RESUMEN
PURPOSE: To investigate intereye agreement in dry-eye disease (DED) signs in the Dry Eye Assessment and Management study. METHODS: Tear break-up time (TBUT), Schirmer test, conjunctival staining, corneal staining, meibomian gland dysfunction (MGD), and tear osmolarity were measured at baseline, 3, 6, and 12 months. Intereye agreement was assessed by intraclass correlation coefficient, weighted kappa, and percentage of participants with absolute intereye difference (AID) exceeding a clinically significant threshold (2 points for conjunctival staining and MGD, 2 seconds for TBUT, 3 points for corneal staining, 5 mm/5 minutes for Schirmer test, and 8 mOsms/L for osmolarity). The worse eye at each visit for each DED sign was determined as the eye with a sign worse than the contralateral eye by at least the clinically significant threshold. RESULTS: DED signs had moderate-to-good intereye agreement with intraclass correlation coefficient ranging from 0.45 (tear osmolarity) to 0.81 (corneal staining and Schirmer test) and weighted kappa from 0.58 (plugging) to 0.69 (lid secretion). Percentage of participants exceeding threshold AID was 15% to 20% for conjunctival staining, 11% to 15% for TBUT, 17% to 21% for MGD, 13% to 18% for corneal staining, 21% to 23% for Schirmer test, and 44% to 47% for osmolarity. The eye with a worse DED sign ranged between 36% (TBUT) and 80% (osmolarity) of participants. CONCLUSIONS: Participants demonstrated moderate-to-good intereye agreement, yet a substantial portion showed clinically significant intereye differences in each sign. The worse eye was not the same eye in the majority during follow-up. These findings suggest considering signs from both eyes in future DED trials.
RESUMEN
PURPOSE: To determine the relationship between woman leadership at senior administrative and predoctoral levels in United States (US) dental schools and assess if this relationship is affected by school characteristics. METHODS: A 23-question survey was created and distributed to each US accredited dental school (2023). Data regarding the gender of the school's dean, senior administrators, and student leaders, as well as school characteristics were gathered. Data were organized in Excel. Descriptive statistics were performed using mean and standard deviation for continuous measures and using count and percent for categorial measures. Statistical comparisons were performed using analysis of variance (ANOVA), Fisher's Exact, or Chi-squared tests for comparison of proportions. RESULTS: 32 dental schools provided analyzable data for this project (44.4% response rate). The most common senior administrative position held by a woman was the dean of student affairs (71.9%). For every surveyed school with a woman dean (n = 11, 34.4%), at least one other senior administrative position was held by a woman. There was no statistical significance between the year of school establishment, geographic region, gender of the dean, or prevalence of women administrators and students in leadership roles. The number of women students in leadership roles was close to the national enrollment trends for gender. CONCLUSIONS: Included US dental school data showed no relationship between women in leadership at the senior administrative and predoctoral levels. To keep leadership-minded students interested in dental academics throughout their careers, further studies are needed to identify the most important factors influencing careers in academic dentistry.
RESUMEN
Background: Over the last decade, studies have suggested that primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) may be associated with cognitive impairment and dementia, as both pathologies are age-related neurodegenerative processes. It remains unclear to what extent neurodegeneration in POAG extends to other neurological functions beyond vision, such as cognition. This follow-up study examined the potential association between POAG and cognitive decline in an African ancestry population. Methods: The Telephone-Montreal Cognitive Assessment (T-MoCA) was administered to POAG cases and controls previously enrolled in the Primary Open-Angle African American Glaucoma Genetics (POAAGG) study. Cases were assessed for retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) thickness and for the presence of dementia via chart review. Comparisons between POAG cases and controls were performed using two-sample t-tests for the T-MoCA total score and five subsection scores, and using chi-squared tests for incidence of dementia. Current scores were compared to scores from this same cohort from 7 years prior. Results: The T-MoCA was administered to 13 cases and 20 controls. The mean ± standard deviation (SD) T-MoCA total score was 15.5 ± 4.0 in cases and 16.7 ± 3.5 in controls (p = 0.36). However, there was a borderline significant difference in the delayed recall sub-score (2.3 ± 1.6 for cases vs. 3.4 ± 1.5 for controls, p = 0.052) and a significant difference in its sub-domain, the memory index score (MIS, 9.1 ± 4.3 for cases vs. 12.1 ± 3.0 for controls, p = 0.02). There were no significant differences between cases and controls for the remaining subsections. During 7 years of follow-up, a higher incidence of dementia was noted in POAG cases (7.1% for cases vs. 0% for controls, p = 0.058). Over 7 years, there was no significant deterioration in the cognitive performance of cases versus controls, and no association was seen between RNFL thinning and cognitive impairment. Conclusions: In this small-sample follow-up study of African ancestry individuals, POAG cases demonstrated worse short-term memory and higher incidence of dementia compared to controls. Future larger studies are needed to further investigate the presence and impact of neurodegeneration in POAG.
RESUMEN
We read with great interest the article by Rogers et al. (2023), The Combined Effects of Cannabis, Methamphetamine, and HIV on Neurocognition, published in Viruses [...].