Publications by authors named "Ljubo Znaor"

Accurate, comprehensive, and consistent reporting of adverse events is of great importance for treatment decisions in clinical practice and patient safety. Aiming to evaluate the completeness and transparency of reported adverse events we conducted a retrospective analysis of completed clinical trials on glaucoma interventions registered in ClinicalTrials.gov from September 27, 2009, and updated and with results on or before November 1, 2023, as well as in corresponding journal publications.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • * By using immunofluorescence staining, researchers analyzed the protein expressions of different connexins (Cx37, Cx40, Cx43, Cx45) and related proteins (Dab1, Reelin) at two embryonic stages (E13.5 and E15.5).
  • * The findings showed distinct expression patterns among the connexins, suggesting that these proteins might influence retinal development and could be potential targets for treating retinal diseases.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The goal of this research is to investigate the characteristics and surgical techniques for repairing rhegmatogenous retinal detachment (RRD) and their influence on anatomical and functional success of the treatment with a special emphasis on the economic costs and outcome quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) of the procedures. This retrospective study analyzed data from 151 patients with RRD treated at the Department of Ophthalmology, Clinical Hospital Centre Split, Croatia, in a 3-year period, using one of three surgical techniques: pneumoretinopexy (PR), scleral buckling (SB) or pars plana vitrectomy (PPV), followed-up for at least 6 months. Demographic, pre- and post-operative ophthalmic exam parameters and surgical technique used were collected accordingly.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Purpose: To investigate the impact of pseudoexfoliation (PEX) syndrome on intraoperative phacoemulsification (PHACO) parameters and assess the economic cost of PHACO surgery for cataracts in patients with and without PEX syndrome.

Methods: This was a retrospective quality register study on 5889 patients (6236 eyes) who underwent PHACO cataract surgery in the Eye Clinic, Clinical Hospital Centre Split, Croatia, over a 7-year period (May 2015 to December 2022), in accordance with the Guidelines of the Helsinki Declaration and approval from the Research Ethics Committee of the University Hospital Centre Split, Croatia. Inclusion criteria were patients with either presenile or senile cataract or cataract related to PEX syndrome who undertook PHACO procedure by the same experienced surgeon using the same PHACO device (Infiniti Vision System, Alcon Laboratories, Inc.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is the most common eye disease complication of diabetes, and hypovitaminosis D is mentioned as one of the risk factors. Vitamin D2 (ergocalciferol) and vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol) are the best-known forms of vitamin D. Calcitriol (1,25-dihydroxycholecalciferol) is the active form of vitamin D, with the sun being one of its main sources.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Purpose: To derive a Delphi method-based consensus for the surgical management of Full Thickness Macular Hole (FTMH) and Lamellar Macular Hole (LMH).

Methods: 37 expert VR surgeons from 21 mainly European countries participated in Delphi method-based questionnaire for diagnosis and treatment of FTMHs and LMHs.

Results: A total of 36 items were rated in round 1 by 37 participants, of which 10 items achieved consensus: intraoperative verification of PVD; clinical superiority of OCT-based FTMH classification; practical ineffectiveness of ocriplasmin; circular 360° ILM peeling for small macular holes; use of regular surgical technique for the size of the hole in concomitant retinal detachment; performing complete vitrectomy; SF6 gas as preferred tamponade; cataract surgery if crystalline lens is mildly/moderately opaque; removal of both ILM and LHEP in LMH surgery.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) is a critical cell monolayer forming the blood-retina-barrier (BRB) and a permeable bridge between the choriocapillaris and the retina. RPE is also crucial in maintaining photoreceptor function and for completing the visual cycle. Loss of the RPE is associated with the development of degenerative diseases like age-related macular degeneration (AMD).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) forms an important cellular monolayer, which contributes to the normal physiology of the eye. Damage to the RPE leads to the development of degenerative diseases, such as age-related macular degeneration (AMD). Apart from acting as a physical barrier between the retina and choroidal blood vessels, the RPE is crucial in maintaining photoreceptor (PR) and visual functions.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The expression pattern of the markers p19, Ki-67, MSX1, MSX2, PDL1, pRB, and CYCLINA2 was quantitatively and semiquantitatively analyzed in histologic sections of the developing and postnatal human eye at week 8, in retinoblastoma, and in various uveal melanomas post hoc studies by double immunofluorescence. The p19 immunoreactivity characterized retinal and/or choroidal cells in healthy and tumor tissues: expression was lower in the postnatal retina than in the developing retina and retinoblastoma, whereas it was high in epithelioid melanomas. Ki67 expression was high in the developing eye, retinoblastoma, and choroidal melanomas.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Purpose: To analyze the functional and anatomical parameters of lamellar macular hole (LMH) surgery with internal limiting membrane peeling and determine which surgical technique provides the best visual outcome.

Methods: This is a retrospective multicenter cross-sectional study on patients who underwent pars plana vitrectomy (PPV) for LMH with or without combined phaco-vitrectomy, as well as gas-, air- or BSS-tamponade. Pre- and postoperative examination included best corrected visual acuity (BCVA) measurements for functional comparison and optical coherence tomography (OCT) scans to determine the contributing anatomical parameters.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Rhegmatogenous retinal detachment (RRD) is a separation of neurosensory retina from the underlying retinal pigment epithelium. It is caused by retinal tears, which let fluid pass from the vitreous cavity to the subretinal space. Pars plana vitrectomy (PPV), scleral buckling surgery and pneumatic retinopexy are three accepted management strategies whose efficacy remains controversial.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Aim: To determine if preoperative treatment with a topical non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) lowers the concentration of intraocular interleukin (IL)-12 and the incidence of postoperative macular edema in patients with non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy undergoing cataract surgery.

Methods: A total of 55 patients were randomized to diclofenac (n=27) or placebo (n=28). Patients receiving diclofenac started preoperative treatment with 0.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Eye development is a consequence of numerous epithelial-to-mesenchymal interactions between the prospective lens ectoderm, outpocketings of the forebrain forming optic vesicles, and surrounding mesenchyme. How different cell types forming eye structures differentiate from their precursors, and which factors coordinate complex human eye development remains largely unknown. Proper differentiation of photoreceptors is of special interest because of their involvement in the appearance of degenerative retinal diseases.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Diabetic retinopathy is the fifth leading cause of blindness in the world. The aim of this study was to determine the number of blind persons in the Split-Dalmatia County in the 2000-2010 period and how many of them are blind due to diabetic retinopathy. Records of 160 members of the Association of the Blind in the Split-Dalmatia County, enrolled from 2000 to 2010, were retrospectively analyzed.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Unlabelled: Our aim was to present the ophthalmic anomalies in patients with Down syndrome in Split-Dalmatia County born from 1992 until 2009 year. It was a cross-sectional study. 153 children with Down syndrome aged 0-18 years from the Split-Dalmatia County were examined.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • Inflammation is implicated in diabetes progression, with interleukin 12 (IL-12) identified as a key pro-inflammatory cytokine.
  • A study involving 76 participants found that IL-12 concentration was significantly higher in the aqueous humor of diabetic patients with non-treated retinopathy compared to other groups.
  • The serum IL-12 levels did not show significant variation among the groups, suggesting local production of IL-12 in the eye rather than systemic changes.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Diabetic retinopathy (DR) represents the most common chronic complication of diabetes, and it is the leading cause of new cases of blindness in patients between 20-74 years old in developed countries. Laser photocoagulation (LF) represents an efficacious approach to the treatment of DR. Oxidative factors, such as free radicals (FR), are continuously generated in aerobic organisms as a result of different metabolic processes.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Tuberculosis is a world-wide public health problem which may clinically present in many different ways. Here we report on a patient with presumed serpiginous choroiditis (PSC) found to have latent ocular tuberculosis.

Case Report: The clinical history and physical examination, complete blood count, erythrocyte sedimentation rate, chest radiograph, fundus fluorescein angiography, tuberculin skin test, serological tests, and systemic evaluation carried out by consultant internist of a 42-year-old man with PSC were evaluated.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The aim of this study was to evaluate the possibility of evaluation of optimal hyperopic correction based on visual evoked potential (VEP) examination results in children that do not cooperate. There are relatively few studies that evaluated the correlation between visual acuity and especially in young hyperopes. We examined 80 children (160 eyes) with hyperopia, divided into two groups: children that were cooperative during examination and children that could not cooperate with the examiner.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

New estimates show reduction in the number of people who are blind or suffer from vision impairment as a sequel of infectious diseases, while there is an increase in the number of people who are blind due to conditions related to longer life span and diabetes. Diabetic retinopathy is the leading cause of blindness in active population in developed countries. Epidemiological studies evaluated the incidence and describe many facets of this disease the incidence of which is being followed in most countries.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The aim of the study was to show the relationship between phacoemulsification and extracapsular cataract extraction at University Department of Ophthalmology, Split University Hospital Center (assessing the length of postoperative hospital stay and postoperative visual acuity), during the 1997-2009 period. We also wanted to explore the tendency of using different types of intraocular lenses. The study was designed as a retrospective analysis of operative records.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Metastatic tumors are among the most common intraocular malignancies, and are exclusively localized in the uvea, 88% in the choroids. A 54-year-old male patient was admitted to Urology Department for macrohematuria. A tumor of the left kidney was found.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The aim of this study was to evaluate the usefulness of visual evoked potential (VEP) testing in detecting retinal ganglion cell damage in patients with Diabetes Mellitus type I (DMI). VEP arise before diabetic retinopathy signs become ophthalmoscopically detectable. VEP testing was performed in 45 patients divided into three groups; 15 children with recently discovered DMI, 15 children with long-lasting DMI, and 15 healthy children as the control group.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Amblyopia in children is a great problem that has to be identified on time and treatment initiated as early as possible to achieve optimal therapeutic result. Therapeutic success depends greatly on the children's parents' collaboration. It was the reason for us to embark upon this study to evaluate the parents' role in amblyopia treatment and their influence on the final therapeutic result.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF