Complications of Couching and Visual Outcome after IOL Implantation - a Study of 60 Patients in Sudan

Aims: to describe visual outcome and complications of traditional cataract surgery (couching) which is still practiced in some regions in West Darfur; Sudan. Material and Methods: This case series studied the use of Scleral-fixated IOL in the management of patients who underwent traditional cataract surgery (couching) in West Darfur; between July; 2006 and June; 2007. Results: The study included 60 patients; of which 36 were males and 24 were females. The mean age of patients was 70 years (range 55-90 years). Fifty seven patients had poor vision in one eye; and only three patients had poor vision in both eyes. Complications of couching included secondary glaucoma and optic nerve atrophy (38); endophthalmitis (22); Majority of patients (60) ended up with no perception of light (NPL) vision. In 9 patients sclera fixated IOL and in 4 patients ACIOL implantation procedures were done. Best corrected vision postoperatively ranged between 6/9 and 6/18 in both groups. Conclusion: Couching results in poor visual outcome and blinding complications in most of the patients. Hence; traditional healers performing couching should be banned by the government; not only by setting legislations against them; but also by organizing wide campaigns of heath education and mobile cataract surgery facilities (eye camps) that target the areas of action

New mutational variants of Neurospora NADP-specific glutamate dehydrogenase.

The am locus of Neurospora codes for NADP-dependent glutamate dehydrogenase (GDH). Four new am mutants that produced mutationally altered GDH have been characterized. Mutant am119 is a CRM-negative, complementing mutant that maps between am2 and am1. The other three mutants are CRM formers that produce varieties of GDH that can be activated by glutamate or succinate. The GDH of am130 and am131 is similar in terms of activation properties to that of am3. The GDH of am122 requires very high concentrations of dicarboxylate for activity. The mutation in am130 maps between am14 and am2 and resulted in a replacement at residue 75 of the GDH (pro leads to ser). The mutation in am122 maps near am11 and apparently resulted in the replacement of the tryptophan residue at position 389 with an unknown amino acid. The mutation in am131 maps between am2 and am1.