Diagnostic utility of in vivo confocal microscopy in Acanthamoeba keratitis following corneal crosslinking.

Acanthamoeba keratitis (AK) is a rare but potentially sight-threatening complication of corneal collagen crosslinking (CXL) for keratoconus. In this report, we describe an early adolescent male who underwent routine CXL for progressive keratoconus in his left eye. Preprocedural left visual acuity (VA) was 6/9. At day 5 postprocedure, multifocal corneal infiltrates were identified. Corneal scrape, bandage contact lens cultures and herpetic and Acanthamoeba PCR were negative. In vivo, confocal microscopy (IVCM) identified Acanthamoeba cysts within the corneal stroma. Intensive amoebicidal therapy was initiated, but recovery was complicated by significant inflammation, resulting in widespread aggressive corneal vascularisation necessitating topical steroids and steroid-sparing agents. At 10 months, his left VA was 6/24. This report emphasises the importance of maintaining a high index of suspicion for AK in cases of post-CXL microbial keratitis and highlights the diagnostic value of IVCM, particularly in culture-negative and PCR-negative cases.

Glomerella cingulata endophthalmitis.

Purpose: To report a case of an exogenous endophthalmitis caused by the fungal species Glomerella cingulata. Observations: A 71-year-old male presented with an infectious keratitis that evolved into endophthalmitis. Combined cataract extraction and pars plana vitrectomy was performed and the vitreous specimen cultured Glomerella cingulata, a variant of the Colletotrichum gloeosporioides fungal species. Despite early treatment with topical, systemic and intravitreal doses of both voriconazole and amphotericin B, the patient had a poor visual and anatomical outcome. Conclusions and Importance: Glomerella cingulata may rarely cause endophthalmitis with devastating visual outcomes.

The Impact on Work Patterns of Implementing the Save Sight Keratoconus Registry in the Hospital Setting.

PURPOSE: The adoption of clinical registries has the potential to improve outcomes, while reducing the costs of health care. We sought to evaluate the changes in workflow that occurred with implementation of the Save Sight Keratoconus Registry (SSKR) in corneal clinics. METHODS: A prospective time-motion study and a clinician survey were conducted. The timing of clinic consultations was recorded before and after implementation of the SSKR. The activities were assigned into 3 main categories: 1) direct patient care (eg, talking to, examining), 2) indirect patient care (record keeping), and 3) indirect patient care (reading). RESULTS: Overall, there was no change in average time spent per patient with or without the SSKR; 12.3 (5.3 SD) versus 12.1 (5.3 SD) minutes, respectively, P = 0.84. There was no change in time spent providing direct care with or without the SSKR; 5.4 (2.8 SD) versus 5.9 (2.8 SD) minutes, respectively, P = 0.51. Within direct patient care, there was no impact with or without the SSKR on the time spent examining (1.9 [1.0 SD] vs. 1.9 [1.4 SD] minutes, respectively, P = 0.58) or talking to patients (3.5 [2.3 SD] vs. 4.1 [2.3 SD] minutes, respectively, P = 0.21). Indirect care time was unchanged overall for record keeping (3.2 [2.2 SD] vs. 4.6 [2.9 SD], respectively, P = 0.16) and reading tasks (3.1 [1.8 SD] vs. 2.0 [1.3 SD], respectively, P = 0.09). CONCLUSIONS: The SSKR was implemented into clinical practice without affecting the total consultation time, time spent directly interacting with patients, or use of patient records. Our findings support that registries requiring data entry could be widely adopted into routine clinical practice.

Patient comfort and visual outcomes of mini-scleral contact lenses.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate short-term visual outcome, patient acceptance, and tolerance of mini-scleral contact lenses (SCLs) in the management of various corneal pathologies. DESIGN: Retrospective case series. PARTICIPANTS: Thirty-two patients (40 eyes) who received mini-SCLs. METHODS: Single-centre retrospective case series, between February 2010 and January 2013, of 32 patients (40 eyes) with various corneal pathologies who were offered either Maxim 5R, Maxim 7, or Maxim 7 × 11 mini-SCLs for nonsurgical optimization of visual correction. Patients were followed up at 1 and 3 months for assessment of best-corrected visual acuity, comfort, length of daily wear, and complications. RESULTS: Thirty-two patients (40 eyes), with a mean age of 41 ± 16 years, opted to receive mini-SCLs. Eighteen patients had previously undergone surgery such as penetrating keratoplasty, deep anterior lamellar keratoplasty, and intraocular lens implantation. The median best-corrected visual acuity improved from 0.3 logMAR (range 0-1.3) before mini-SCLs, to 0.05 logMAR (range 0-1) with mini-SCLs (p < 0.0001). At 1-month follow-up, the median length of wear was 10 hours/day (range 1.5-15). At 3-month follow-up, the median length of wear was 12 hours/day (range 2-15). All eyes were comfortable at initial use of mini-SCLs and 91% were comfortable at 3-month follow-up. CONCLUSION: Mini-SCLs may be a comfortable management option for patients with keratoconus and other corneal pathologies who are unable to achieve adequate visual outcome with traditional spectacles or rigid gas-permeable contact lenses.

Dual-purpose corneal tissue for anterior lamellar keratoplasty and Descemet's membrane endothelial keratoplasty.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the intraoperative issues and surgical outcomes of preparing a single-donor corneal tissue for same-day use in both deep anterior lamellar keratoplasty (DALK) and Descemet's membrane endothelial keratoplasty (DMEK). DESIGN: Consecutive retrospective case series. PARTICIPANTS: Ten eyes of 10 patients who underwent DALK (5 patients) or DMEK (5 patients) surgery using dual-purpose corneal tissue. METHODS: Five dual-purpose corneoscleral rims were used to prepare tissue for 5 DMEK and 5 DALK procedures. The submerged cornea using backgrounds away technique was first used to harvest the 5 DMEK grafts, and the remaining tissue was used for the 5 DALK grafts. Tissue preparation and operative use occurred on the same day. Tissue preparation challenges, intraoperative complications, and visual recovery were assessed. RESULTS: There were no difficulties in preparing the 5 dual-purpose tissues, and all 10 lamellar transplants were completed successfully. At the 6-month follow-up, the mean best-corrected distance visual acuity improved from 20/250 to 20/80 in the DALK patients, and from 20/300 to 20/25 in the DMEK patients. Postoperative complications after DALK included retained viscoelastic agent at the interface in 1 patient and a double anterior chamber managed with rebubbling in another. After DMEK, a peripheral partial graft detachment occurred in 1 patient and was managed successfully with rebubbling. All corneas demonstrated clarity on slit-lamp examination. CONCLUSIONS: Single-donor corneal tissue can be effectively used for both DALK and DMEK, and may represent a more efficient use of corneal tissue. Complications with the preparation of dual-purpose tissue were not encountered.

Fibrin glue versus autologous blood for conjunctival autograft fixation in pterygium surgery.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the outcomes between autologous blood- and fibrin glue-fixated conjunctival autografts in pterygium excision surgery. DESIGN: Retrospective case series. PARTICIPANTS: Forty eyes of 40 patients who had a primary nasal pterygium excision. METHODS: A retrospective comparative case series of 40 eyes (40 patients) that had a primary nasal pterygium excision. All eyes had a conjunctival autograft from the superior bulbar conjunctiva to cover the scleral bed. Twenty eyes (20 patients) had fixation of the autograft using autologous blood (AB), and 20 eyes (20 patients) had fixation using fibrin glue (FG). One year of follow-up data included conjunctival graft stability (graft loss, graft retraction), pterygium recurrence, visual acuity, and postoperative complications. Descriptive and inferential statistics were performed. RESULTS: Intraoperatively, no complications occurred in either group. Graft loss occurred in 6 patients in the AB group, compared with none in the FG group. Graft retraction occurred in 3 patients in the AB group and 2 patients in the FG group. At 1 year postoperatively, pterygium recurrence occurred in 4 patients in the AB group and 1 patient in the FG group. One patient in the AB group developed a small pyogenic granuloma that resolved by 6 months with conservative management. Visual acuity remained stable in both groups. CONCLUSIONS: Conjunctival autograft fixation with autologous blood resulted in less stable conjunctival autografts and a higher recurrence rate compared with fixation with fibrin glue.

Evaluation of a new technique for preparation of endothelial grafts for descemet membrane endothelial keratoplasty.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to compare the Muraine technique, a relatively new method for preparing endothelial grafts for Descemet membrane endothelial keratoplasty (DMEK), with the current standard submerged cornea using backgrounds away (SCUBA) peeling technique. METHODS: This study was a prospective ex vivo investigation. In a wet-lab setting, 20 donor corneas were prepared for DMEK using The Muraine technique and 20 donor corneas using the SCUBA technique. In each of the technique groups, 10 corneas were prepared by a corneal surgeon and 10 were prepared by a corneal fellow. Primary outcome measures were the time needed to prepare endothelial grafts and the number of graft tears. RESULTS: In the SCUBA technique, median time to prepare grafts was shorter for both the surgeon (301 ± 85 seconds) and fellow (523 ± 58 seconds) compared with the Muraine technique (surgeon, 359 ± 83 seconds; fellow, 543 ± 44 seconds). However, these findings were not statistically significant (surgeon, P = 0.33; fellow, P = 0.24; pooled, P = 0.46). There was a statistically significant difference between surgeon time and fellow time for each technique (SCUBA technique, P = 0.0005; Muraine technique, P = 0.002). In the Muraine technique, there were 5 graft tears (surgeon = 2, fellow = 3), and no graft tears in the SCUBA technique, which was statistically significant (P = 0.047). CONCLUSIONS: The present study demonstrates that the SCUBA technique may be a more effective technique to prepare endothelial donor grafts for DMEK.

Band-like opacity in the corneas of abattoir-acquired pig eyes.

In the course of an investigation into the distribution of immune cells in the porcine cornea, a band-like lesion on the cornea of two-thirds of the eyes acquired from the local abattoir was noted. Histological investigations revealed an area of corneal epithelium debridement with no obvious other pathological changes. Discussions with abattoir staff soon revealed the cause of the lesions to be the scalding process that all pig carcasses undergo immediately post-mortem that serves to remove unwanted hair and reduce skin-dwelling bacterial contamination. We concluded that the band-like opacity was the result of thermal injury to the anterior surface of the cornea between the open eyelids. It is hoped that this short communication will act as a cautionary note to other investigators who currently use or are considering using porcine eyes in research or as a model in surgical training and who may be unaware of the conventional handling procedures in pig abattoirs.