Doctors and nurses subjective predictions of 6-month outcome compared to actual 6-month outcome for adult patients with spontaneous intracerebral haemorrhage (ICH) in neurocritical care: An observational study.

Background: Acute spontaneous intracerebral haemorrhage is a devastating form of stroke. Prognostication after ICH may be influenced by clinicians' subjective opinions. Purpose: To evaluate subjective predictions of 6-month outcome by clinicians' for ICH patients in a neurocritical care using the modified Rankin Scale (mRS) and compare these to actual 6-month outcome. Method: We included clinicians' predictions of 6-month outcome in the first 48 h for 52 adults with ICH and compared to actual 6-month outcome using descriptive statistics and multilevel binomial logistic regression. Results: 35/52 patients (66%) had a poor 6-month outcome (mRS 4-6); 19/52 (36%) had died. 324 predictions were included. For good (mRS 0-3) versus poor (mRS 4-6), outcome, accuracy of predictions was 68% and exact agreement 29%. mRS 6 and mRS 4 received the most correct predictions. Comparing job roles, predictions of death were underestimated, by doctors (12%) and nurses (13%) compared with actual mortality (36%). Predictions of vital status showed no significant difference between doctors and nurses: OR = 1.24 {CI; 0.50-3.05}; (p = 0.64) or good versus poor outcome: OR = 1.65 {CI; 0.98-2.79}; (p = 0.06). When predicted and actual 6-month outcome were compared, job role did not significantly relate to correct predictions of good versus poor outcome: OR = 1.13 {CI;0.67-1.90}; (p = 0.65) or for vital status: OR = 1.11 {CI; 0.47-2.61}; p = 0.81). Conclusions: Early prognostication is challenging. Doctors and nurses were most likely to correctly predict poor outcome but tended to err on the side of optimism for mortality, suggesting an absence of clinical nihilism in relation to ICH.

Current approaches to soft contact lens handling training - Global perspectives.

PURPOSE: All neophyte contact lens wearers require training on how to handle contact lenses. Currently, almost no published information exists describing the most common approaches used by those involved in such training in soft contact lens wearers. This study aimed to gather information on the approaches taken by those conducting this training worldwide. METHODS: An online survey was created in English and translated to Spanish and distributed internationally via social media, conference attendees, and professional contacts. The anonymous survey included information on workplace setting of respondents, information about the typical approaches used for application and removal of soft contact lenses, length of the appointment, and success rate with their approach. Survey responses were received between May 2021 and April 2022. RESULTS: A total of 511 individuals completed the survey and responses were received from 31 countries with 48.7% from the UK. The most common approach taught for application was to have the patient hold the upper eyelashes (84.7%) and to hold the lower eyelid with the same hand as the lens (89.4%). Lenses were applied directly to the cornea by 57.7% of the respondents. The most common approach taught for lens removal was to drag the lens inferiorly from the cornea prior to removal (49.3%). Most respondents did not use videos to aid the teaching appointment (62.0%); however, they felt that their approach was successful in most cases (90). Application and removal training sessions lasted a median of 30 min and contact lenses were typically dispensed after the instructor witnessing successful application and removal three times. CONCLUSION: Various methods are adopted globally for training of application and removal of soft contact lenses, with many advising a patient-specific approach is required for success. The results of this survey provide novel insights into soft contact lens handling training in clinical practice.

Clinical Investigation of Flat Pack Toric Contact Lenses and Wearer Attitudes to Environmental Impact.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the performance of a novel flat pack toric daily disposable contact lens compared with traditionally packaged toric lenses in a randomized, crossover study. Environmental attitudes to contact lens wear were also explored. METHODS: Habitual contact lens wearers were recruited to wear a hioxifilcon A (Miru 1 day Flat Pack Toric, Menicon, Nagoya, Japan) test lens and a control lens: either nelfilcon A (Dailies AquaComfort Plus, Alcon, Geneva, Switzerland) or etafilcon A (1-Day Acuvue Moist, Johnson & Johnson, New Brunswick, NJ). Objective lens performance was assessed at fitting, and participants wore lenses in a randomized order for three consecutive days. Subjective measures of lens performance (comfort, vision, and handling) were then assessed by a questionnaire, with further questions on overall lens preference and environmental perceptions. RESULTS: Objective measures of lens fit were similar for the test and control lenses, except for distance VA which was better with the control lenses ( P <0.05; difference of two logMAR letters). End of day comfort was greater with the test lens, but this did not reach significance. Both lenses demonstrated similar scores for overall satisfaction. 87.5% of participants indicated the environmental impact of contact lenses to be important/extremely important to them, with 100% of participants identifying the flat pack packaging as having a smaller environmental impact. CONCLUSION: Overall, the lenses used in the study performed to similar levels. Environmental credentials are important to contact lens wearers, which may contribute to overall lens preference.

Whole exome sequence analysis in 51 624 participants identifies novel genes and variants associated with refractive error and myopia.

Refractive errors are associated with a range of pathological conditions, such as myopic maculopathy and glaucoma, and are highly heritable. Studies of missense and putative loss of function (pLOF) variants identified via whole exome sequencing (WES) offer the prospect of directly implicating potentially causative disease genes. We performed a genome-wide association study for refractive error in 51 624 unrelated adults, of European ancestry, aged 40-69 years from the UK and genotyped using WES. After testing 29 179 pLOF and 495 263 missense variants, 1 pLOF and 18 missense variants in 14 distinct genomic regions were taken forward for fine-mapping analysis. This yielded 19 putative causal variants of which 18 had a posterior inclusion probability >0.5. Of the 19 putative causal variants, 12 were novel discoveries. Specific variants were associated with a more myopic refractive error, while others were associated with a more hyperopic refractive error. Association with age of onset of spectacle wear (AOSW) was examined in an independent validation sample (38 100 early AOSW cases and 74 243 controls). Of 11 novel variants that could be tested, 8 (73%) showed evidence of association with AOSW status. This work identified COL4A4 and ATM as novel candidate genes associated with refractive error. In addition, novel putative causal variants were identified in the genes RASGEF1, ARMS2, BMP4, SIX6, GSDMA, GNGT2, ZNF652 and CRX. Despite these successes, the study also highlighted the limitations of community-based WES studies compared with high myopia case-control WES studies.

Patient experience and physiological response to two commercially available daily disposable myopia control contact lenses.

BACKGROUND: A range of myopia management (MM) contact lenses are becoming available to practitioners. These lenses are designed to slow myopia progression and axial elongation. This study explored the initial experience of participants wearing daily disposable MM contact lenses to investigate established factors previously associated with successful lens wear. METHODS: This was a prospective, double-masked, crossover study. Twenty participants aged 18-30 years old were assigned to wear two daily disposable MM lenses in a randomised order. Visual acuity, contrast sensitivity, and amplitude/lag of accommodation were assessed at baseline, post-insertion, and after 2 and 6 h of lens wear. Self-reported lens comfort and vision quality were recorded at the same timepoints, and at 10 h post-insertion. Pairwise comparisons were performed between the two lenses at each timepoint, as well as assessing changes throughout wear. The relationship of the measured parameters to overall lens satisfaction was also assessed. RESULTS: There were no significant differences between the two MM lenses at any timepoint for any of the participant-reported parameters, including overall satisfaction. A small difference in visual acuity was noted at 6 h post-insertion, although this is unlikely to be clinically significant. Comfort decreased throughout the day, most notably at 10 h post-insertion. A moderate positive correlation was observed between participant-reported visual quality and overall satisfaction. A similar pattern was seen for comfort and overall satisfaction. Self-reported vision quality and measured visual acuity were poorly correlated, highlighting the benefit of subjectively assessing the quality of vision with these lenses. CONCLUSIONS: The participants demonstrated comparable measures across a range of measures between the two MM lenses. Notably, half of the participants demonstrated a clear lens preference, although the preferred lens varied between individuals. Candidates for MM may benefit from trialling more than one MM lens design, to maximise initial wearing satisfaction.

Fast versus gradual adaptation of soft monthly contact lenses in neophyte wearers.

AIM: To determine if a gradual adaptation period is necessary for neophytes when fitted with modern hydrogel or silicone hydrogel reusable disposable contact lenses. METHOD: Across four sites, 74 neophytes (18-28 years) were randomly assigned to a reusable lens cleaned nightly with Opti-Free® Puremoist® multi-purpose contact lens solution: Proclear® (hydrogel) or Biofinity® (silicone hydrogel) and an adaptation schedule: fast (10 h wear from the first day) or gradual (4 h on the first day, increasing their wear time by 2 h on each subsequent day until they had reached 10 h). Masked investigators graded ocular surface physiology and non-invasive tear breakup time (NIBUT) and a range of comfort, vision and lens handling subjective ratings (0-100 visual analogue scales) were recorded at the baseline visit and after 10 h of lens wear, 4-6 days and 12-14 days after lens fitting. Subjective scores were also repeated after 7 days. RESULTS: There was no difference (p > 0.05) in ocular surface physiology or NIBUT between fast and gradual adaptation groups at any time point in either lens type with the exception of increased corneal staining (p = 0.019) in the silicone hydrogel fast adaptation group after 4-6 days, but was similar by 12-14 days. Subjective scores were also similar across the visits and lens types with the exception of 'lens awareness' (p = 0.019) which was less in the gradual versus the fast adaptation silicone hydrogel lens group at 12-14 days. CONCLUSION: There seems to be no clinical benefit for recommending a gradual adaptation period in new wearers fitted with modern soft reusable disposable contact lenses. The findings of this work add to a growing body of evidence suggesting that such advice is unnecessary in regular soft contact lens wear, which has important ramifications for the initial clinical management of these patients.

Genetic Variants Associated With Human Eye Size Are Distinct From Those Conferring Susceptibility to Myopia.

Purpose: Emmetropization requires coordinated scaling of the major ocular components, corneal curvature and axial length. This coordination is achieved in part through a shared set of genetic variants that regulate eye size. Poorly coordinated scaling of corneal curvature and axial length results in refractive error. We tested the hypothesis that genetic variants regulating eye size in emmetropic eyes are distinct from those conferring susceptibility to refractive error. Methods: A genome-wide association study (GWAS) for corneal curvature in 22,180 adult emmetropic individuals was performed as a proxy for a GWAS for eye size. A polygenic score created using lead GWAS variants was tested for association with corneal curvature and axial length in an independent sample: 437 classified as emmetropic and 637 as ametropic. The genetic correlation between eye size and refractive error was calculated using linkage disequilibrium score regression for approximately 1 million genetic variants. Results: The GWAS for corneal curvature in emmetropes identified 32 independent genetic variants (P < 5.0e-08). A polygenic score created using these 32 genetic markers explained 3.5% (P < 0.001) and 2.0% (P = 0.001) of the variance in corneal curvature and axial length, respectively, in the independent sample of emmetropic individuals but was not predictive of these traits in ametropic individuals. The genetic correlation between eye size and refractive error was close to zero (rg = 0.00; SE = 0.06; P = 0.95). Conclusions: These results support the hypothesis that genetic variants regulating eye size in emmetropic eyes do not overlap with those conferring susceptibility to myopia. This suggests that distinct biological pathways regulate normal eye growth and myopia development.

Evaluation of Automated Multiclass Fluid Segmentation in Optical Coherence Tomography Images Using the Pegasus Fluid Segmentation Algorithms.

Purpose: To evaluate the performance of the Pegasus-OCT (Visulytix Ltd) multiclass automated fluid segmentation algorithms on independent spectral domain optical coherence tomography data sets. Methods: The Pegasus automated fluid segmentation algorithms were applied to three data sets with edematous pathology, comprising 750, 600, and 110 b-scans, respectively. Intraretinal fluid (IRF), sub-retinal fluid (SRF), and pigment epithelial detachment (PED) were automatically segmented by Pegasus-OCT for each b-scan where ground truth from data set owners was available. Detection performance was assessed by calculating sensitivities and specificities, while Dice coefficients were used to assess agreement between the segmentation methods. Results: For two data sets, IRF detection yielded promising sensitivities (0.98 and 0.94, respectively) and specificities (1.00 and 0.98) but less consistent agreement with the ground truth (dice coefficients 0.81 and 0.59); likewise, SRF detection showed high sensitivity (0.86 and 0.98) and specificity (0.83 and 0.89) but less consistent agreement (0.59 and 0.78). PED detection on the first data set showed moderate agreement (0.66) with high sensitivity (0.97) and specificity (0.98). IRF detection in a third data set yielded less favorable agreement (0.46-0.57) and sensitivity (0.59-0.68), attributed to image quality and ground truth grader discordance. Conclusions: The Pegasus automated fluid segmentation algorithms were able to detect IRF, SRF, and PED in SD-OCT b-scans acquired across multiple independent data sets. Dice coefficients and sensitivity and specificity values indicate the potential for application to automated detection and monitoring of retinal diseases such as age-related macular degeneration and diabetic macular edema. Translational Relevance: The potential of Pegasus-OCT for automated fluid quantification and differentiation of IRF, SRF, and PED in OCT images has application to both clinical practice and research.

CLEAR - Contact lens technologies of the future.

Contact lenses in the future will likely have functions other than correction of refractive error. Lenses designed to control the development of myopia are already commercially available. Contact lenses as drug delivery devices and powered through advancements in nanotechnology will open up further opportunities for unique uses of contact lenses. This review examines the use, or potential use, of contact lenses aside from their role to correct refractive error. Contact lenses can be used to detect systemic and ocular surface diseases, treat and manage various ocular conditions and as devices that can correct presbyopia, control the development of myopia or be used for augmented vision. There is also discussion of new developments in contact lens packaging and storage cases. The use of contact lenses as devices to detect systemic disease has mostly focussed on detecting changes to glucose levels in tears for monitoring diabetic control. Glucose can be detected using changes in colour, fluorescence or generation of electric signals by embedded sensors such as boronic acid, concanavalin A or glucose oxidase. Contact lenses that have gained regulatory approval can measure changes in intraocular pressure to monitor glaucoma by measuring small changes in corneal shape. Challenges include integrating sensors into contact lenses and detecting the signals generated. Various techniques are used to optimise uptake and release of the drugs to the ocular surface to treat diseases such as dry eye, glaucoma, infection and allergy. Contact lenses that either mechanically or electronically change their shape are being investigated for the management of presbyopia. Contact lenses that slow the development of myopia are based upon incorporating concentric rings of plus power, peripheral optical zone(s) with add power or non-monotonic variations in power. Various forms of these lenses have shown a reduction in myopia in clinical trials and are available in various markets.

Developing a consensus-based scoring rubric to enhance practice-based assessment of student nurses' clinical competence: A Delphi study.

BACKGROUND: Concerns about reliability and validity of practice-based assessment of professional competencies are frequently reported in the literature. Difficulty in understanding competency statements or distinguishing different achievement levels has been found to be a major factor. OBJECTIVES: To develop a consensus-based scoring rubric based on stakeholders' interpretations of level descriptors for student nurses' professional values competencies. DESIGN: Two rounds of Classic e-Delphi. SETTINGS: This study was conducted in a London based university using Bristol Online Survey website as a host. PARTICIPANTS: 100 stakeholders with vested interests in undergraduate pre-registration nurse education were purposefully invited to participate. METHOD: Round one collected free-text interpretations of the United Kingdom Nursing and Midwifery Council professional values competency statements. Round two used a Likert scale questionnaire to measure the level of agreement to the level descriptor statements generated through round one. Responses were analysed through content analysis in round one and consensus measure in round two. A threshold of 70% agreement to determine consensus was set in advance. RESULTS: In round one, 47 participants provided their interpretations of the competency statements. In round two, 51 participants completed the questionnaire. All 24 items achieved a strong consensus with 86%-100% of participants agreeing or strongly agreeing with the statements. CONCLUSIONS: A Delphi study was successfully used to develop a consensus-based scoring rubric with clearly stated descriptors for professional values competency statements. This scoring rubric holds the potential to enhance practice-based assessment across all healthcare professional disciplines.

Factors influencing nurses' engagement with CPD activities: a systematic review.

BACKGROUND: Continuing professional development (CPD) is necessary for nurse registration and development. Understanding the factors influencing engagement may enhance CPD uptake. REVIEW QUESTION: What factors influence hospital-based nurses' engagement with CPD activities in the UK? DESIGN: This was a systematic review incorporating narrative synthesis. Database searches for published and grey literature from January 1995 to November 2018 were conducted via EBSCO Discovery Service, the British Nursing Index and the British Library. REVIEW METHODS: An approved systematic review protocol was followed with studies then assessed against strict inclusion and exclusion criteria. Included studies were critically appraised, data extracted and a narrative synthesis conducted. FINDINGS: Five studies were reviewed. Four themes emerged: nurses' individual resources, their professional motivation, organisational commitment to learning and development, and managerial support. CONCLUSION: Factors influencing nurses' engagement with activities are multifaceted and inter-woven. A question-based checklist to facilitate discussions between nurses and educators, managers or appraisers is presented.

Clinicians' Perceptions of the Appropriateness of Neurocritical Care for Patients with Spontaneous Intracerebral Hemorrhage (ICH): A Qualitative Study.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Clinicians working in intensive care frequently report perceptions of inappropriate care (PIC) situations. Intracerebral haemorrhage (ICH) is associated with high rates of mortality and morbidity. Prognosticating after ICH is complex and may be influenced by clinicians' subjective impressions and biases, which may, in turn, influence decision making regarding the level of care provided. The aim of this study was to qualitatively explore perceptions of neurocritical care in relation to the expected functional outcome for ICH patients. DESIGN: Qualitative study using semi-structured interviews with neurocritical care doctors and nurses. SETTING: Neurocritical care (NCC) department in a UK neuroscience tertiary referral center. SUBJECTS: Eleven neurocritical care nurses, five consultant neurointensivists, two stroke physicians, three neurosurgeons. INTERVENTION: None. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: We conducted 21 semi-structured interviews and identified five key themes: (1) prognostic uncertainty (2) subjectivity of good versus poor outcome (3) perceived inappropriate care (PIC) situations (including for frail elderly patients) (4) challenging nature of decision-making (5) clinician distress. CONCLUSIONS: Caring for severely affected ICH patients in need of neurocritical care is challenging, particularly with frail elderly patients. Awareness of the challenges could facilitate interventions to improve decision-making for this group of stroke patients and their families, as well as measures to reduce the distress on clinicians who care for this patient group. Our findings highlight the need for effective interdisciplinary shared decision making involving the family, taking into account patients' previously expressed values and preferences and incorporating these into bespoke care planning.

Choroidal Biomarkers: A Repeatability and Topographical Comparison of Choroidal Thickness and Choroidal Vascularity Index in Healthy Eyes.

Purpose: Choroidal thickness (ChT) and choroidal vascularity index (CVI) represent two important metrics in health-, disease-, and myopia-related studies. Wide-field swept-source optical coherence tomography (OCT) provides improved and extended imaging and extraction of choroidal variables. This study characterizes the topography and repeatability of these parameters in healthy eyes. Methods: Swept-source OCT volume scans were obtained on 14 young adult patients on three separate days. ChT and CVI were automatically corrected for image magnification and extracted for different enface regions within an extended ETDRS grid of 10 mm diameter. Topographical distribution, correlation to ocular length, and intersession repeatability of both choroidal parameters were assessed. Results: CVI showed little fluctuation between subfields, unlike ChT, which demonstrated thinning toward the peripheral choroid (coefficients of variation 5.92 vs. 0.89). ChT showed a consistent negative correlation with axial length (ρ = -0.05 to -0.61), although this was only statistically significant in the inner superior subfield (P = 0.02). There was no consistent or significant relationship between CVI and axial length or between CVI and ChT. The repeatability of CVI measurements (3.90%-5.51%) was more consistent between scan regions than ChT measurements (10.37-20.33 µm). Conclusions: CVI values were consistent across the central 10 mm of the retina, while ChT reduced with eccentricity. The repeatability of both parameters is similar to the effect size reported in many studies using the choroid as a biomarker, which should be considered in the interpretation of findings. Translational Relevance: This study provided normative as well as metrological information for the clinical interpretation of ChT and CVI in health and disease.

Understanding the relevance of human rights in healthcare and nursing practice.

While the NHS aims to respect the human rights of every individual, it also has a wider social duty to promote equality in the services it provides. This means that the rights of individual patients are not absolute, because the aim of the NHS is to improve the overall health and well-being of the nation. For example, certain treatments may be withheld from individuals because of the excessive cost to the NHS, or concerns about its clinical effectiveness. This article explains the origins of human rights and their function, and examines the relationship between nursing care and human rights.

Association between critical care admission and 6-month functional outcome after spontaneous intracerebral haemorrhage.

BACKGROUND: There is uncertainty about the clinical benefit of admission to critical care after spontaneous intracerebral haemorrhage (ICH). PURPOSE: We investigated factors associated with critical care admission after spontaneous ICH and evaluated associations between critical care and 6-month functional outcome. METHODS: We included 825 patients with acute spontaneous non-traumatic ICH, recruited to a prospective multicenter observational study. We evaluated the characteristics associated with critical care admission and poor 6-month functional outcome (modified Rankin Scale, mRS > 3) using univariable (chi-square test and Wilcoxon rank-sum test, as appropriate) and multivariable analysis. RESULTS: 286 patients (38.2%) had poor 6-month functional outcome. Seventy-seven (9.3%) patients were admitted to critical care. Patients admitted to critical care were younger (p < 0.001), had lower GCS score (p < 0.001), larger ICH volume (p < 0.001), more often had intraventricular extension (p = 0.008) and underwent neurosurgery (p < 0.001). Critical care admission was associated with poor functional outcome at 6 months (39/77 [50.7%] vs 286/748 [38.2%]; p = 0.034); adjusted OR 2.43 [95%CI 1.36-4.35], p = 0.003), but not with death (OR 1.29 [95%CI 0.71-2.35; p = 0.4). In ordinal logistic regression, patients admitted to critical care showed an OR 1.47 (95% CI 0.98-2.20; p = 0.07) for a shift in the 6-month modified Rankin Scale. CONCLUSIONS: Admission to critical care is associated with poor 6-month functional outcome after spontaneous ICH but not with death. Patients admitted to critical care were a priori more severely affected. Although adjusted for main known predictors of poor outcome, our findings could still be confounded by unmeasured factors. Establishing the true effectiveness of critical care after ICH requires a randomised trial with clinical outcomes and quality of life assessments.

Understanding and applying personality types in healthcare communication.

Understanding personality types can assist nurses in enhancing their understanding of themselves and their colleagues, which in turn can support effective communication. This article outlines the principles of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) - a personality inventory that aims to improve the understanding of psychological types - and details the characteristics of the MBTI's 16 different personality types. The article explores how these 16 personality types can influence communication within healthcare teams and between healthcare professionals. It also discusses how these personality types affect styles of nurse leadership and how an understanding of personality types can improve nurses' communication with patients.

Optimising subjective anterior eye grading precision.

PURPOSE: To establish the optimum grading increment which ensured parity between practitioners while maximising clinical precision. METHODS: Second year optometry students (n = 127, 19.5 ± 1.4 years, 55 % female) and qualified eye care practitioners (n = 61, 40.2 ± 14.8 years, 52 % female) had 30 s to grade each of bulbar, limbal and palpebral hyperaemia of the upper lid of 4 patients imaged live with a digital slit lamp under 16× magnification, diffuse illumination, with the image projected on a screen. The patients were presented in a randomised sequence 3 times in succession, during which the graders used the Efron printed grading scale once to the nearest 0.1 increment, once to nearest 0.5 increment and once to the nearest integer grade in a randomised order. Graders were masked to their previous responses. RESULTS: For most grading conditions less than 20 % of clinicians showed a ≤0.1 difference in grade from the mean. In contrast, more than 50 % of the student graders and 40 % of experienced graders showed a difference in grade from the mean within 0.5 for all conditions under measurement. Student precision in grading was better with both 0.1 and 0.5 grading increments than grading to the nearest unit, except for limbal hyperaemia where they performed more accurately with 0.5 unit increment grading. Limbal grading precision was not affected by grading step increment for experienced practitioners, but 0.1 and 0.5 grading increments were both better than the 1.0 grading increment for bulbar hyperaemia and the 0.1 grading increment was better than the 0.5 grading increment and both were better than the 1.0 grading increment for palpebral hyperaemia. CONCLUSION: Although narrower interval scales maximise the ability to detect smaller clinical changes, the grading increment should not exceed one standard deviation of the discrepancy between measurements. Therefore, 0.5 grading increments are recommended for subjective anterior eye physiology grading (limbal, bulbar and palpebral redness).

Fast versus gradual adaptation of soft daily disposable contact lenses in neophyte wearers.

PURPOSE: Despite the widespread practice of gradually adapting all new soft contact lens wearers (neophytes), there is little evidence-based research underpinning such practice. This work determined if a gradual adaptation period is necessary for neophytes when fitted with modern hydrogel or silicone-hydrogel daily disposable contact lenses. METHOD: At four sites, neophytes (19-32 years) were randomly assigned to an adaptation schedule: fast (10 h wear from the first day) or gradual (4 h on the first day, increasing their wear-time by 2 h on each subsequent day until they had reached 10 h) with hydrogel (n = 24 fast; n = 21 gradual) or silicone-hydrogel (n = 10 fast; n = 10 gradual) contact lenses. Masked investigators graded ocular surface physiology and non-invasive tear breakup time (NIBUT). A range of subjective scores (using 0-100 visual analogue scales) were recorded at the initial visit and after 10 h of lens wear, 4-6 days and 12-14 days after initial fitting. Subjective scores were also repeated after 7 days. RESULTS: There was no difference (p > 0.05) in ocular surface physiology between the fast and gradual adaptation groups at any time point in either lens type. NIBUT was similar at all time points for both adaptation groups in both lens types with the exception that the gradual adaptation silicone-hydrogel wearers had a slightly longer NIBUT (p = 0.007) than the fast adaptation group at 12-14 days. Subjective scores were also similar across the visits and lens types with the exception of 'lens awareness' and 'ease of lens removal' which were better (p < 0.05) in the fast compared with the gradual adaptation hydrogel lens group at day 7. Additionally, 'end-of-day discomfort' was better (p = 0.02) in the fast compared with the gradual adaptation hydrogel lens group at 12-14 days. CONCLUSION: There appears to be no benefit in daily disposable soft contact lens adaptation for neophytes with modern contact lens materials.

DISEASE CLASSIFICATION OF MACULAR OPTICAL COHERENCE TOMOGRAPHY SCANS USING DEEP LEARNING SOFTWARE: Validation on Independent, Multicenter Data.

PURPOSE: To evaluate Pegasus optical coherence tomography (OCT), a clinical decision support software for the identification of features of retinal disease from macula OCT scans, across heterogenous populations involving varying patient demographics, device manufacturers, acquisition sites, and operators. METHODS: Five thousand five hundred and eighty-eight normal and anomalous macular OCT volumes (162,721 B-scans), acquired at independent centers in five countries, were processed using the software. Results were evaluated against ground truth provided by the data set owners. RESULTS: Pegasus-OCT performed with areas under the curve of the receiver operating characteristic of at least 98% for all data sets in the detection of general macular anomalies. For scans of sufficient quality, the areas under the curve of the receiver operating characteristic for general age-related macular degeneration and diabetic macular edema detection were found to be at least 99% and 98%, respectively. CONCLUSION: The ability of a clinical decision support system to cater for different populations is key to its adoption. Pegasus-OCT was shown to be able to detect age-related macular degeneration, diabetic macular edema, and general anomalies in OCT volumes acquired across multiple independent sites with high performance. Its use thus offers substantial promise, with the potential to alleviate the burden of growing demand in eye care services caused by retinal disease.

Outrage and the emotional labour associated with environmental activism among nurses.

AIM: To investigate the emotions associated with environmental activism among nurses. BACKGROUND: Nursing has a long history of political activism in relation to social justice issues. Some nurses are environmental activists. DESIGN: Ethnography. METHODS: Focus groups and individual interviews were triangulated with additional observational data. The 40 participants (USA = 23, UK = 17) were nurses actively engaged with environmental/sustainability issues. Data collection was from March-October 2017. Data were analysed using discourse analysis. RESULTS: The trigger for nurses' environmental activism was a strong emotional response to recognizing risks to human health. Their activism results in an additional emotion burden above which they routinely experience in caring for patients. Many feel over-whelmed by the magnitude of the issues. Nurses in America feel more supported and empowered to be activists than UK nurses. CONCLUSION: This study reveals for the first time that advocating for the environment is emotional labour, additional to the previously recognized emotional labour associated with caring for patients. Encouragement and support from others, particularly fellow nurses, helps nurse environmental activists continue to fight for the health of communities and the planet. IMPACT: Outrage at threats to human health triggers nurses' environmental activism. Environmental activism creates an additional emotional burden above that routinely experienced in caring for patients. Nurses in America feel more supported and empowered to be activists than UK. Nurses whose practice embraces environmental activism need practical and emotional support from other nurses.