitis predictive of poor outcome to develop a web-based predictive calculator.

Method: A retrospective chart review was performed at the Duke Eye Center. Two hundred fifteen adult patients with culture-proven infectious keratitis presenting between January 1, 2016, and December 31, 2020, were separated into a derivation set (136 patients, 53 positives; 83 controls) and a temporal validation set (79 patients, 26 positives; 53 controls).

Recognizing vitamin A deficiency: special considerations in low-prevalence areas.

Purpose Of Review: Although vitamin A deficiency (VAD) is rare in well resourced countries, there is a growing trend of VAD in at-risk pediatric populations. Early diagnosis is critically important to prevent its associated morbidity and mortality. This review highlights key lessons for evaluation, diagnosis, and management of children with xerophthalmia in the United States.

Diagnosis and Management of Idiopathic Persistent Iritis after Cataract Surgery (IPICS).

Purpose: To investigate the diagnosis and management of patients with idiopathic persistent iritis after cataract surgery (IPICS).

Design: Retrospective interventional case series.

Methods: Patients diagnosed with IPICS were evaluated for demographic and clinical characteristics and immune blood markers.

Understanding Immune Responses to Surgical Transplant Procedures in Stevens Johnsons Syndrome Patients.

Stevens Johnsons syndrome (SJS) is a mucocutaneous disorder caused by an autoimmune response most commonly to medications. Unless it is properly managed in the acute setting, this entity can affect the ocular surface causing chronic cicatrizing conjunctivitis with limbal stem cell deficiency and lid anomalies which ultimately result in corneal opacities that may limit patients' visual acuity. When this stage is reached, some patients might need to undergo some form of corneal and/or limbal stem cell transplantation that exposes an already sensitized immune system to a new alloantigen.

quantitative analysis of anterior chamber white blood cell mixture composition using spectroscopic optical coherence tomography.

Anterior uveitis is the most common form of intraocular inflammation, and one of its main signs is the presence of white blood cells (WBCs) in the anterior chamber (AC). Clinically, the true composition of cells can currently only be obtained using AC paracentesis, an invasive procedure to obtain AC fluid requiring needle insertion into the AC. We previously developed a spectroscopic optical coherence tomography (SOCT) analysis method to differentiate between populations of RBCs and subtypes of WBCs, including granulocytes, lymphocytes and monocytes, both and in ACs of excised porcine eyes.

Use of autologous plasma rich in growth factors fibrin membrane in the surgical management of ocular surface diseases.

Purpose: To evaluate the safety and efficacy of the surgical use of autologous plasma rich in growth factors fibrin membrane (mPRGF) in improving corneal wound healing and regeneration in a variety of complex ocular surface defects.

Methods: Chart review on 15 eyes of 14 included patients undergoing ocular surface intervention using intraoperative mPRGF at the Bascom Palmer Eye Institute and at the Instituto Oftalmológico Fernández-Vega was performed. Patients were grouped based on type of intervention or condition (penetrating keratoplasty, superficial keratectomy, neurotrophic or persistent corneal ulcers, and corneal perforation).

The cornea IV immunology, infection, neovascularization, and surgery chapter 1: Corneal immunology.

Purpose: of Review: This review offers an informed and up-to-date insight on the immune profile of the cornea and the factors that govern the regulation of such a unique immune environment.

Summary: The cornea is a unique tissue that performs the specialized task of allowing light to penetrate for visual interpretation. To accomplish this, the ocular surface requires a distinct immune environment that is achieved through unique structural, cellular and molecular factors.

Matrix metalloproteinase 9 positivity predicts long term decreased tear production.

Purpose: To investigate long-term correlations between Matrix Metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) testing and dry eye (DE) parameters. Additionally, to evaluate variability in MMP-9 results over time and with anti-inflammatory treatment.

Methods: Retrospective cohort study of DE patients with equal MMP-9 testing results (positive or negative) in both eyes and a minimum of 6 months of follow up.