Evaluation of the virtual mentor cataract training program.

OBJECTIVE: Evaluate the effectiveness of an interactive cognitive computer simulation for teaching the hydrodissection portion of cataract surgery compared with standard teaching and to assess the attitudes of residents about the teaching tools and their perceived confidence in the knowledge gained after using the tools. DESIGN: Case-control study. PARTICIPANTS AND CONTROLS: Residents at academic institutions. METHODS: Prospective, multicenter, single-masked, controlled trial was performed in 7 academic departments of ophthalmology (Harvard Medical School/Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, University of Iowa, Emory University, University of Cincinnati, University of Pennsylvania/Scheie Eye Institute, Jefferson Medical College of Thomas Jefferson University/Wills Eye Institute, and the Aravind Eye Institute). All residents from these centers were asked to participate and were randomized into 2 groups. Group A (n = 30) served as the control and received traditional teaching materials; group B (n = 38) received a digital video disc of the Virtual Mentor program. This program is an interactive cognitive simulation, specifically designed to separate cognitive aspects (such as decision making and error recognition) from the motor aspects. Both groups took online anonymous pretests (n = 68) and posttests (n = 58), and answered satisfaction questionnaires (n = 53). Wilcoxon tests were completed to compare pretest and posttest scores between groups. Analysis of variance was performed to assess differences in mean scores between groups. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Scores on pretests, posttests, and satisfaction questionnaires. RESULTS: There was no difference in the pretest scores between the 2 groups (P = 0.62). However, group B (Virtual Mentor [VM]) scored significantly higher on the posttest (P = 0.01). Mean difference between pretest and posttest scores were significantly better in the VM group than in the traditional learning group (P = 0.04). Questionnaire revealed that the VM program was "more fun" to use (24.1% vs 4.2%) and residents were more likely to use this type of program again compared with the likelihood of using the traditional tools (58.6% vs 4.2%). CONCLUSIONS: The VM, a cognitive computer simulation, augmented teaching of the hydrodissection step of phacoemulsification surgery compared with traditional teaching alone. The program was more enjoyable and more likely to be used repetitively by ophthalmology residents.

Subthreshold Exudative Choroidal Neovascularization Associated With Age-Related Macular Degeneration Identified by Optical Coherence Tomography Angiography.

PURPOSE: This article describes the clinical and multimodal imaging characteristics of subthreshold exudative choroidal neovascularization (CNV) associated with age-related macular degeneration (AMD). METHODS: Among 3773 patients with AMD, 8 eyes (6 patients) were identified with the clinical phenotype of interest. Dilated fundus examinations, color fundus photography, fluorescein angiography (FA), indocyanine green angiography (ICGA), optical coherence tomography (OCT), and OCT angiography (OCTA) were performed. RESULTS: OCT typically showed a moderately reflective irregular pigment epithelial detachment with overlying subretinal fluid (SRF). Traditional FA did not show leakage and ICGA showed no definitive neovascular network or hot spots. However, OCTA clearly demonstrated a CNV within the pigment epithelial detachment. The majority of our cases (7 of 8) did not receive antivascular endothelial growth factor (anti-VEGF) injections, and visual acuity remained stable over the available follow-up period of I to 10 years. CONCLUSIONS: CNV is often associated with SRF and vision loss in AMD, usually requiring frequent anti-VEGF injections. OCTA allowed us to better identify CNV not readily detected on FA and ICGA. Although some have suggested early clinical intervention with anti-VEGF injections in any case with fluid and confirmed CNV on OCTA, we describe a subset of AMD patients with SRF who may be better managed by observation. These cases may represent a more indolent, mature, and stable vascular network.

Extraction of a chronically implanted, microfabricated, subretinal electrode array.

PURPOSE: To assess the feasibility of extraction of a chronically implanted subretinal electrode array. METHODS: Inactive, polyimide strips (10 mm x 1.5 mm x 15 microm) were surgically implanted into the subretinal space of 8 rabbits using a mostly ab externo approach. Pre- and postoperative clinical examinations, electroretinography and in some cases optical coherence tomography were performed to follow the course of the eyes. Two months after implantation, the polyimide strips were extracted from 5 eyes; 2 animals kept the implants and served as controls. All animals were then sacrificed and eyes enucleated for histological examination. RESULTS: All 8 surgeries yielded successful placement of the arrays into the subretinal space. All 5 extraction surgeries were performed without obvious complications. Clinical examinations and electroretinography did not reveal any significant abnormalities. The histological examinations showed alterations from normal anatomy in all animals; the anatomical changes in the explanted animals were relatively mild and confined to the area of the surgery. CONCLUSIONS: Successful extraction of electrode arrays from the subretinal space of rabbits can be reliably performed 2 months after implantation, which is beyond the time period when postoperative scarring would be most intense.

A Comprehensive Surgical Curriculum Reduced Intra-operative Complication Rates of Resident-performed Cataract Surgeries.

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the impact of a comprehensive cataract surgery curriculum on the incidence of intraoperative complications. DESIGN: We retrospectively compared the total number of cataract surgeries that the residents performed in all of the teaching sites, and the incidences of intraoperative complications (anterior capsule tear, posterior capsule rent, vitreous loss, anterior vitrectomy, zonular dialysis, iris trauma, hemorrhage, dropped lens fragment, corneal wound burn, incorrect intraocular lens) for the surgeries performed at Massachusetts Eye & Ear by residents in the pre-intervention group (residents graduating in 2004 and 2005), before the implementation of a surgical curriculum, and the residents in the post-intervention group (residents graduating in 2014 and 2015). SETTING: Ophthalmology residency program at a major academic institution. PARTICIPANTS: Residents graduating in 2004, 2005, 2014, and 2015. RESULTS: We reviewed 4373 charts. 2086 of those surgeries were performed at Massachusetts Eye & Ear. The incidence of posterior capsule rent/vitreous loss/anterior vitrectomy was lower in the post-intervention group (1.4% versus 7.7%, p < 0.0001). Other complications were also lower in the post-intervention group. CONCLUSIONS: Implementation of a comprehensive cataract surgery curriculum focusing on pre-operative, intra-operative and post-operative interventions, with an emphasis on patient outcomes resulted in a decrease in the rate of intraoperative complications.

Multifocal electroretinographic abnormalities in ethambutol-induced visual loss.

Two patients who developed decreased visual acuity after several months of ethambutol treatment for Mycobacterium avium-intracellulare infection had bitemporal visual field defects that suggested optic chiasm damage. Multifocal electroretinography (mfERG) disclosed markedly low-amplitude responses at fixation and in the regions corresponding to the visual field defects. These results suggested that the visual dysfunction might be entirely attributable to retinal rather than optic nerve toxicity. These are the first reported patients to show mfERG abnormalities that correspond to bitemporal visual field defects and add to the growing evidence that ethambutol damages the retina.

Early Performance on an Eye Surgery Simulator Predicts Subsequent Resident Surgical Performance.

OBJECTIVE: To examine early performance on an eye surgery simulator and its relationship to subsequent live surgical performance in a single large residency program. DESIGN: Retrospective study. SETTING: Massachusetts Eye and Ear, Harvard Medical School, Department of Ophthalmology. METHODS: In a retrospective study, we compared performance of 30 first-year ophthalmology residents on an eye surgery simulator to their surgical skills as third-year residents. Variables collected from the eye surgery simulator included scores on the following modules of the simulator (Eyesi, VRmagic, Mannheim, Germany): antitremor training level 1, bimanual training level 1, capsulorhexis level 1 (configured), forceps training level 1, and navigation training level 1. Subsequent surgical performance was assessed using the total number of phacoemulsification cataract surgery cases for each resident, as well as the number performed as surgeon during residency and scores on global rating assessment of skills in intraocular surgery (GRASIS) scales during the third year of residency. Spearman correlation coefficients were calculated between each of the simulator performance and subsequent surgical performance variables. We also compared variables in a small group of residents who needed extra help in learning cataract surgery to the other residents in the study. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Relationships between Eyesi scores early in residency and surgical performance measures in the final year of residency. RESULTS: A total of 30 residents had Eyesi data from their first year of residency and had already graduated so that all subsequent surgical performance data were available. There was a significant correlation between capsulorhexis task score on the simulator and total surgeries (r = 0.745, p = 0.008). There was a significant correlation between antitremor training level 1 (r = 0.554, p = 0.040), and forceps training level 1 (r = 0.622, p = 0.023) with primary surgery numbers. There was a significant correlation between forceps training level 1 (r = 0.811, p = 0.002), and navigation training level 1 (r = 0.692, p = 0.013) with total GRASIS score. There was a significant inverse correlation between total GRASIS score and residents in need of extra help (r = -0.358, p = 0.003). CONCLUSION: Module scores on an eye surgery simulator early in residency may predict a resident׳s future performance in the operating room. These scores may allow early identification of residents in need of supplemental training in cataract surgery.

Regression of Some High-risk Features of Age-related Macular Degeneration (AMD) in Patients Receiving Intensive Statin Treatment.

IMPORTANCE: Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) remains the leading cause of blindness in developed countries, and affects more than 150 million worldwide. Despite effective anti-angiogenic therapies for the less prevalent neovascular form of AMD, treatments are lacking for the more prevalent dry form. Similarities in risk factors and pathogenesis between AMD and atherosclerosis have led investigators to study the effects of statins on AMD incidence and progression with mixed results. A limitation of these studies has been the heterogeneity of AMD disease and the lack of standardization in statin dosage. OBJECTIVE: We were interested in studying the effects of high-dose statins, similar to those showing regression of atherosclerotic plaques, in AMD. DESIGN: Pilot multicenter open-label prospective clinical study of 26 patients with diagnosis of AMD and the presence of many large, soft drusenoid deposits. Patients received 80 mg of atorvastatin daily and were monitored at baseline and every 3 months with complete ophthalmologic exam, best corrected visual acuity (VA), fundus photographs, optical coherence tomography (OCT), and blood work (AST, ALT, CPK, total cholesterol, TSH, creatinine, as well as a pregnancy test for premenopausal women). RESULTS: Twenty-three subjects completed a minimum follow-up of 12 months. High-dose atorvastatin resulted in regression of drusen deposits associated with vision gain (+ 3.3 letters, p = 0.06) in 10 patients. No subjects progressed to advanced neovascular AMD. CONCLUSIONS: High-dose statins may result in resolution of drusenoid pigment epithelial detachments (PEDs) and improvement in VA, without atrophy or neovascularization in a high-risk subgroup of AMD patients. Confirmation from larger studies is warranted.

Successful treatment of Fusarium endophthalmitis with voriconazole and Aspergillus endophthalmitis with voriconazole plus caspofungin.

PURPOSE: To report successful treatment of exogenous Fusarium and Aspergillus endophthalmitis with new antifungal agents. DESIGN: Interventional case report. METHODS: Treatment of two cases is reviewed. RESULTS: A 64-year-old man developed post-cataract Fusarium moniliforme endophthalmitis. Infection persisted despite removal of the intraocular lens, three vitrectomies, and five intravitreal injections of amphotericin. Inflammation resolved and vision improved from 20/80 to 20/40 on 6 months of oral voriconazole. A 55-year-old man developed post-cataract intraocular inflammation. After three vitrectomies and removal of the intraocular lens, Aspergillus fumigatus endophthalmitis was diagnosed. Intravitreal amphotericin and systemic voriconazole were given, but one week later there were early signs of recurrence. Intravenous caspofungin was added and the eye improved. Caspofungin was continued for 6 weeks and voriconazole for 6 months. Vision improved from counting fingers to 20/80 at 6 months and 20/25 at 23 months. CONCLUSION: Voriconazole is a promising new therapy for Fusarium and Aspergillus endophthalmitis. Caspofungin may act synergistically with voriconazole in treating Aspergillus endophthalmitis.

Improving the Teaching Skills of Residents in a Surgical Training Program: Results of the Pilot Year of a Curricular Initiative in an Ophthalmology Residency Program.

OBJECTIVE: To design and implement a teaching skills curriculum that addressed the needs of an ophthalmology residency training program, to assess the effect of the curriculum, and to present important lessons learned. DESIGN: A teaching skills curriculum was designed for the Harvard Medical School (HMS) Residency Training Program in Ophthalmology. Results of a needs assessment survey were used to guide curriculum objectives. Overall, 3 teaching workshops were conducted between October 2012 and March 2013 that addressed areas of need, including procedural teaching. A postcurriculum survey was used to assess the effect of the curriculum. SETTING: Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, a tertiary care institution in Boston, MA. PARTICIPANTS: Overall, 24 residents in the HMS Residency Training Program in Ophthalmology were included. RESULTS: The needs assessment survey demonstrated that although most residents anticipated that teaching would be important in their future career, only one-third had prior formal training in teaching. All residents reported they found the teaching workshops to be either very or extremely useful. All residents reported they would like further training in teaching, with most residents requesting additional training in best procedural teaching practices for future sessions. CONCLUSIONS: The pilot year of the resident-as-teacher curriculum for the HMS Residency Training Program in Ophthalmology demonstrated a need for this curriculum and was perceived as beneficial by the residents, who reported increased comfort in their teaching skills after attending the workshops.

Long-term Follow-up and Outcomes in Traumatic Macular Holes.

PURPOSE: To review presenting characteristics, clinical course, and long-term visual and anatomic outcomes of patients with traumatic macular holes at a tertiary referral center. DESIGN: Retrospective case series. METHODS: Twenty-eight consecutive patients with traumatic macular holes at a single tertiary referral center were reviewed. In addition to visual acuities and treatments throughout the clinical course, specific dimensions of the macular hole, including diameters, height, configuration, shape, and the presence of a cuff of fluid, were examined using spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (OCT). RESULTS: Twenty-eight patients were identified with a mean initial visual acuity (VA) of logMAR 1.3 (20/400) and a mean follow-up of 2.2 years. Eleven holes (39.3%) closed spontaneously in median 5.7 weeks. Eleven underwent vitrectomy with a median time to intervention of 35.1 weeks. Median time to surgery for the 5 eyes with successful hole closure was 11.0 weeks vs 56.3 weeks for the 6 eyes that failed to close (P = .02). VA improved in closed holes (P < .01), whether spontaneously (P < .01) or via vitrectomy (P = .04), but VA did not improve in holes that did not close (P = .22). There was no relation between initial OCT dimensions and final hole closure status, although there was a trend, which did not reach statistical significance, toward small dimensions for those that closed spontaneously. CONCLUSIONS: A fairly high spontaneous closure rate was observed, with a trend toward smaller OCT dimensions. We found no relationship between hole closure and the OCT characteristics of the hole. Surgical intervention was less successful at hole closure when elected after 3 months.

A Man with Paraneoplastic Retinopathy plus Small Fiber Polyneuropathy Associated with Waldenström Macroglobulinemia (Lymphoplasmacytic Lymphoma): Insights into Mechanisms.

PURPOSE: To report a well-characterized Waldenström's macroglobulinemia (WM) case that provides insight into the mechanisms of two paraneoplastic complications -- cancer-associated retinopathy (CAR) and small fiber polyneuropathy (SFPN). METHODS: Retrospective medical chart review. RESULTS: A 58-year old man with WM developed vision loss and bilateral lower extremity pain. CAR was diagnosed by history, a depressed electroretinogram (ERG) and positive anti-retinal antibodies. SFPN diagnosis was based on abnormal autonomic nerve function testing and a distal-leg skin biopsy that demonstrated absent epidermal small-fiber innervation, IgM and complement deposition and microvasculopathy. Plasma exchange (PLEX) led to dramatic pain relief and subjective improvement in eye symptoms along with improvement of some ERG parameters. Repeat skin biopsy after treatment showed less microvascular abnormalities and decreased complement deposition. CONCLUSIONS: The concurrence of CAR and SFPN in this patient suggest that both were complications of WM and their common response to PLEX suggests co-mediation by humoral factors that accessed target antigens through IgM-triggered, complement-mediated vascular damage.

Outer retinal degeneration: an electronic retinal prosthesis as a treatment strategy.

OBJECTIVE: To review progress toward an electronic retinal prosthesis for outer retinal degeneration. METHOD: Literature review. RESULTS: Retinal degenerations such as retinitis pigmentosa result in a loss of photoreceptors. There is a secondary loss of inner retinal cells, but significant numbers of bipolar and ganglion cells remain for many years. Electrical stimulation can produce phosphenes in the eyes of individuals who are blind as a result of retinitis pigmentosa. Several research groups are trying to exploit this phenomenon to produce artificial vision with electronic retinal prostheses. Two groups, with private company sponsorship, have recently implanted first-generation devices in subjects with advanced retinitis pigmentosa. They have reported limited preliminary results. This article seeks to put these results in a broader context and review potential obstacles to successful prosthesis development. These include inner retinal cell viability, high thresholds, signal encoding, power requirements, biocompatibility, and device encapsulation. CONCLUSION: There has been substantial progress toward an electronic retinal prosthesis, but fully functional, long-lasting devices are not on the immediate horizon.

A broadly applicable surgical teaching method: evaluation of a stepwise introduction to cataract surgery.

OBJECTIVE: Although cataract surgery is one of the most commonly performed surgeries in the country, it is a microsurgical procedure that is difficult to learn and to teach. This study aims to assess the effectiveness of a new method for introducing postgraduate year (PGY)-3 ophthalmology residents to cataract surgery. SETTING: Hospital-based ophthalmology residency program. DESIGN: Retrospective cohort study. PARTICIPANTS: PGY-3 and PGY-4 residents of the Harvard Medical School Ophthalmology Residency from graduating years 2010 to 2012. RESULTS: In July 2009, a new method of teaching PGY-3 ophthalmology residents cataract surgery was introduced, which was termed "the stepwise introduction to cataract surgery." This curriculum aimed to train residents to perform steps of cataract surgery by deliberately practicing each of the steps of surgery under a structured curriculum with faculty feedback. Assessment methods included surveys administered to the PGY-4 residents who graduated before the implementation of these measures (n = 7), the residents who participated in the first and second years of the new curriculum (n = 16), faculty who teach PGY-4 residents cataract surgery (n = 8), and review of resident Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education surgical logs. Resident survey response rate was 100%. Residents who participated in the new curriculum performed more of each step of cataract surgery in the operating room, spent more time practicing each step of cataract surgery on a cataract surgery simulator during the PGY-3 year, and performed more primary cataract surgeries during the PGY-3 year than those who did not. Faculty survey response rate was 63%. Faculty noted an increase in resident preparedness following implementation of the new curriculum. There was no statistical difference between the precurriculum and postcurriculum groups in the percentage turnover of cataracts for the first 2 cataract surgery rotations of the PGY-4 year of training. CONCLUSIONS: The introduction of cataract surgery to PGY-3 residents in an organized, stepwise manner improved resident preparedness for the PGY-4 year of residency. This surgical teaching method can be easily applied to other surgical specialties.

Conversion to aflibercept for chronic refractory or recurrent neovascular age-related macular degeneration.

PURPOSE: To explore the visual and anatomic outcomes of patients with refractory or recurrent neovascular age-related macular degeneration (AMD) who were converted from bevacizumab and/or ranibizumab to aflibercept. DESIGN: Two-center, retrospective chart review. METHODS: Treatment history, visual acuity (VA), and central macular thickness (CMT) on spectral-domain optical coherence tomography were collected. Patients were divided into "refractory" (persistent exudation despite monthly injections) or "recurrent" (exudation suppressed, but requiring frequent injections). RESULTS: One hundred and two eyes of 94 patients were included; 68 were refractory and 34 were recurrent. Eyes received a mean of 20.4 prior bevacizumab/ranibizumab injections and a mean of 3.8 aflibercept injections. Mean follow-up was 18 weeks. Mean VA was 20/50-1 before conversion, 20/50-2 after 1 aflibercept injection (P = .723), and 20/50+2 after the final injection (P = .253). Subgroup analysis of refractory and recurrent cases also showed stable VA. Of the refractory cases, mean CMT had improved after 1 injection (P < .001) and the final injection (P < .001). Intraretinal (P < .001) and subretinal (P < .001) fluid decreased after 1 injection, and the mean injection interval was extended from 5.2 to 6.2 weeks (P = .003). Of the recurrent cases, mean CMT improved after 1 injection (P < .001) and the final injection (P < .001). Intraretinal (P = .003) and subretinal (P = .046) fluid decreased after 1 injection, and the mean injection interval was extended from 7.2 to 9.5 weeks (P = .001). CONCLUSIONS: Converting patients with chronic neovascular AMD to aflibercept results in stabilized vision and improved anatomic outcomes, while allowing injection intervals to be extended.