Publications by authors named "Jan Kokavec"

Background: The vitreous is the clear jelly of the eye and contains fine strands of proteins. Throughout life the composition of this vitreous changes, which causes the protein strands in it to bundle together and scatter light before it reaches the retina. Individuals perceive the shadows cast by these protein bundles as 'floaters'.

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Background: To date, our understanding of the biochemical composition of the living human vitreous relies on extrapolations from animal or human post-mortem studies.

Methods: This was a cross-sectional study of vitreous samples from 27 individuals scheduled for retinal surgery within a tertiary hospital. From each vitreous sample, the concentrations of sodium, potassium, chloride, calcium, magnesium, glucose, lactate, β- hydroxybutyrate, copper, zinc, selenium, iron, ferritin and transferrin and osmolality were measured.

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The purpose of this letter is to highlight that postmortem interval estimates using vitreous potassium concentrations may be further optimised by calibration against antemortem vitreous samples.

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Variation in systemic hydration status, namely chronic systemic hypohydration or dehydration, can influence the development of several chronic non-ophthalmic diseases. Owing to the eye's high water content and unique system of fluid regulation, we hypothesized that hydration status may affect the eye in health and disease states. Therefore, we performed a systematic review of the current evidence implicating changes in hydration and their association with ocular physiology and morphological characteristics.

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