Ref-1 redox activity regulates retinal neovascularization by modulating transcriptional activation of HIF-1α.

Retinal neovascularization impairs visual function and is a hallmark of several neovascular eye diseases, including retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) and proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR). Current treatments include intravitreal injections of anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) biologics, but these therapeutics are often accompanied by high treatment burden and resistance to therapy. Prior studies indicate that APE1/Ref-1, a multifunctional protein with both endonuclease (APE1) and redox-mediated transcriptional regulatory activity (Ref-1), activates multiple pro-angiogenic and pro-inflammatory signaling pathways by chemically reducing key cysteine residues in transcription factors, thereby activating them.

Recent advances in pharmacological treatments of proliferative vitreoretinopathy.

Purpose Of Review: Proliferative vitreoretinopathy (PVR) is a severe complication of retinal detachment and trauma, posing significant challenges to surgical success and visual prognosis. Despite advancements in vitreoretinal surgery, PVR incidence remains unchanged, this review presents a synthesis of the principal clinical and preclinical research findings from recent years.

Recent Findings: Recent research has focused on anti-inflammatory, antiproliferative, and antifibrotic agents.

An mRNA-encoded dominant-negative inhibitor of transcription factor RUNX1 suppresses vitreoretinal disease in experimental models.

Messenger RNA (mRNA)-based therapies are a promising approach to medical treatment. Except for infectious diseases, no other disease has mRNA-based therapies available. The eye is an ideal model for mRNA therapeutic development because it requires limited dosing.

Antivascular Endothelial Growth Factor Injections for the Chronic Treatment of Macula-off, Fovea-on Diabetic Tractional Retinal Detachment With Vitreous Hemorrhage.

To evaluate the use of antivascular endothelial growth factor (anti-VEGF) as treatment for tractional retinal detachments (TRDs) involving the macula. A case report was evaluated. A 40-year-old man with a medical history notable for congenital heart disease and proliferative diabetic retinopathy presented with decreased vision.

Clinical and imaging characteristics associated with foveal neovascularization in proliferative diabetic retinopathy.

Purpose: To assess the prevalence of foveal neovascularization (FNV) and its associated clinical features in proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR) eyes.

Methods: Cross-sectional observational study. Participants underwent ultra-widefield photography, optical coherence tomography (OCT), and swept-source OCT angiography (SS-OCTA).

Expanded Field OCT Angiography Biomarkers for Predicting Clinically Significant Outcomes in Non-Proliferative Diabetic Retinopathy.

Purpose: To evaluate the utility of extended field swept-source Optical Coherence Tomography Angiography (SS-OCTA) imaging biomarkers in predicting the occurrence of clinically significant outcomes in eyes with Non-Proliferative Diabetic Retinopathy (NPDR).

Design: Retrospective clinical case-control study.

Methods: Single-center clinical study.

Dietary Supplementation for Retinitis Pigmentosa: A Report by the American Academy of Ophthalmology.

Purpose: To review the evidence on the effectiveness of dietary supplementation for retinitis pigmentosa (RP).

Methods: A literature search of the PubMed database was last conducted in January 2024 to identify published English-language original research on dietary supplementation for RP. Eligible compounds included products ingested orally containing nutrients intended to supplement the diet.

Therapies for Central Serous Chorioretinopathy: A Report by the American Academy of Ophthalmology.

Purpose: To assess the safety and efficacy of the multiple therapeutic modalities for the treatment of central serous chorioretinopathy (CSCR).

Methods: A literature search of English-language studies in the PubMed database with no date restrictions was last conducted in May 2024. The combined searches yielded 612 citations, 31 of which were selected for full-text review and for inclusion in this assessment.

Impaired Visual Function in Posterior Vitreous Detachment Assessed With the Active-Learning Quantitative Contrast Sensitivity Function Test.

To investigate whether there is visual function impairment in patients with posterior vitreous detachment (PVD) using the active-learning quantitative contrast sensitivity function test. In this cross-sectional study, contrast sensitivity was measured in eyes with PVD and eyes without PVD using the quantitative contrast sensitivity function algorithm on the Adaptive Sensory Technology platform. Outcomes included the area under the log contrast sensitivity function curve, contrast acuity, and contrast sensitivity thresholds at 1 to 18 cycles per degree (cpd).

Targeting the Tie-2 Receptor With Faricimab in Central Serous Chorioretinopathy: A Case Series Motivated by a Genetic Finding.

Purpose: To investigate the effects of faricimab, a bispecific antibody targeting VEGF and Ang-2 (thus increasing Tie-2 activity), in patients with CSC based on a recent genetic study that implicated Tie-2 signaling in CSC pathophysiology.

Design: A retrospective interventional multicenter case series.

Methods: We included patients with chronic CSC (persistent or recurrent SRF for ≥6 months) who received at least one faricimab 6 mg injection between January 1 2022, and April 1 2024,.

Long-term Monitoring of Oxygen Consumption Rates in Highly Differentiated and Polarized Retinal Pigment Epithelial Cultures.

Mitochondrial metabolism is critical for the normal function of the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE), a monolayer of cells in the retina important for photoreceptor survival. RPE mitochondrial dysfunction is a hallmark of age-related macular degeneration (AMD), the leading cause of irreversible blindness in the developed world, and proliferative vitreoretinopathy (PVR), a blinding complication of retinal detachments. RPE degenerative conditions have been well-modeled by RPE culture systems that are highly differentiated and polarized to mimic in vivo RPE.

Longitudinal Assessment of Intraretinal Microvascular Abnormalities in Diabetic Retinopathy Using Swept-Source Optical Coherence Tomography Angiography.

Purpose: To longitudinally investigate the changes in intraretinal microvascular abnormalities (IRMAs) over time, employing swept-source optical coherence tomography angiography in eyes with diabetic retinopathy.

Methods: In this retrospective, longitudinal study, we evaluated 12 × 12-mm swept-source optical coherence tomography angiography centered on the macula at baseline and last available follow-up visit for (1) IRMA changes during follow-up, defined as (a) stable, (b) regressed, (c) obliterated, and (d) progressed; and the (2) development of new neovascularization (NV) and their origins. Competing-risk survival analysis was used to assess the factors associated with these changes.

Contrast Sensitivity Better Reflects Wide-Field Swept-Source Optical Coherence Tomography Angiography Vascular Metrics Among Healthy Eyes Compared to Visual Acuity.

Background And Objective: To evaluate the association between widefield swept-source optical coherence tomography angiography (WF SS-OCTA) and visual function in healthy eyes.

Patients And Methods: Fifty-seven eyes of 45 patients were evaluated with visual acuity (VA), contrast sensitivity (CS), and WF SS-OCTA (3 × 3, 6 × 6, and 12 × 12 mm images) on the same day. Mixed-effects multivariable regression analyses were performed.

Decreased Macular Choriocapillaris Perfusion Correlates with Contrast Sensitivity Function in Dry Age-Related Macular Degeneration.

Purpose: To investigate the relationships between contrast sensitivity (CS), choriocapillaris perfusion, and other structural OCT biomarkers in dry age-related macular degeneration (AMD).

Design: Cross-sectional, observational study.

Participants: One hundred AMD eyes (22 early, 52 intermediate, and 26 late) from 74 patients and 45 control eyes from 37 age-similar subjects.

Associations of quantitative contrast sensitivity with vascular metrics on widefield swept-source OCT angiography across stages of diabetic retinopathy.

Purpose: To investigate structure-function associations between contrast sensitivity (CS) and widefield swept-source optical coherence tomography angiography (WF SS-OCTA) vascular metrics across stages of non-proliferative (NPDR) and proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR), without diabetic macular oedema.

Methods: Prospective cross-sectional study in 140 eyes of 99 patients: 33 mild NPDR, 24 moderate/severe NPDR, 15 PDR, 33 diabetic without DR (DMnoDR) and 46 control eyes. Mixed-effects multivariable regression models to evaluate associations between quantitative contrast sensitivity function (Adaptive Sensory Technology) and vessel density (VD) and vessel skeletonised density (VSD) in the superficial capillary plexus (SCP) and deep capillary plexus (DCP) on same-day imaging with WF SS-OCTA (Plex Elite 9000, Carl Zeiss Meditec).

Treatment of Noninfectious Uveitic Macular Edema with Periocular and Intraocular Corticosteroid Therapies: A Report by the American Academy of Ophthalmology.

Purpose: To review the evidence on the effectiveness and complications of periocular and intraocular corticosteroid therapies for noninfectious uveitic macular edema.

Methods: A literature search of the PubMed database was conducted last in December 2021 and a post-assessment search was conducted in March 2023. The searches were limited to articles published in English and no date restrictions were imposed.

Effectiveness of Conventional Digital Fundus Photography-Based Teleretinal Screening for Diabetic Retinopathy and Diabetic Macular Edema: A Report by the American Academy of Ophthalmology.

Purpose: This American Academy of Ophthalmology Ophthalmic Technology Assessment aims to assess the effectiveness of conventional teleretinal screening (TS) in detecting diabetic retinopathy (DR) and diabetic macular edema (DME).

Methods: A literature search of the PubMed database was conducted most recently in July 2023 to identify data published between 2006 and 2023 on any of the following elements related to TS effectiveness: (1) the accuracy of TS in detecting DR or DME compared with traditional ophthalmic screening with dilated fundus examination or 7-standard field Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study photography, (2) the impact of TS on DR screening compliance rates or other patient behaviors, and (3) cost-effectiveness and patient satisfaction of TS compared with traditional DR screening. Identified studies then were rated based on the Oxford Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine grading system.

Assessment of Microvascular Changes After Rhegmatogenous Retinal Detachment Repair Using Wide-Field Swept-Source Optical Coherence Tomography Angiography.

Background And Objective: Our objective was to evaluate retinal microvascular changes and visual outcomes following rhegmatogenous retinal detachment (RRD) repair using wide-field swept-source optical coherence tomography angiography (WF SS-OCTA).

Patients And Methods: The study included 116 eyes of 111 patients with macula-off ( = 68) or macula-on ( = 48) RRD treated with a single successful procedure, 79 fellow eyes, and 183 eyes of control patients imaged with WF SS-OCTA (3 ×3, 6 ×6, and 12 ×12 mm images). Mixed-effects multiple linear regression models were used for statistical analysis.

Changes in wider field swept-source OCT angiography vascular metrics with anti-vascular endothelial growth factor therapy in central retinal vein occlusion.

Purpose: To investigate the impact of anti-VEGF therapy on vascular metrics in eyes with macular edema secondary to central retinal vein occlusion (CRVO) using wider field swept-source OCT angiography (WF SS-OCTA).

Methods: We included 23 eyes with macular edema associated with non-ischemic CRVO from 22 patients treated with anti-VEGF therapy (median number of injections: 5 [2-9]). Changes in vessel density (VD), vessel skeletonized density (VSD), and foveal avascular zone (FAZ) parameters were measured using WF SS-OCTA.

Retrospective Analysis of Perioperative Dexmedetomidine Use in Retina Surgeries: Impact on Postanesthesia Care.

Background And Objective: Dexmedetomidine (Precedex) has been linked to depressive hemodynamic effects and increased length of stay in the post-anesthesia care unit (PACU) when used in ambulatory phacoemulsification procedures. We aimed to determine the prevalence and impact of dexmedetomidine use during ambulatory vitreoretinal procedures.

Patients And Methods: This retrospective cohort study involved 9,666 adult vitrectomies.

Quantitative Contrast Sensitivity Function and the Effect of Aging in Healthy Adult Eyes: A Normative Database.

Background And Objective: We sought to establish normative quantitative contrast sensitivity function (qCSF) values in healthy adult eyes and investigate the effect of age on qCSF.

Patients And Methods: Healthy eyes underwent qCSF testing (adaptive sensory technology) and Snellen's visual acuity (VA). Descriptive statistics and mixed-effects multivariable linear regressions were evaluated.

Characterizing Macular Neovascularization in Myopic Macular Degeneration and Age-Related Macular Degeneration Using Swept Source OCTA.

Purpose: Visual prognosis and treatment burden for macular neovascularization (MNV) can differ between myopic macular degeneration (MMD) and age-related macular degeneration (AMD). We describe and compare MNV associated with MMD and AMD using swept-source (SS)-OCTA.

Patients And Methods: Adult patients with documented MNV associated with MMD or AMD were consecutively recruited.

The forgotten protection factor: A nationwide score-based assessment of motorcycle eye protection legislation.

Introduction: Motorcycle accidents cause millions of deaths and injuries globally. It is estimated that billions of dollars would be saved in the United States alone if safety equipment, such as helmets and eye protection, was ubiquitously worn. Legislation concerning eye protection specifically is understudied and poorly characterized.