The role of microRNAs in pregnancies complicated by maternal diabetes.

With the global prevalence of diabetes increasing, more people of reproductive age are experiencing hyperglycaemic pregnancies. Maternal Type 1 (T1DM) or Type 2 (T2DM) diabetes mellitus, and gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) are associated with maternal cardiovascular and metabolic complications. Pregnancies complicated by maternal diabetes also increase the risk of short- and long-term health complications for the offspring, including altered fetal growth and the onset of T2DM and cardiometabolic diseases throughout life.

Interaction between Metformin, Folate and Vitamin B and the Potential Impact on Fetal Growth and Long-Term Metabolic Health in Diabetic Pregnancies.

Metformin is the first-line treatment for many people with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) to maintain glycaemic control. Recent evidence suggests metformin can cross the placenta during pregnancy, thereby exposing the fetus to high concentrations of metformin and potentially restricting placental and fetal growth. Offspring exposed to metformin during gestation are at increased risk of being born small for gestational age (SGA) and show signs of 'catch up' growth and obesity during childhood which increases their risk of future cardiometabolic diseases.

Quantification of the surgically induced refractive effect of intrastromal corneal ring segments in keratoconus with standardized incision site and segment size.

Purpose: To determine the surgically induced refractive and keratometric effects of intrastromal corneal ring segments (ICRS).

Setting: St. Paul's Eye Unit, Royal Liverpool University Hospital, Liverpool, United Kingdom.

The psychosocial effects of strabismus: effect of patient demographics on the AS-20 score.

Purpose: The introduction of the AS-20 strabismus-specific quality-of-life questionnaire allows clinicians to quantify the effects of strabismus on adults for the first time. We correlated strabismic patients' demographic and clinical findings to their AS-20 scores.

Methods: A consecutive cohort of patients from an ongoing prospective study of adults with manifest strabismus was recruited.

Ketamine and botulinum: a safe combinationfor the management of childhood strabismus.

Aims: To determine the prevalence of ketamine side effects in children receiving botulinum toxin injections for strabismus under ketamine anesthesia and to establish the prevalence, severity, and duration of ptosis in these children.

Methods: Children who had undergone ketamine anesthesia for botulinum toxin injections (1999 to 2006) to correct strabismus were identified in a retrospective review. A questionnaire to establish occurrence of nightmares, sleepless nights, hallucinations (ketamine side effects), or ptosis (botulinum toxin side effect), was sent to parents or guardians.

The psychosocial aspects of strabismus: correlation between the AS-20 and DAS59 quality-of-life questionnaires.

Purpose: To compare two quality-of-life (QoL) scales and subscales: the Derriford Appearance Scale 59 (DAS59) and the Adult Strabismus-20 (AS-20) scale in a series of strabismic and nonstrabismic patients and to illustrate the differences in results between strabismic and nonstrabismic patients.

Methods: The DAS59 is a self-report QoL questionnaire generating an assessment of distress caused by problems of appearance. The AS-20 is a newly developed strabismus specific QoL scale.

Modified Lundie loops improve apraxia of eyelid opening.

Background: Current treatments are unsatisfactory for improving apraxia of eyelid opening, defined as a delay or inability to open closed eyelids voluntarily in the presence of intact motor pathways.

Methods: Improvement in functional health was assessed using the Blepharospasm Disability Scale (BDS) in five consecutive patients with apraxia of eyelid opening treated with wire loops affixed behind ordinary spectacles (Lundie loops) and modified to provide pressure on the brow as a stimulus to keep the eyelids elevated.

Results: All five patients showed improvement in BDS scores.