[Simulation training in ophthalmology]. / La simulación en la enseñanza de la oftalmología.

BACKGROUND: Simulation in medicine is an indispensable tool to improve doctors' responses to different situations, enhancing their performance. However, simulation in ophthalmology is a very recent trend, mainly because of the high complexity of developing newer teaching tools, with the need for highly realistic models, mostly in surgical ophthalmic simulation. DISCUSSION: The whole development of simulation in ophthalmology, from the very first attempts that used basic models, to the newer virtual reality models, allows for a comprehensive, faster, and more efficient development of skills necessary in basic and advance procedures in ophthalmology, creating a better learning environment, improving costs, and developing a very promising panorama, in which simulation can be incorporated in teaching programs all around the globe. CONCLUSIONS: Simulation in ophthalmology allows for better results in the formation of ophthalmologists, and it is becoming a new tool to achieve better results in medical and surgical procedures, thus improving outcomes and quality of care.

Characteristics of Sympathetic Ophthalmia in a Single International Center.

AIM: To report the main features of sympathetic ophthalmia in a referral ophthalmology center. METHODS: Retrospective clinical study. We reviewed clinical records of patients with diagnosis of sympathetic ophthalmia attending the Uveitis Department from 2007 to 2013. Patients were selected by clinical criteria. Descriptive statistics were used to assess variables. RESULTS: Twenty patients were included for analysis, 13 males and 7 females. Mean follow up was 1 year. The median age of presentation was 50 years. Fifty percent had history of ocular trauma and 50% had history of intraocular surgery, of which 40% underwent phacoemulsification. The time between injury and onset of symptoms ranged from 1 to 456 months. Most common ocular manifestations were mutton fat keratic precipitates and anterior chamber inflammation. All patients received oral prednisone as single or combined therapy. Sixty percent of the sympathizing eyes improved two or more lines of vision and 20% lost two or more lines of vision. CONCLUSION: This report from a single center adds to the body of literature of sympathetic ophthalmia occurring in a specific population. Our data found a high proportion of patients with sympathetic ophthalmia after phacoemulsification.