Risk factors for severe retinopathy of prematurity stratified by birth weight and gestational age in privately insured infants.

Purpose: To evaluate risk factors associated with severe retinopathy of prematurity ROP (sROP) in two separate cohorts of infants.

Methods: We performed a retrospective study of the Merative MarketScan Commercial Database between 2003 and 2022. Infants with ROP were stratified into two cohorts: group A (defined as infants with both birth weight [BW] <1000 g and gestational age [GA] <29 weeks) and group B (defined as infants with either BW ≥1000 g or GA ≥29 weeks).

Project GIVE: using a virtual genetics service platform to reduce health inequities and improve access to genomic care in an underserved region of Texas.

Background: The utilization of genomic information to improve health outcomes is progressively becoming more common in clinical practice. Nonetheless, disparities persist in accessing genetic services among ethnic minorities, individuals with low socioeconomic status, and other vulnerable populations. The Rio Grande Valley (RGV) at the Texas-Mexico border is predominantly Hispanic/Latino with a high poverty rate and very limited access to genetic services.

The association between developmental delay and endophthalmitis after pediatric cataract surgery using an insurance claims database.

Purpose: To evaluate risk factors for postoperative endophthalmitis in pediatric cataract surgery based on an analysis of a large insurance claims database.

Methods: We retrospectively analyzed pediatric (0-18 years) cataract surgeries from the IBM MarketScan Research Database from 2004 to 2017. Suspect cases of endophthalmitis were identified by International Classification of Diseases codes; confirmed cases, by Current Procedural Terminology codes within 7 days of diagnosis.

Bevacizumab for Retinopathy of Prematurity Is Not Associated With Systemic Hypertension.

Purpose: To evaluate for an association between systemic hypertension and intravitreal bevacizumab (IVB) for retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) treatment, due to a 2020 case report of a neonate with ROP developing systemic hypertension and posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome (PRES) after IVB and limited data on long-term safety of IVB.

Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted using vital signs for 90 days, comparing IVB to laser treatment. The primary outcome was short-term hypertension, recorded for at least 3 consecutive days following treatment.

The impact of a multidisciplinary intervention to reduce severe retinopathy of prematurity in Kampala, Uganda.

Background: To address the threat of retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), the Stop Infant Blindness in Africa (SIBA) project introduced a comprehensive program, including subspecialty training and oxygen management equipment.

Methods: A before-and-after retrospective cohort study compared preterm infants < 1750 g or < 34 weeks' gestation before (2022) and after (2023) program implementation. Outcomes included: the proportion with severe ROP, the proportion with Zone III vascularization on first examination, and factors associated with severe ROP.

The Creation and Circulation of Evidence and Knowledge in American Medicine through the Lens of the "Husband's Stitch".

Physicians in the twentieth century routinely used episiotomy-a cut made during childbirth-to better facilitate labor, using the evidence of their experiences that it was useful. But physicians were not alone in producing evidence regarding episiotomy and its repair. Here I consider how three groups-male physicians, husbands, and laboring women-were involved in creating evidence and circulating knowledge about episiotomies, specifically, the intention of its repair, the so-called "husband's stitch," to sexually benefit men.

Use of an Artificial Intelligence-Generated Vascular Severity Score Improved Plus Disease Diagnosis in Retinopathy of Prematurity.

Purpose: To evaluate whether providing clinicians with an artificial intelligence (AI)-based vascular severity score (VSS) improves consistency in the diagnosis of plus disease in retinopathy of prematurity (ROP).

Design: Multireader diagnostic accuracy imaging study.

Participants: Eleven ROP experts, 9 of whom had been in practice for 10 years or more.

Stability of the Motor Optimality Score Revised (MOS-R) in medically complex infants.

Background: The Motor Optimality Score-Revised (MOS-R) is a clinical test of infant spontaneous movement at 3-5 months of age and has been associated with neurodevelopmental outcomes in infants with medical complexity. However the stability of the MOS-R tested at different developmental ages is not yet known.

Aim: To determine if the repeated scoring of the MOS-R remained consistent when tested at two developmental ages in young infants.

Assessing Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) Graduates Across Varied Settings: A Study on the Feasibility of the Baby Moves App.

We assessed the feasibility of obtaining parent-collected General Movement Assessment videos using the Baby Moves app. Among 261 participants from 4 Chicago NICUs, 70% submitted videos. Families living in higher areas of childhood opportunity used the app more than those from areas of lower opportunity.

Racial Differences in Choroidal Vascularity Index in Healthy Patients: Novel Insights.

Background And Objective: Choroidal vascularity index (CVI) measures the ratio of blood vessels in the choroid to the total choroidal area. We aimed to compare CVI between young Black and White patients without a history of ocular or systemic disease.

Patients And Methods: We used a previously validated algorithm for shadow compensation and choroidal vessel binarization to measure CVI across the Early Treatment of Diabetic Retinopathy Study grid.

Reducing Time to Diagnosis of Rare Genetic Diseases in a Medically Underserved Hispanic Population- Lessons Learned for Meaningful Engagement.

Background: The utilization of genomic information to improve health outcomes is progressively becoming more common in clinical practice. Nonetheless, disparities persist in accessing genetic services among ethnic minorities, individuals with low socioeconomic status, and other vulnerable populations. The Rio Grande Valley at the Texas-Mexico border is predominantly Hispanic with a high poverty rate and an increased prevalence of birth defects, with very limited access to genetics services.

Factors associated with sexual quality of life among men living with HIV.

Introduction: This study aims to assess the prevalence of sexual difficulties and identify factors associated with the Sexual Quality of Life (SQoL) among people living with HIV (PLWHA).

Methods: The study included 107 heterosexual men and 474 men who have sex with men (MSM) from five countries. Participants self-reported variables related to physical and mental health, as well as HIV-related parameters.

Association of Health Insurance Status With Severity and Treatment Among Infants With Retinopathy of Prematurity.

This study describes retinopathy of prematurity treatment practices using Medicaid and commercial claims databases. Infants with Medicaid tend to be sicker overall and have higher rates of retinopathy of prematurity requiring treatment than those with commercial insurance. Among patients who required treatment, those with Medicaid were more likely to receive anti-vascular endothelial growth factor than laser treatment.

FULL-THICKNESS MACULAR HOLE CLOSURE WITH TOPICAL MEDICAL THERAPY.

Purpose: To examine the efficacy and clinical characteristics of successful full-thickness macular hole closure with topical therapy.

Methods: Retrospective case series of full-thickness macular holes managed by a single retinal physician (DS) diagnosed and treated from 2017 to 22.

Results: Of 168 patients with full-thickness macular holes, 71 patients were started on steroid, carbonic anhydrase inhibitor, and nonsteroidal antiinflammatory (NSAID) drops.

Pediatric cataracts of different etiologies contain insoluble, calcified particles.

Our recent studies in mice suggest that a crucial event for the development of cataracts is the formation of calcium-containing deposits. To examine the generality of pathologic mineralization as a novel mechanism of cataract formation, we analyzed lens material from different human cataract surgeries. Human lens material was obtained from routine cataract surgeries performed on three patients with dense, white cataracts: a 10-month-old with congenital cataracts, a 9-year-old with a uveitic cataract, and a 17-year-old with a traumatic cataract.

Racial differences in quantitative optical coherence tomography angiography findings between older non-diabetics with co-morbidities.

This cross-sectional study compared optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) parameters between older Black and White adults with systemic comorbidities in an effort to further understand racial differences in the retinal microvasculature. We analyzed vessel density at the superficial (SCP), intermediate (ICP), and deep capillary plexuses (DCP), foveal avascular zone (FAZ) parameters, and blood flow area (BFA) at the choriocapillaris. We used a mixed-effects linear regression model, controlling for hypertension and two eyes from the same subject, to compare OCTA parameters.

Gut Microbiome and Retinopathy of Prematurity.

Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP), a leading cause of childhood blindness worldwide, is strongly associated with gestational age and weight at birth. Yet, many extremely preterm infants never develop ROP or develop only mild ROP with spontaneous regression. In addition, a myriad of other factors play a role in the retinal pathology, one of which may include the early gut microbiome.

Retinopathy of Prematurity in the 21st Century and the Complex Impact of Supplemental Oxygen.

Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) is a leading cause of childhood blindness. Not only do the epidemiologic determinants and distributions of patients with ROP vary worldwide, but clinical differences have also been described. The Third Edition of the International Classification of ROP (ICROP3) acknowledges that aggressive ROP (AROP) can occur in larger preterm infants and involve areas of the more anterior retina, particularly in low-resource settings with unmonitored oxygen supplementation.

Smartphone application links severity of retinopathy of prematurity to early motor behavior in a cohort of high-risk preterm infants.

Purpose: To evaluate the General Movement Assessment (GMA) with the Motor Optimality Score-Revised (MOS-R) as a neurodevelopmental marker in infants with retinopathy of prematurity (ROP).

Methods: Infants screened prospectively for ROP were evaluated at 3 months' post-term age using a smartphone application to complete the GMA and MOS-R. Results were analyzed by ROP severity.

Expanding Underrepresented in Medicine to Include Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer Individuals.

In 2003, the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) stopped using the term "underrepresented minority" and instead adopted "underrepresented in medicine." This was not the first time the AAMC revised this definition. In this article, the authors call on the AAMC to revise and expand this definition to include another group that is underrepresented in medicine: lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) individuals.