Characteristics of work-related eye trauma in construction and manufacturing industries.

CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Knowledge of work-related eye trauma in the construction and manufacturing industries will facilitate planning of policies and practices to protect against such occurrences. BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to compare demographic, epidemiological, and clinical characteristics of work-related eye trauma in workers in the construction and manufacturing industries. METHODS: Medical board disability reports of subjects who experienced work-related eye trauma were investigated in this retrospective comparative study. Subjects were separated into two groups - construction and manufacturing - and the demographic, epidemiologic, and clinical characteristics within the two groups were compared. RESULTS: The construction group included 138 eyes of 132 subjects and the manufacturing group included 82 eyes of 77 subjects. Demographic characteristics of the groups were similar (p > 0.05). The number of work-related eye trauma incidents was found as decreased during winter in construction (p < 0.001), but a similar trend was not found in manufacturing (p > 0.05). Head traumas as reason for work-related eye trauma (p < 0.001), and concomitant systemic diseases including bone fracture and traumatic brain injuries (p < 0.001 and p = 0.012) were significantly associated with eye trauma in manufacturing. Open globe injury was more common in construction (p = 0.046), and chemical injury was more common in manufacturing (p < 0.001). Retinal detachment was more prevalent in construction (p = 0.042). Hand motion or worse final visual acuity was more prevalent in manufacturing (p = 0.007) and the final visual acuity better than 6/60 was more prevalent in construction (p = 0.045). CONCLUSION: Chemical injuries are more common in manufacturing, whereas open globe injuries and retinal detachments occur more frequently in construction. Permanent low vision and blindness are more commonly associated with work-related eye trauma in manufacturing.

CORRELATION BETWEEN CENTRAL FOVEAL THICKNESS AND VISUAL ACUITY IN PATIENTS WITH IDIOPATHIC VITREOMACULAR TRACTION.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the impact of preoperative central foveal thickness (CFT) on visual acuity after surgery in patients with idiopathic vitreomacular traction and to calculate a cut-off value in preoperative CFT. METHODS: Thirty-five patients with idiopathic vitreomacular traction were evaluated retrospectively. A complete ophthalmological examination including spectral domain optical coherence tomography was performed preoperatively and at 12 months after the surgery. Receiver operating characteristic analysis was used to determine the critical point for the CFT associated with improvement of 10 or more letters in visual acuity on the Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study. RESULTS: Among 35 patients, the mean CFT at postoperative 12 months was significantly decreased from baseline (P = 0.001). Preoperative CFT and visual improvement were not significantly correlated (r = -0.090, P = 0.605), whereas preoperative CFT and preoperative visual acuity were significantly correlated (r = 0.757, P < 0.001). Improvement in CFT and visual improvement were also correlated significantly (r = 0.449, P = 0.007). According to the receiver operating characteristic analysis, the threshold CFT was 471 µm. When 15 patients with CFT thickness under 471 µm were evaluated, preoperative CFT was significantly correlated with improvement in visual acuity after the surgery (r = 0.561, P = 0.030). CONCLUSION: Preoperative CFT is important for the visual prognosis of patients with vitreomacular traction. Preoperative CFT of these patients should be considered in surgical decisions.

Are there any changes in posterior ocular structure parameters in pediatric migraine patients?

PURPOSE: To evaluate the thickness of the peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL), total macula, macular ganglion cell layer (GCL), inner plexiform layer (IPL), and choroid in pediatric migraine patients and compare the values with healthy subjects. METHODS: This observational and cross-sectional study included 40 patients in the migraine group and 40 healthy control subjects. The thickness of the peripapillary RNFL, total macula, GCL, and IPL was analyzed with spectral-domain optic coherence tomography, while choroidal thickness was analyzed with the enhanced depth imaging protocol. All measurements of the migraine patients were taken in the attack-free period. Right eye selected per subject was included in the study. RESULTS: There was no significant difference between the 2 groups in age or sex (p>0.05). The peripapillary RNFL thickness was not significantly different between the 2 groups in any quadrant. The total macula, GCL, and IPL thickness were also not significantly different in the 9 separate macular areas defined on the basis of the Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study (p>0.05). The choroidal thickness at 5 different measurement points was not statistically significantly different between migraine patients during the attack-free period and the healthy subjects (p>0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Childhood migraine does not cause changes in posterior ocular structure parameters.

Comparison of anterior segment parameters in juvenile diabetes mellitus and healthy eyes.

PURPOSE: To compare the anterior segment parameters of patients with juvenile diabetes mellitus (DM) and healthy children by optical biometry. METHODS: This prospective controlled clinical trial included 47 patients with juvenile type 1 DM and 50 age- and sex-matched healthy children. Central corneal thickness (CCT), aqueous depth (AD), lens thickness (LT), axial length, pupillary diameter (PD), K1 and K2 keratometry, and white to white distance (WTW) measurements were performed with optical biometry. The glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) levels of the DM cases were obtained. Kolmogorov-Smirnov test, t test, χ2 test, and Pearson correlation test were used for statistical analysis. RESULTS: The mean age of the 20 boys and 27 girls with DM was 10.91 ± 3.24 years and the mean age of the 29 healthy boys and 21 girls was 11.61 ± 3.6 years (age p = 0.42; sex p = 0.09). The mean LT was thicker (p = 0.001), the mean AD was lower (p = 0.001), and the mean PD was smaller (p = 0.001) in the DM cases and all were statistically significant. There was no significant difference between the groups for AU, CCT, WTW, or K1 and K2 (p = 0.12; p = 0.83; p = 0.54; p = 0.97; p = 0.21, respectively). We also found a significant negative correlation between HbA1c levels and PD (r = -0.37 p = 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: Juvenile DM may affect anterior segment parameters and cause thicker LT, smaller PD, and lower AD. These effects may change the refractive status and should be considered during the examination of these children.