Association of age-related eye diseases with cognitive frailty in older adults: a population-based study.

BACKGROUND: Age-related eye diseases and cognitive frailty (CF) are both important predictors of adverse health outcomes in older adults, however, little is known about their association. AIMS: To demonstrate the association between age-related eye diseases and cognitive frailty in a population of Iranian older adults. METHODS: In this cross-sectional, population-based study, we included 1136 individuals (female n = 514) aged 60 years and older (mean 68.8 ± 6.7 years) who participated in the second cycle of the Amirkola Health and Aging Project (AHAP) between 2016 and 2017. Cognitive function and frailty were evaluated based on Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) and the FRAIL scale respectively. Cognitive frailty was defined as coexistence of cognitive impairment (CI) and physical frailty (PF), excluding confirmed cases of dementia such as Alzheimer's disease. Cataract, diabetic retinopathy (DR), age-related macular degeneration (AMD), elevated intraocular pressure (IOP ≥ 21 mmHg) and glaucoma suspects (vertical cup to disc ratio (VCDR) ≥ 0.6) were diagnosed based on standardized grading protocols. Associations between eye diseases and cognitive frailty were evaluated through binary logistic regression analysis. RESULTS: Overall, CI, PF and CF were observed in 257 (22.6%), 319 (28.1%) and 114 (10.0%) participants respectively. After adjusting for confounders and ophthalmic conditions, individuals with cataract were more likely to have CF (OR 1.66; p-value 0.043), while DR, AMD, elevated IOP and glaucoma suspects (OR 1.32, 1.62, 1.42, 1.36, respectively) were not significantly associated with CF. Furthermore, cataract was significantly associated with CI (OR 1.50; p-value 0.022), but not with frailty (OR 1.18; p-value 0.313). CONCLUSION: Older adults with cataract were more likely to have cognitive frailty and cognitive impairment. This association demonstrates the implications of age-related eye diseases beyond ophthalmology and substantiates the need for further research involving cognitive frailty in the context of eye diseases and visual impairment.

Age-specific distribution of intraocular pressure in elderly Iranian population and its associated factors.

Background: The purpose of this study was to determine the distribution of intraocular pressure (IOP) and assess its association with age, sex, systemic blood pressure, diabetes mellitus, body mass index (BMI) and tobacco smoking in Iranian elderly population. Methods: This cohort-based, cross-sectional study assessed elderly individuals aged 60-90 years in Amirkola, northern Iran, in 2016-2017. Past medical history, blood pressure, diabetes mellitus, BMI and tobacco smoking were recorded through an interview and physical examination. IOP was assessed using non-contact tonometry. Results: Total of 1377 individuals participated in this study, out of which 1346 IOP measurements were included for the final analysis. The mean age of participants was 69.4 ± 7.1 years and mean IOP was determined to be 16.7 ± 3.2 mmHg. Majority of the participants were males (56.1% vs 43.1%), 73.8% of participants were overweight or obese, 6.1% smoked tobacco, 28.9% had diabetes mellitus and 84.9% had higher than normal blood pressure. Through multiple regression analysis, it was determined that age (ß=-0.132, p<0.001) was negatively associated with IOP, and the presence of diabetes mellitus (ß=0.118, p<0.001), systolic blood pressure (ß=0.101, p<0.001), and BMI (ß=0.020, P=0.020) were positively associated with IOP. Conclusion: Mean IOP of individuals in this study was higher than average based on other studies. Age, was negatively and systemic blood pressure, BMI and presence of diabetes mellitus were positively associated with mean IOP of elderly Iranian population. Sex and tobacco smoking were not correlated with IOP.

Monocular elevation deficiency: a case series of surgical outcome.

BACKGROUND: Inferior rectus recession, Knapp procedure, partial tendon transposition, and combined procedure are different surgical procedures in the management of monocular elevation deficiency (MED). Only a few studies have been published on the management of this problem. In this study, we report our experience with patients with MED focusing on the indications and types of surgery in the south of Iran. METHODS: In this case series, a computerized database review on 4773 patients with strabismus was performed and 18 patients diagnosed as having MED who had undergone strabismus surgery were enrolled. RESULTS: Of the 18 patients, 13 had only hypotropia and 5 had horizontal deviation as well. Preoperative vertical deviation was between 15 and 60 prism diopter (mean±SD=25.8±10.7 PD). Fourteen patients had positive forced duction test on elevation. Seventeen patients had ptosis twelve of them had true ptosis and the remaining 5 had pseudoptosis). The mean postoperative follow-up was 24.4 months. Four patients underwent Knapp procedure, 12 patients underwent inferior rectus recession, and for 2 patients a combined procedure was performed. The mean postoperative hypotropia was 6.1±7.9 PD. Twelve out of the 18 patients were corrected to within five PD of orthophoria and no one was found with overcorrection. CONCLUSION: Although MED is etiologically multifactorial, satisfactory surgical results can be achieved by judicious selection of the surgical technique based on the results of the forced duction test.