RESUMO
OBJECTIVE: The study aimed to investigate the acute effect of a single dose of green tea on the quality and quantity of tears in normal eye subjects. METHODS: Forty normal eye subjects (22 men and 18 women) aged 19-39 years were enrolled in the study. Also, an age matching control group (20 males and 20 females) was enrolled for comparison. McMonnies dry eye symptoms questionnaire and slit lamp were used for the exclusion criteria determination. Phenol red thread (PRT) test was performed on both eyes of each subject. A tear sample was collected from the lower tear meniscus of the right eye of each subject for the tear ferning (TF) test, which was performed before (30 minutes) and after (60 minutes) drinking green tea. RESULTS: The median PRT measurement after green tea consumption was lower (median [IQR]=23.50 [8.00] mm) compared to that before consumption (median [IQR]=27.00 [8.75] mm). In contrast, the median TF grade was significantly higher following green tea consumption than that before consumption (median [IQR]=2.65 [1.23] vs 1.50 [0.88] mm, respectively). The results show that TF grades increased in 97.5%, and the red phenol thread scores decreased in 80% of the subjects after green tea consumption compared to those before consumption. The PRT readings and TF grades were significantly different (P<0.05) before and after green tea consumption. CONCLUSION: Drinking green tea could have a significant effect on the eye tear film quality. Tear quality appeared to decrease after green tea consumption.
RESUMO
OBJECTIVE: To describe the visual outcome of patients with lens subluxation (LS), including ectopia lentis (EL) due to genetic causes, who underwent surgical correction using standard selection criteria and surgical techniques in order to assess effectiveness of current LS therapy. METHODS: This is a retrospective review of 17 sequential patients with LS who underwent lens aspiration between 2000 and 2012 through an anterior (limbal) or posterior (pars plana) approach at King Abdulaziz University Hospital, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Snellen visual acuity was converted to the logarithm of the Minimum Angle of Resolution (logMAR) equivalent for statistical analysis. All statistical comparisons were performed by t-test. RESULTS: This series consisted of 28 eyes with causes of LS including Marfan syndrome (12 eyes), familial EL (5 eyes), homocystinuria (4 eyes), sickle cell anemia (2 eyes), and trauma (6 eyes). Mean visual acuity (VA) for the entire group increased from 20/200 before surgery to 20/70 after surgery (p>/=0.01). Post-operative VA was >/=20/60 in all eyes that did not have complicating factors such as amblyopia, retinal detachment, and/or other ocular abnormalities. Visual outcome of limbal and pars plana approaches was statistically similar (p>/=0.29). Patients with genetic causes of EL had a significantly better visual outcome than other patients (p>/=0.01); out of these, patients with Marfan syndrome had a better visual outcome than other patients with genetic abnormalities (p>/=0.02). CONCLUSION: Accepted surgical criteria and techniques improved visual outcome in patients with LS. Patients with Marfan syndrome and others genetic abnormalities without ocular complications had best visual outcomes.