Long-term follow-up of intraocular pressure and pressure-lowering medication in patients following Excimer laser trabeculotomy.

BACKGROUND: Excimer laser trabeculotomy (ELT) is a minimally invasive procedure to lower the intraocular pressure (IOP) via a photo-ablative laser that is applied to the trabecular meshwork. With this procedure, it is possible to improve the outflow of the aqueous humor. Until now, a limited number of studies examining mostly relatively small sample sizes with midterm follow-up exist. We therefore present the analysis of a large ELT cohort in a long-term follow-up. METHODS: We recorded data from 580 patients who underwent ELT or combined ELT with cataract surgery at our institution from November 2000 until March 2011. A total of 512 patients with primary open angle glaucoma (POAG), pseudoexfoliation glaucoma (PEX), and ocular hypertension (OHT) were included in the analysis. At every follow-up examination, the usage of IOP-lowering medication and the IOP were recorded. Failure criteria were defined as the need for another surgical glaucoma procedure, when the IOP was not 21 mmHg or less and a reduction of 20% from the baseline was not achieved with (qualified success) or without (absolute success) additional medication. Statistical analysis was done using Kaplan-Meier analysis and Cox regression. RESULTS: Four hundred twenty-eight patients underwent combined cataract and ELT surgery, and 84 underwent solitary ELT surgery. After a median follow-up time of 656 days, 87% (combined surgery) and 66% (ELT) of the patients did not have to undergo another IOP-lowering intervention; 47/31% were classified as a qualified success and 31/11% as a complete success. The IOP-lowering medication, however, could not be significantly reduced within that time period. CONCLUSION: Especially when combined with cataract surgery, ELT is a feasible minimally invasive procedure to lower the IOP on a mid- to long-term basis. Over the long term, however, IOP-lowering medication could not be reduced.

[Keratoplasty in Children and Adolescents]. / Keratoplastiken im Kindes- und Jugendalter.

BACKGROUND: The conditions for long-term graft survival in infants and children are unfavorable, due to the different immunological features, the impaired clinical examination and the reduced compliance and treatment adherence. However, penetrating keratoplasty is often the only option to prevent amblyopia and there may be no alternative. We examined the different indications, graft survival and complications in two specialised centres. MATERIAL AND METHODS: We identified all patients who were under the age of 18 years at the time of their penetrating keratoplasty. We then assessed the electronic file on indications, graft failure, visual acuity, enucleation and further complications. RESULTS: A total of 104 eyes of 95 patients (54 % female) were identified. Median age at the time of surgery was 14 years (quartiles 8 and 16 years). Median follow-up was 2.7 years. The following indications were identified: keratoconus (39 %), penetrating injury (18 %), non-herpetic corneal scars (12 %), herpetic corneal scars (6 %), sclerocornea (3 %), chemical burn (3 %) and miscellaneous indications (19 %). Clear graft survival according to the Kaplan-Meier method ranged from 100 % (keratoconus) to 35 % (sclerocornea). Enucleation was only necessary in patients with penetrating injuries (n = 2). Kaplan-Meier analysis estimated the failure of all grafts after one year in infants. In older patients, 90 % of grafts were still clear at that time. CONCLUSION: Prognosis of penetrating keratoplasty in children is related to the indication, and therefore the underlying disease, as well as the patients' age. In particular, infants exhibited poor prognosis, with only a very short period of clear graft survival. In indications, keratoconus showed the best prognosis, whereas sclerocornea and penetrating injuries had the worst prognosis.

[Bruch's Membrane Opening in OCT in Correlation with Corneal Correction - a Pilot Study]. / Abhängigkeit der Größe der OCT-Bruch-Membran-Öffnung von Hornhautkorrekturfaktoren ­ eine Pilotstudie.

Background: The measurement by optical coherence tomography (OCT) of the Bruch membrane opening (BMO) and the thinnest retinal fiber nerve layer in relation to it (BMO-MRW) has been performed in clinical routine since 2014. To compensate for astigmatism, or increased or decreased corneal power, a correction is performed through the mean K-value of the measured eye. The aim of this study was to measure the value of this correction and its influence on the measurement results. Methods: The sectors of BMO-MRW and BMO values of the five right eyes of five healthy patients were measured five times each with Heidelberg Spectralis OCT. Corneal compensation was systematically raised with each single measurement (7.1, 7.4, 7.7, 8.0, 8.3 mm). RESULTS: The data showed almost linear dependence on the given corneal compensation values, with intraindividual variability. For the BMO-MRW, only small effects of compensation were found (0.85 up to 1.97 % per K-value difference of 0.3 mm). For BMO, the effect was greater, with a mean change of 7.71 % for every 0.3 mm change in compensation. Conclusion: For BMO-MRW, corneal compensation is of low clinical relevance. BMO is more dependent on this correction. In follow-up measurements, the compensation might not account for significant changes, although we recommend using correct corneal compensation values when obtaining single or first-time measurements.

[Possibilities and Limitations of OCT-Angiography in Patients with Central Serous Chorioretinopathy]. / Möglichkeiten und Grenzen der OCT-Angiografie bei Patienten mit Chorioretinopathia centralis serosa.

Purpose Central serous chorioretinopathy (CSC) is a commonly acquired maculopathy characterized by the accumulation of subretinal fluid at the posterior pole. This study aims to analyze optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) findings in patients with acute and chronic CSC and to compare them to conventional imaging methods. Methods A series of 43 consecutive eyes of 29 patients diagnosed with CSC and 18 eyes of 9 healthy control subjects were included in this retrospective study. The OCTA images were assessed and compared to conventional fluorescence (FAG) and indocyanine green angiography (ICG). Results All CSC patients demonstrated abnormal areas of focal hypo- and hyperperfusion in the choriocapillaris. These were particularly evident in patients with chronic atrophic CSC. FAG and ICG imaging revealed leakage points in 10 of 43 eyes and choroidal neovascularization (CNV) in 3 of 43 eyes. OCTA imaging confirmed leakage points in 4 out of 10 cases and choroidal neovascularization in 2 out of 3 cases. In one case, OCTA demonstrated a CNV which was not detectable by FAG/ICG. Conclusion OCTA reveals areas of focal hypo- and hyperperfusion in the choriocapillaris in patients with CSC. Due to the inability to detect plasma flow, OCTA is not suitable to detect leakage points in CSC with confidence. However, OCTA reliably detects CNV in CSC even in the absence of exudative activity and may, therefore, represent an important supplement in the diagnosis of CSC.

Outcomes of Descemet membrane endothelial keratoplasty, Descemet stripping automated endothelial keratoplasty and penetrating keratoplasty from a single centre study.

PURPOSE: According to some pioneer surgeons, lamellar endothelial keratoplasty techniques (EK), including Descemet membrane endothelial keratoplasty (DMEK) and Descemet stripping automated endothelial keratoplasty (DSAEK), yield excellent clinical results. However, there is a lack of studies with high levels of evidence and results of large national keratoplasty registers are contradictory. Therefore, two large cohorts of DMEK and DSAEK procedures are compared to a cohort of penetrating keratoplasty (PK). METHODS: The study reports 868 keratoplasty procedures at a single centre (694 eyes with Fuchs endothelial dystrophy (FED) and 174 with bullous keratopathy (BK)). Patients underwent DMEK (450 eyes), DSAEK (89 eyes), or PK (329 eyes). Postoperative visual acuity, endothelial cell density (ECD), rate of regrafting, and rejections were recorded. RESULTS: Visual acuity recovers faster and to a greater extent in EK compared to PK. DMEK performs better than DSAEK. ECD drops faster initially for EK compared to PK. In EK the rate of regrafting is higher than in PK (7 % in DMEK, 20 % in DSAEK and 2 % in PK in FED). The rejection rate is lowest following DMEK (7 % after DMEK, 21 % after DSAEK and 18 % after PK in FED). CONCLUSIONS: In contrast to recent reports from national keratoplasty registers, the overall clinical outcome of EK in FED and BK is superior to PK. Including ocular comorbidities and learning curves, these data reflect a realistic setting for comparing the different keratoplasty techniques. Corneal surgeons may be encouraged to preferentially use DMEK in FED and BK.

[Intraocular Lens Opacification Following Posterior Lamellar Keratoplasty]. / Kunstlinsentrübungen nach hinterer lamellärer Keratoplastik.

BACKGROUND: The opacification of an artificial intraocular lens is a rare but serious complication following cataract surgery as an exchange of the intraocular lens can become necessary. At our eye center we observed single cases of IOL opacifications following complicated posterior lamellar keratoplasty (Descemet stripping automated endothelial keratoplasty = DSAEK or Descemet membrane endothelial keratoplasty = DMEK). Therefore, we performed a retrospective analysis of all our digital charts regarding the incidence of this serious complication with respect to posterior lamellar keratoplasty, penetrating keratoplasty or sole cataract extraction. METHODS: We searched our digital patient database from 2003 to 2015 using the following headings: intraocular lens, artificial lens or IOL and opacification or calcification and selected only those patients who had undergone either DSAEK, DMEK, penetrating keratoplasty or sole cataract surgery (n = 19,565). RESULTS: In total we found five IOL opacifications out of 153 DSAEK and two out of 450 DMEK cases, respectively. Five of these seven cases had a complicated clinical course with repeated rebubbling or additional intraocular surgery (i.e., repeat DSAEK or DMEK or secondary penetrating keratoplasty). There were no documented IOL opacifications following penetrating keratoplasty or sole cataract extraction. In two cases intraocular lens exchange became necessary. All opacifications showed similar clinical appearance in form of small granular deposits on the surface of the intraocular lens. Almost all implanted lenses were made from hydrophilic acrylate. DISCUSSION: In total we found seven cases of intraocular lens opacification that have only been observed following DSAEK or DMEK. According to reports from the literature these opacifications are superficial calicifications of the hydrophilic lenses. As five of the seven cases had a complicated clinical course, the repeated air contact of the lens could be one major factor in inducing the calcification. Besides the air contact a breakdown of the blood-aqueous barrier could also play a role in the induction of calcium phosphate crystallisation on the intraocular lens. The risk of this serious complication in mainly hydrophilic intraocular lenses with respect to posterior lamellar keratoplasty should be kept in mind for the selection of the type of intraocular lens in patients with endothelial diseases or in patients undergoing combined cataract extraction and DSAEK/DMEK.

Attitudes toward postmortem cornea donation in Germany: a multicenter survey.

PURPOSE: To analyse the willingness for postmortem cornea donation in Germany. METHODS: Employees in two cities (UKM, UKS), and university hospitals (STM, STE), members of the German Ophthalmological Society (DOG), and employees of an automobile company (BO) participated in a questionnaire about postmortem cornea donation attitudes. The questionnaire consisted of demographic items, motives concerning postmortem cornea donation, general attitudes toward donation, and questions concerning the perceived needs for information about donation. The statistical analyses included logistic regression with the target parameter of 'willingness to donate cornea postmortem'. RESULTS: Of the participants, 67.7 % (UKM, UKS), 70.9 % (STM, STE), 70.8 % (BO), and 79.4 % (DOG) declared their intention to donate their corneas postmortem. Younger age (p < 0.001), poorer general health (p < 0.05), faith in an eternal life (p < 0.05), disagreement with brain death diagnostics (p < 0.001), fear of receiving worse medical treatment (p < 0.001), and fear of the commercialization of organs (p < 0.001) were found to be risk factors for a negative attitude toward postmortem cornea. The majority of participants (57.4 %) indicated that additional information about donation would be appreciated, and the internet (69.9 %) was considered the most appropriate means for conveying this information. CONCLUSIONS: Emotional items were revealed to be the most relevant factors influencing the willingness to donate cornea postmortem, which may be counteracted by means of public education. The relatively low willingness among the medical staff contrasts with previous observations in a professional ophthalmologic society.

[Systematic analysis of the annual quality reports of the Federal Joint Committee with regard to cataract surgery]. / Systematische Analyse der Krankenhausqualitätsberichte im Hinblick auf die Versorgung der Bevölkerung mit Kataraktoperationen.

BACKGROUND: Cataract is one of the most common diseases in ophthalmology. Up to now the only way to estimate the total number of carried out surgeries in Germany were the surveys done by DOG, BVA, DGII and BDOC or reports of the federal statistical office. OBJECTIVES: Objective of this paper is to evaluate the annual quality reports of the Federal Joint Committee with a view to how the hospitals are participating in the nationwide comprehensive coverage concerning cataract surgery and if there is a continuing trend to more outpatient cataract surgeries in German eye hospitals. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The number of outpatient and inpatient cataract surgeries included in the annual quality reports of 2006, 2008 and 2010 were put into relation with population density for every provincial state. RESULTS: In 2006, 2008 and 2010 a total of 765,179 cataract surgeries were recorded. Median number of cataract surgeries per 1000 inhabitants showed an only slight increase (2006: 2.8; 2008 and 2010: 3.0; p = 0.82). The ratio of outpatient to inpatient surgeries showed only a slight increase from 0.84 (2006) to 0.86 (2010). CONCLUSIONS: Lack of spatial and temporal variations imply that hospitals take a part in supplying the population with cataract surgery. There is no trend to more outpatient cataract surgeries at the moment. This implies that there might be a stable patient population that is not suitable for outpatient care.

[Body mass index as an influencing factor for outcome of trabectome surgery?]. / Einfluss des Body-Mass-Index auf den Erfolg nach Trabektomoperation?

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to investigate a possible influence of body mass index (BMI) to the outcome of trabectome surgery. METHODS: 131 eyes with primary open angle glaucoma, myopia-associated glaucoma and pseudoexfoliation glaucoma were included into this retrospective study. The data were extracted from the Freiburg trabectome database from June 2009 to April 2013. We fitted a Cox proportional hazards model in order to assess the influence of the BMI on trabectome outcome. RESULTS: The absolute success after trabectome surgery (20 % pressure reduction without anti-glaucomatous medication) was statistically significantly better in the group with BMI > 25 kg/m(2) (p = 0.047). No statistically significant effect was observed for relative success or the rate of re-operation respectively. CONCLUSION: In our patient cohort of 131 eyes, a high BMI was associated with a reduced success, as long as an absolute success is required. No difference is seen if additional anti-glaucomatous medication is acceptable (relative success).

[Morphological analysis of corneal refractive lenticules--is there a correlation with refractive results?]. / Ultrastrukturelle Analyse von Hornhautlentikeln nach fs-Lentikelextraktion gibt es einen Zusammenhang mit den refraktiven Ergebnissen?

BACKGROUND: ReLEx®flex is a corneal refractive procedure performed by removing corneal lenticules with a femtosecond (fs) laser system. Using electron microscopy, tissue parameters of extracted lenticules were analysed for potential correlations to the refractive results. Furthermore, the effect of previous contact lens (CL) wear on refractive stability (regression) was tested. PATIENTS AND METHODS: 19 lenticules from 11 patients (age 24-56 years, 8 f, 3 m) were prepared for EM. The central areas of the samples were photographed and the distance between the collagen fibres and their diameters were digitally measured. ANOVA analysis was used to correlate postoperative refractional stability with time of preoperative CL use, fibre diameter and the coefficient of variation (CV) of fibre distance. RESULTS: 14 of 19 lenticules were from patients who had worn CL preoperatively. The cumulative duration of CL wear averaged around 31.2 ± 35.5 thousand hours. Preoperative CL use significantly influenced the postoperative regression: the longer time patients had worn CL, the greater was the regression towards myopia (p = 0.01). Additionally, the morphological parameters collagen fibre diameter (p = 0.09) and CV of fibre distance (p = 0.07) had an impact on regression. CONCLUSIONS: Prolonged CL use and alterations in ultrastructural patterns affected the refractive stability after ReLExflex. Although the pathophysiological relationships between CL use, corneal morphological parameters, and refractive stability are still poorly understood, these findings could potentially be used as prognostic markers for postoperative refraction after ReLExflex.

Automatic inference of ICD-10 codes from German ophthalmologic physicians' letters using natural language processing.

Physicians' letters are the optimal source of diagnoses for registries. However, most registries demand for diagnosis codes such as ICD-10. We herein describe an algorithm that infers ICD-10 codes from German ophthalmologic physicians' letters. We assess the method in three German eye hospitals. Our algorithm is based on the nearest-neighbor method as well as on a large thesaurus for ICD-10 codes. This thesaurus was embedded into a Word2Vec space created from anonymized physicians' reports of the first hospital. For evaluation, each of the three hospitals sent all diagnoses taken from 100 letters. The inferred ICD-10 codes were evaluated for correctness by the senders. A total of 3332 natural language terms had been sent in (812 hospital one, 1473 hospital two, 1047 hospital three). A total of 526 non-diagnoses were excluded upfront. 2806 ICD-10 codes were inferred (771 hospital one, 1226 hospital two, 809 hospital three). In the first hospital, 98% were fully correct and 99% correct at the level of the superordinate disease concept. The percentages in hospital two were 69% and 86%. The respective numbers for hospital three were 69% and 91%. Our simple method is capable of inferring ICD-10 codes for German natural language diagnoses, especially when the embedding space has been built with physicians' letters from the same hospital. The method may yield sufficient accuracy for many tasks in the multi-centric setting and can easily be adapted to other languages/specialities.

Visual outcome and histological findings following femtosecond laser-assisted versus microkeratome-assisted DSAEK.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to compare the visual outcome of femtosecond laser-assisted Descemet stripping automated endothelial keratoplasty (DSAEK) to microkeratome-assisted DSAEK as well as to contrast precut versus surgeon-cut grafts. Histologic characterization of failed DSAEK grafts was performed in order to correlate ultrastructural changes with graft failures. METHODS: In this case control study, 47 cases of DSAEK were investigated in terms of visual acuity, keratometric astigmatism, spherical equivalent, endothelial cell count, and postoperative complications. We formed three groups: the femtosecondlaser-assisted DSAEK with precut grafts, the microkeratome-assisted DSAEK with precut and with surgeon-cut grafts. Mean follow-up was 6 months. In the case of graft failure, penetrating keratoplasty was performed, and the excised corneal buttons were investigated by light and electron microscopy. RESULTS: Microkeratome-assisted DSAEK lead to better visual outcome than femtosecond laser-assisted DSAEK. Keratometric astigmatism, spherical equivalent and endothelial cell count did not differ significantly between both methods. Precut and surgeon-cut grafts in microkeratome-assisted DSAEK did not show any significant difference regarding all upraised parameters. No definite histological correlate for graft failure following femtosecond laser-assisted DSAEK was found. CONCLUSIONS: Femtosecond laser-assisted DSAEK is not the method of choice, and needs further technical improvement. However, failed femtosecondlaser-assisted DSAEK grafts did not show significant histological changes related to the technique to explain reduced visual acuity. In microkeratome-assisted DSAEK, the preparation time point of the graft does not seem to influence the visual and optical outcome.

[HLA matching in keratoplasty: lessons learned from lamellar techniques]. / Immunologie der Keratoplastik: Macht HLA-Matching bei lamellären Verfahren Sinn?

BACKGROUND: The immunological mechanisms of graft rejections after penetrating keratoplasty are largely investigated in rodent models. Here, antigens are predominantly processed by host antigen presenting cells (APCs). For this reason, graft rejections are not primarily triggered by mismatches in the major histocompatibility complex (MHC). Consequently, MHC matching (equivalent of HLA matching) does not robustly prevent immunological graft rejections in mice. This, however, may not apply to humans because anatomy and the clinical picture of immune reactions differ vastly. METHODS: Immunological experiments are not feasible in humans for ethical reasons. However, the recent surgical modifications in keratoplasty inadvertently gave rise to several interesting immunological field experiments. We herein discuss the potential insight into human graft rejections from selected clinical observations. On this basis, we have evaluated HLA matching for keratoplasty techniques. RESULTS: Several clinical observations hint towards an active role of donor-derived APCs in graft rejections after human keratoplasty. Additionally, donor-specific anti-HLA antibodies may play a significant role. On this basis we suggest that HLA matching is potentially beneficial in human keratoplasty in contrast to the situation in mice. CONCLUSIONS: Graft rejections are rarely observed after Descemet membrane keratoplasty (DMEK). For this reason, we do not recommend HLA matching here. The same is true for deep anterior lamellar keratoplasty, where graft rejections can usually be treated well. However, HLA matching is a viable option in penetrating keratoplasty. This is especially true for high-risk eyes.

[Risk factors in the results of the colour vision test Roth 28-hue (E) desaturated in glaucoma patients]. / Einflussfaktoren auf die Ergebnisse des Farbpigmentprobentests Roth 28-hue (E) desaturiert bei Glaukompatienten.

BACKGROUND: Glaucoma is an ocular disease with typical progressive damage of the optic nerve. In the past it was postulated that glaucoma induces acquired colour vision disorders. Until now all studies about glaucoma and colour vision disorders did not include vascular risk factors. In the present study we determined several vascular risk factors concerning the results of the colour vision test Roth 28-hue (E) desaturated in glaucoma patients. PATIENTS AND METHODS: On the basis of an analysis of variance (ANOVA) we determined the influence of several risk factors, such as arteriosclerotic and vasospastic risk factors, on the results of the colour vision test Roth 28-hue (E) desaturated in glaucoma patients. 353 glaucoma patients were included in this study. RESULTS: We detected a strong influence of age and mean defect in perimetry and an additional effect of arteriosclerotic and vasospastic risk factors on the results of the colour vision test Roth 28-hue (E) desaturated in glaucoma patients. CONCLUSIONS: We suspect that arteriosclerotic and vasospastic risk factors independently to glaucoma have an influence on colour vision. In the future attention additionally has to be given to vascular risk factors in the colour vision testing of glaucoma patients.

[Photodynamic therapy in Germany-Quo vadis?] / Photodynamische Therapie in Deutschland ­ Quo vadis?

BACKGROUND: Photodynamic therapy (PDT) was originally approved for the treatment of neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD) and secondary choroidal neovascularization in myopia (mCNV). In addition, it is used as an off-label treatment in patients with choroidal hemangioma, polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy (PCV), and central serous chorioretinopathy (CSC). OBJECTIVE: To track the development of PDT treatment numbers in Germany between 2006 and 2021 and to investigate the composition of the therapeutic indications. METHODS: In this retrospective study the quality reports of German hospitals were evaluated in the period from 2006 to 2019 and the number of PDTs performed was recorded. In addition, the range of indications for PDT was determined exemplarily for the Eye Center at Medical Center, University of Freiburg and the Eye Center at St. Franziskus Hospital in Münster between 2006 and 2021. Finally, the estimated prevalence of CSC and an estimate of cases requiring treatment were used to calculate the number of patients in need of PDT treatment in Germany. RESULTS: The number of PDTs performed in Germany decreased from 1072 in 2006 to 202 in 2019. While PDT was used in 86% of cases in patients with nAMD and in 7% of cases with mCNV in 2006, it was mainly performed in patients with CSC (70%) and choroidal hemangiomas (21%) from 2016 to 2021. With an estimated incidence of CSC of 1:10,000 and assuming that 16% of patients develop chronic CCS requiring treatment, approximately 1330 PDTs would need to be performed per year in Germany for patients with newly diagnosed chronic CSC alone. CONCLUSION: The decreasing numbers of PDT treatment performed in Germany is mainly due to a change to intravitreal injections as the preferred treatment for nAMD and mCNV. As PDT is currently the recommended treatment of choice for chronic CSC, an underprovision of PDT in Germany can be assumed. To enable an appropriate treatment for patients, a reliable verteporfin production, a simplified approval process by health insurance companies and a close cooperation between ophthalmologists in private practice and larger centers are urgently needed.

[Data quality of unsupervised endothelial cell counting vs. reading centre analysis in multicentric clinical trials]. / Endothelzellmessung in multizentrischen Studien: Verbesserung der Datenqualität durch zentralisierte Bildauswertung.

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to assess data quality from unsupervised endothelial cell counting in the multicentric setting. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We performed an endothelial cell counting trial with two fictitious trial sites. The trial protocol simply demanded for marking 30 cells for analysis. Analyses were performed with the cell counting tool as built into the Topcon SP-3000P specular microscope. The first centre consequently dotted 30 cells. The other centre continuously dotted more cells until 30 cells were included in the cell counting analysis. Both sites analysed the same 89 eyes of corneal outpatients and heathy volunteers. Both sites used a dedicated Topcon SP-3000P microscope. The image pairs from both sites were eventually printed, scanned and re-evaluated with a programme that evaluated all visible cells ("reading centre"). The agreement between both sites was statistically assessed by means of Pearson's correlation and Bland-Altman analysis. The same statistical assessments were also performed for the image pairs as analysed in the reading centre. RESULTS: The determined cell densities as reported by both trial sites differed by -65 % to 42 %. Furthermore, we also observed a systematic deviation between both sites. Consequently, the coefficient of determination from Pearson's correlation was only 0.947. However, the agreement was as high as 0.997 when the image pairs were analysed in the reading centre. Here the difference between the cell densities of the image pairs ranged from merely -15 % to 9 % with no systematic deviation. CONCLUSIONS: Unsupervised endothelial cell counting does not result in sufficiently objective endothelial cell denstiy estimations. Furthermore, the built-in analysis tools can introduce systematic errors. Both drawbacks can be overcome by a reading centre that evaluates all visible cells on the images. For this reason, we recommend the involvement of a reading centre in multicentric clinical trials on the corneal endothelium.

[Current situation of electronic medical records in ophthalmological departments in Germany]. / Status der elektronischen Dokumentation in ophthalmologischen Hauptabteilungen in Deutschland.

BACKGROUND: Electronic medical records are required in ophthalmology clinics to be integrated into digital care networks and efficient clinical registry databases. AIM OF THE WORK: To assess the prevalence and methods of electronic medical recordkeeping in inpatient ophthalmological care in Germany. MATERIAL AND METHODS: An online questionnaire was sent to all German university eye hospitals and ophthalmology departments in June 2021. It included 13 open and closed option questions concerning current practices of digital recordkeeping, including the structure of data storage and the recording of billing-relevant codes in the departments. RESULTS: A total of 44 (44%) out of 100 clinics responded. Patient documentation was completely digital in 15 (34%) clinics and partly digital and paper-based in the remaining 29 (66%). A total of 16 different constellations of documentation programs were specified. The most frequently used programs were Orbis (27%) (Dedalus HealthCare, Bonn, Germany), FIDUS (18%) (Arztservice Wente, Darmstadt, Germany), and SAP/i.s.h.med (16%) (SAP Deutschland, Walldorf, Germany; Cerner Deutschland, Berlin, Germany) and 3 clinics indicated primary use of paper records. Structured documentation of findings was performed in 61% of the departments, while 23% used a semistructured manner and 15% used a nonstructured format. Electronic documents are stored as DICOM (Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine) documents 20% of the clinics and as PDF (Portable Document Format) files in 34% of the clinics while 23% store scanned printouts. DISCUSSION: Methods of medical record keeping in German eye clinics are heterogeneous, with paper-based documentation continuing to play an important role. This, as well as the high number of different electronic medical record software pose important challenges in terms of interoperability and secondary use of clinical data.

[The underestimated depth of tissue invasion of xanthelasma--a histological study]. / Die oft unterschätzte Tiefenausdehnung von Xanthelasmen--eine histologische Studie.

BACKGROUND: The depth of tissue invasion of xanthelasma is of major importance in selecting the most suitable surgical procedure. Intraoperative findings let one assume, that despite the common presumption, xanthelasma are not limited to the superior dermis but that they may penetrate the entire dermis and reach into the orbicularis muscle. In this study the depth of tissue invasion of xanthelasma was measured in histological specimens. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Between 1993 and 2006 100 xanthelasmata of 78 patients were surgically removed and analysed. Histological specimens were examined by light microscopy and the depth of tissue invasion by fat-containing macrophages was measured using the digital picture analysis system AnalySIS® of Soft Imaging System Inc. The distance from the epidermis/dermis junction to the deepest "xanthelasma" cell (fat-containing macrophage) was measured. In addition, we classified the cases into 3 categories: 1) invasion into the dermis, 2) invasion adjacent to and 3) invasion into the stratum musculare. RESULTS: The thickness of the xanthelasmata ranged between 502.9 µm und 4429.5 µm (m = 1443.6 µm, M = 1333.6 µm, SD 716.1). In 58 % of specimens lipid-containing macrophages infiltrated the dermis (m = 1275.9 µm, SD 571.0), in 15 % of specimens they touched the stratum musculare (m = 1426.2 µm, SD 534.8) and in 27 % of specimens they even infiltrated this layer (m = 1813.4 µm, SD 937.6). CONCLUSIONS: This study confirms our hypothesis that a significant part, namely 42 % of the xanthelasmata, infiltrates the entire dermis and reaches the stratum musculare or even invades into this layer. These xanthelasmata should not be treated by superficial laser therapy but should be better excised surgically.