Risk Assessment for Corneal Ectasia following Photorefractive Keratectomy.

PURPOSE: To analyze the risk factors associated with a series of ectasia cases following photorefractive keratectomy (PRK) and all published cases. METHODS: In a retrospective study on post-PRK ectasia patients, 9 eyes of 7 patients were included, in addition to 20 eyes of 13 patients from the literature. Risk of post-PRK ectasia was calculated using the ectasia risk score system (ERSS) for laser in situ keratomileusis (LASIK) patients. The percent tissue altered (PTA) was also evaluated. RESULTS: ERSS scoring of zero for age, RSB, and spherical equivalent was found in 66%, 86%, and 86% of the eyes, respectively. Pachymetry risk score was 2 in 60% of the eyes and 3 or 4 in 16% of the eyes. Topography risk score was 3 in 41% of the eyes and 4 in 21% of the eyes. Cumulative ectasia risk score was ≥4 (high risk) in 77% of the eyes and ≥3 (medium and high risk) in 86% of the eyes. Average PTA was 23.2 ± 7.0%. All eyes but one had a PTA < 40%. CONCLUSIONS: Preoperative corneal topographic abnormalities and thin corneas may be significant risk factors for developing ectasia following PRK. Post-LASIK ectasia risk scoring also has relevance in the risk for developing post-PRK ectasia.

Topical beta blockers in asthmatic patients-is it safe?

PURPOSE: To investigate the use of topical ocular anti-glaucoma medications by glaucomatous patients with obstructive pulmonary disease and their effect on related hospitalizations and emergency room visits. PARTICIPANTS: We followed the electronic medical records of all the members in a district of the largest health maintenance organization in Israel (the "central district" of Clalit Health Services) older than 20 years (317,469 members); 6597 of them were on chronic topical anti-glaucoma treatment of which 693 (10.5%) suffered from obstructive pulmonary disease (OPD). METHODS: In a historical cohort study, we documented all anti-glaucoma prescriptions filled in the district between January 1, 2001, and December 31, 2003, and all emergency room (ER) visits and hospitalizations in internal medicine, geriatric, or pulmonology departments. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The rate of hospitalization and emergency room visits during treatment with each anti-glaucoma medication. RESULTS: Five hundred forty-four glaucomatous OPD patients (78.5%) were treated with topical beta-blockers, but only 169 (31.1%) of them received a cardio-selective beta-blocker (betaxolol). Patients treated with betaxolol each received more prescriptions per year than patients treated with timolol (p < 0.0001). Patients on topical betaxolol or timolol had 23.1 and 20.7 hospitalization days as well as 7.3 and 6.1 emergency room visits per 100 treatments per year, respectively, compared to a mean of 10 hospitalization days (p < 0.0001) and 5.0 ER visits for patients on non-beta-blocker anti-glaucoma medications. CONCLUSIONS: A majority of glaucomatous patients with obstructive pulmonary disease were treated with topical beta-blockers, mostly non-cardioselective (timolol). Those patients were more prone to be hospitalized or visit the emergency room while on the medication.

Long-term adherence to antihypertensive therapy: a survey in four primary care clinics.

BACKGROUND: Many hypertensive patients have suboptimal control of their blood pressure. One of the most common causes is poor adherence with treatment. AIM: To identify factors associated with poorer adherence to antihypertensive treatment. METHODS: The study was conducted in four urban clinics of Clalit Health Services (Israel's largest Health management organization): 3799 patients aged > 20 years with hypertension in whom a new antihypertensive medicine was started in a 3-year period were included. Data included: age; gender; chronic diseases; type of antihypertensive medicine; and adherence with treatment. Reasons for non-adherence had been evaluated in a random sample of 453 of the medical records. RESULTS: Of the patients, 2234/3799 (58.8%) stopped >or= 1 medicine. Lower adherence was associated with female gender, new immigration, ischemic heart disease and being a non-diabetic. Adherence was related to the type of medicine. The highest rates of adherence were found with the use of angiotensin receptor blockers (59.1%) and selective beta-blockers (59%), and the lowest with non-selective beta-blockers (30.1%). There was no documentation of the reason to medicine cessation in 183/453 (40.4%) of the medical records. In 20.1% of cessations, the physician continued to prescribe the drug, despite the fact that the patient had stopped purchasing it. Common reasons for treatment cessation were side effects (15%) and lack of blood pressure control (5.5%). CONCLUSIONS: Adherence with antihypertensive treatment declines with time and is associated with the type of medicine, and sociodemographic and clinical backgrounds. Family physicians must increase their documentation and awareness to medicine adherence.

Cataract surgery is associated with a higher rate of photodynamic therapy for age-related macular degeneration.

PURPOSE: To investigate the association between cataract surgery and the rate of photodynamic therapy (PDT) for age-related macular degeneration (AMD). DESIGN: Observational population-based retrospective case-control study. PARTICIPANTS: All members in a district of the largest health maintenance organization (HMO) in Israel > 50 years old on January 1, 2001, who did not terminate their membership through May 31, 2005 (139 894 members). METHODS: All PDT procedures for AMD performed in the study population between January 1, 2001 and May 31, 2005 (283 patients) and all cataract surgeries performed between January 1, 2001 and December 31, 2003 (5913 patients) were documented. We extracted clinical information from the chronic disease registry of the HMO as well as demographic and socioeconomic information. For each patient that underwent cataract surgery, 5 HMO members matched in age, gender, chronic diseases (systemic hypertension, diabetes, hyperlipemia, and ischemic heart disease), place of residence, country of birth and socioeconomic status, who did not undergo cataract surgery, were randomly chosen as controls (n = 29 565). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The rate for undergoing PDT at different time periods after cataract surgery. RESULTS: Fifty (0.85%) cataract patients and 94 control cases (0.32%) underwent PDT after cataract surgery (P<0.0001, chi-square test). A significant rise in PDT rate was noticed in cataract patients compared to controls during the first 6 months after surgery (P = 0.004, chi-square test). Between 6 and 12 months postoperatively, the PDT rates were similar in both groups. However, a more significant rise in PDT rates occurred between 1 and 1.5 years after surgery (P<0.0001, chi-square test). The Kaplan-Meier PDT-free survival curve of cataract patients was significantly worse than that of the controls (P<0.0001, chi-square test; P = 33.7, log-rank test). The hazard ratio for cataract patients compared to controls to undergo PDT after surgery was 2.7 (confidence interval = 2.4-5.7). The most significant factors to reduce the time to PDT were advanced age followed by having had cataract surgery, place of birth, socioeconomic status, and hyperlipidemia (Cox proportional hazards survival regression). CONCLUSIONS: We identified an increased rate of PDT, presumably for subfoveal AMD, 1 to 1.5 years after cataract surgery.

Increased risk for herpetic eye disease in patients with allergic conjunctivitis.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the risk of ocular surface herpetic eye disease (osHED) in allergic eye disease. METHODS: We calculated the risk for osHED in 11,205 patients on antiallergic ocular topical agents compared with 453,069 controls based on filled prescriptions for topical acyclovir between 2001 and 2003. RESULTS: Significantly more allergic patients, of all age groups, received treatment for osHED (p < 0.01). The age and gender adjusted relative risk for allergic patients to suffer an osHED event was 2.31 (95% CI: 1.84-2.90), raising to 3.55 (95% CI: 2.0-6.4) in patients that filled > or = 4 antiallergic prescriptions. CONCLUSIONS: Patients treated for allergic eye disease have an increased risk of osHED.

Risk factors for photodynamic therapy of predominantly classic choroidal neovascularization in age-related macular degeneration.

PURPOSE: To investigate the influence of various risk factors for age-related macular degeneration (AMD) on the rate of undergoing photodynamic therapy (PDT). DESIGN: An observational population based cohort study. SETTINGS: A district of the largest health maintenance organization (HMO) in Israel. STUDY POPULATION: All HMO members in the district, older than 50 years on January 1, 2001, who did not terminate their membership until May 31, 2005 (139,894 members); of those, 283 underwent PDT for AMD during the study period (775 procedures). OBSERVATION PROCEDURES: We extracted information from the chronic disease registry of the HMO as well as demographic information including age, gender, country of birth, place of residency, and social security economic status. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Effect of various risk factors for AMD on the rate of PDT. RESULTS: The age-adjusted proportion of patients requiring PDT was significantly higher in hypertensives (P = .03, chi2 test), in hyperlipidemics (P = .002), in ischemic heart disease patients (P = .002) and among males (P = .03) and Ashkenazi Jews (P = .02). No significant difference in PDT rates was noted in diabetics, congestive heart failure (CHF), and chronic renal failure (CRF) patients. PDT rates were lower in the lower socioeconomic class (P = .002). Logistic regression found a significant effect of age, hyperlipidemia, hypertension, socioeconomic status, and gender on the rate of PDT, while ischemic heart disease (IHD), diabetes, CHF, CRF, place of birth, and place of residence did not contribute significantly to the model. CONCLUSIONS: Advanced age, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, male gender, and socioeconomic status are risk factors for undergoing PDT for predominantly classic neovascular AMD.

Topical beta-blockers are not associated with an increased risk of treatment for depression.

PURPOSE: To investigate the effect of topical beta-blockers on the prevalence of depression among glaucoma patients. DESIGN: Retrospective observational population-based cohort study. PARTICIPANTS: We reviewed the electronic medical records of all the members in a district of the largest health maintenance organization in Israel (Central District of Clalit Health Services) who were older than 20 years (317,469 members). METHODS: We documented all antiglaucoma prescriptions (n = 274,023) and all antidepressant prescriptions (n = 16,948) filled by glaucoma patients in the district between January 1, 2001 and December 31, 2003. We included only those patients who filled at least 6 consecutive antiglaucoma prescriptions at least once every 2 months (n = 6597; 5846 [88.6%] were treated with topical beta-blockers). Depressed patients were defined as patients that filled at least four prescriptions for antidepressants during the study period (n= 810, 12.3% of all glaucoma patients). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Relationship of topical beta-blocker use and prevalence of depression among glaucoma patients. RESULTS: No significant demographic differences were noted between glaucoma patients treated and not treated with topical beta-blockers. Of those treated and not treated with beta-blockers, 12.2% (12.7% after age-adjustment) and 12.7%, respectively, were also receiving drug therapy for depression (P = 0.7, chi-square test). With stratification by age, treatment with topical beta-blockers did not influence the prevalence of depression in any age group. Logistic regression analysis revealed a significant effect of age, place of birth, and gender on the prevalence of depression, but the prevalence of use of topical beta-blockers had no significant effect. CONCLUSIONS: Use of topical beta-blockers by glaucoma patients does not appear to increase the risk of depression in this population.

Herpetic eye disease in diabetic patients.

PURPOSE: To study the incidence of herpetic eye disease (HED) of the ocular surface in diabetics. DESIGN: Observational historical cohort study. SETTING: A district of the largest health maintenance organization in Israel (the Central District of Clalit Health Services). PARTICIPANTS: We reviewed the electronic medical records of all patients older than 50 years (159634 patients) in the district, and of these, 22382 (14.0%) patients had diabetes mellitus. METHODS: All filled prescriptions for acyclovir eye ointment between January 1, 2001 and December 31, 2003 (1483 tubes) and all hemoglobin A1c laboratory tests during 2003 (41910 tests) were documented. An ocular surface HED event was defined when a patient consumed at least 1 tube of topical acyclovir per month, whereas no acyclovir use was documented 3 months before and 3 months after that event. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Incidence of ocular surface HED events in diabetics compared with nondiabetics adjusted for age and gender. RESULTS: After age and gender adjustment, significantly more diabetics had ocular surface HED (5.21 per thousand) compared with nondiabetics (4.27 per thousand; P<0.0001). Stratification by age revealed a significantly higher prevalence of HED in diabetics, aged 60 to 79 years. Recurrent herpetic events occurred during the study period in 25.2% of HED-affected diabetics, and in 16.6% of HED-affected nondiabetics (P = 0.05). Diabetics with poor glycemic control (mean annual hemoglobin A1c > 9%) consumed significantly more ocular acyclovir (P = 0.01). Multivariate analysis revealed this effect to be independent of age, gender, place of birth, or place of residency. CONCLUSIONS: Ocular surface HED is significantly more common among patients with diabetes mellitus. Poor glycemic control correlates with increased consumption of ocular acyclovir in diabetic patients.

Dry eye in diabetic patients.

PURPOSE: To compare the prevalence of keratoconjunctivitis sicca (KCS) in a prospective cohort of 22,382 diabetic patients with that in the general population. DESIGN: Prospective, observational, cohort study. SETTING: A district of israel's largest health maintenance organization. STUDY POPULATION: We followed the electronic medical records of all patients in the district older than 50 years (159,634 patients) between January 1 and December 31, 2003. Of those, 22,382 (14.0%) had diabetes. OBSERVATION PROCEDURE: The proportion of ocular lubrication consumers was compared among diabetic and nondiabetic patients. All HbA1c laboratory tests performed by the diabetic patients were documented (41,910 tests), and glycemic control was correlated with the consumption of ocular lubrication. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Ocular lubrication use by diabetic patients compared with the general population and the relationship between glycemic control and ocular lubrication use. RESULTS: After age and gender adjustment, a significantly higher percentage of diabetic patients (20.6%) received ocular lubrication, compared with nondiabetic patients (13.8%, P < .001). The difference was significant for all age groups and for both sexes (P < .001). A similar significant difference was prominent between diabetic and nondiabetic patients aged 60 to 89 years who were frequent users of ocular lubrication. Ocular lubrication consumption increased with poorer glycemic control (mean annual HbA1c levels). Multivariate analysis revealed this effect to be independent of age, sex, place of birth, or place of residence. CONCLUSIONS: KCS is significantly more common among diabetic patients. Poor glycemic control correlates with increased artificial tear use in diabetic patients.

The effect of combination pharmacotherapy on the prescription trends of glaucoma medications.

PURPOSE: To describe prescription trends within a managed care setting for glaucoma medications and to examine the effect of introduction of Cosopt--a fixed combination of dorzolamide and timolol. PATIENTS AND METHODS: All prescriptions dispensed to any of the 470,350 members of an Israeli health maintenance organization were monthly scanned for patients treated for glaucoma, between January 2000 and May 2003. The monthly mean number of glaucoma patients was 3899 +/- 104 (mean +/- SD). All topical glaucoma prescriptions were documented, and the monthly prescription rate of each medication was calculated and plotted. The monitored glaucoma medications were: beta-adrenergic antagonists, dorzolamide, latanoprost, pilocarpine, brimonidine, Cosopt, and others. RESULTS: beta-adrenergic antagonists were the top prescribing drug (>35% of all glaucoma prescriptions). The prescription rates of pilocarpine and beta-adrenergic antagonists were in constant decline, while latanoprost and brimonidine increased steadily. The introduction of Cosopt changed the prescription trends of dorzolamide from increasing to rapidly decreasing, and accelerated the long-term decline of beta-adrenergic antagonists. Concomitant with the introduction of Cosopt the prescription rate of beta-adrenergic antagonists temporarily increased. This was due to a total increase in glaucoma prescriptions. When Cosopt was introduced, 37.5% of patients were prescribed Cosopt together with beta-adrenergic antagonists, and 16.5% also received dorzolamide. Thereafter the co-prescription decreased steadily. CONCLUSIONS: Introduction of a combination drug should be accompanied by physicians', pharmacists', and patients' education to prevent its inappropriate usage together with its components.