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AIM: To study the perception of first-order grating acuity and second-order spatial contrast sensitivity in patients with monocular anisometropia amblyopia.METHODS:A total of 715 children(715 eyes)diagnosed as monocular anisometropia amblyopia in our hospital from January 2018 to December 2022 were collected as amblyopia group, and 745 children(745 eyes)with normal corrected visual acuity were collected. The best corrected visual acuity(BCVA), first-order grating acuity and/or second-order spatial contrast sensitivity were measured, repectively. The perception ability of amblyopia patients to first-order grating acuity and second-order spatial contrast sensitivity were analyzed.RESULTS:There were significant differences between amblyopia group and normal control group in the perception of first-order grating acuity(11.58±6.10 vs. 20.27±3.47, P<0.001)and second-order spatial contrast sensitivity(0.33±0.16 vs 0.12±0.04, P<0.001). And there were significant differences between mild-to-moderate amblyopia and severe amblyopia patients in first-order grating acuity(12.10±6.23 vs. 8.13±3.70, P<0.001)and second-order spatial contrast sensitivity(0.32±0.16 vs. 0.37±0.17, P<0.05).CONCLUSION: The first-order and second-order visual pathway of the cerebral cortex in children with monocular anisometropia amblyopia have different degrees of damage. The injury of severe amblyopia is more serious than that of mild-to-moderate amblyopia.
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Objective: To investigate the effects of PM2.5 exposure at different stages of early life on the prefrontal cortex of offspring rats. Methods: Twelve pregnant SD rats were randomly divided into four groups: Control group (CG), Maternal pregnancy exposure group (MG), Early postnatal exposure group (EP) and Perinatal period exposure group (PP), 3 rats in each group. The pregnant and offspring rats were exposed to clean air or 8-fold concentrated PM2.5. MG was exposed from gestational day (GD) 1 to GD21. EP was exposed from postnatal day (PND) 1 to PND21, and PP was exposed from GD1 to PND21. After exposure, the prefrontal cortex of 6 offspring rats in each group was analyzed. HE staining was used to observe the pathological damage in the prefrontal cortex. ELISA was employed to detect neuroinflammatory factors, and HPLC/MSC was applied to determine neurotransmitter content. Western blot and colorimetry were applied for detecting astrocyte markers and oxidative stress markers, respectively. Results: Compared with MG and CG, the pathological changes of prefrontal cortex in PP and EP were more obvious. Compared with MG and CG, the neuroinflammatory factors (IL-1, IL-6, TNF-α) in PP and EP were increased significantly (P＜0.01), the level of MT were decreased significantly (P＜0.05), and the level of oxytocin (OT) showed a downward trend; the level of neurotransmitter ACh was also increased significantly (P＜0.01). Compared with MG and CG, the GFAP level of PP and EP showed an upward trend, the level of oxidative stress index SOD in PP and EP was decreased significantly (P＜0.01), and the level of ROS was increased significantly (P＜0.01). Compared with the offspring rats of CG and MG, the CAT level of PP was decreased significantly (P＜0.01, P＜0.05). Compared with the offspring rats of CG, the CAT level of EP was decreased significantly (P＜0.05). There was no significant difference in IL-1, IL-6, TNF-α, MT, OT, ACh, GFAP, SOD, ROS and CAT levels between PP and EP, or MG and CG. Conclusion: PM2.5 exposure in early life has adverse effects on the prefrontal cortex of offspring male rats, and early birth exposure may be more sensitive.
Subject(s)
Animals , Female , Male , Pregnancy , Rats , Interleukin-1/pharmacology , Interleukin-6 , Neurotransmitter Agents , Particulate Matter/toxicity , Prefrontal Cortex , Rats, Sprague-Dawley , Reactive Oxygen Species , Superoxide Dismutase , Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha/pharmacologyABSTRACT
<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To preliminarily explore the electrophysiological mechanism of acupuncture on plasticity variability of visual cortex.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Fifty 14-day-old Wistar rats were randomly divided into a blank group, a model group, an early-stage acupuncture group, a middle-stage acupuncture group and a late-stage acupuncture group, 10 rats in each one. Except the blank group, the rats in the remaining groups were treated with eyelid suture to establish the model of monocular deprivation amblyopia. After model establishment, the rats in the blank group and model group were grasped without any intervention everyday. The rats in the acupuncture groups were treated with acupuncture at bilateral "Jingming" (BL 1), "Cuanzhu" (BL 2), "Fengchi" (GB 20) and "Guangming" (GB 37) on the 3rd, 12th and 21st days into model establishment. The needles were retained for 10 min, once a day for totally 9 days. After treatment, the M-NEMEA technology was applied to measure the discharge amplitude and power spectral density of visual cortex area 17 neuron of each group.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Compared with the blank group, the number of discharged neuron of visual cortex area 17 was reduced, and the amplitude was significantly reduced in the model group (both<0.05). Compared with the model group, the numbers of discharged neuron were increased, and the amplitudes were significantly increased in the early-stage acupuncture group and middle-stage acupuncture group (all<0.05). The neuron discharge amplitude in the early-stage acupuncture group was higher than those in the middle-stage acupuncture group and late-stage acupuncture group (both<0.05); the neuron discharge amplitude in the middle-stage acupuncture group was higher than that in the late-stage acupuncture group (<0.05). In the 120-second time domain of acquisition, the distribution of power spectral density in the blank group was mainly between -105 dB and -100 dB; compared with the blank group, the power spectral density in the model group was increased and distributed between -132 dB and -124 dB; compared with the model group, the power spectral densities in the acupuncture groups was reduced and distributed between -115 dB and -110 dB in the early-stage acupuncture group, -120 dB and -115 dB in the middle-stage acupuncture group and -129 dB and -122 dB in the late-stage acupuncture group.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>There are abnormal changes of spatiotemporal pattern in visual cortex area 17 of monocular deprivation rats, but acupuncture can regulate abnormal spatiotemporal pattern of neuron. Therefore, there is developmental plasticity of visual cortex neuron in the sensitive period, and early treatment is key to superior efficacy.</p>
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Desde la etapa prenatal, la organización neuro-fisiológica del bebé lo prepara para realizar con efectividad los procesos vitales de succión, deglución y respiración. Los reflejos y experiencias intrauterinas le permitirán poder alimentarse inmediatamente al nacer. Se estima que cerca del término de la gestación, el feto humano deglute entre 500-1000cc de líquido amniótico cada día. El pico de sinaptogénesis sucede entre 34 y 36 semanas de edad gestacional, que es el tiempo donde la succión nutritiva es segura. El ritmo de la succión se establece a las 32 semanas. El proceso de alimentarse sufre encefalización cuando los reflejos son integrados, entonces pasa de un ritmo de alimentación reflejo, a tener la capacidad de alterar voluntaria y cualitativamente la estrategia de alimentación. Este proceso se consolida debido a la integración sensoriomotora de la deglución con la respiración, la coordinación ojo-mano, el tono muscular normal, la postura y un apropiado ambiente psicosocial. Alimentarse, especialmente en los primeros años de vida, es un proceso mutuo, se necesitan dos personas para lograrlo, y por eso, si alguna de las dos carece de las habilidades necesarias, esto puede generar problemas de la alimentación. Nada sustituye la valoración realizada con una historia clínica y un examen físico dirigidos a valorar cuán efectiva es la fase oral y faríngea mientras el bebé es alimentado. Cuando se presenten dificultades, la intervención debe ser activa, eso incluye la toma de decisiones médicas y quirúrgicas, protección de la vía aérea, suministro del aporte calórico idóneo para las necesidades del infante. Se deben además brindar estrategias maduracionales para su nivel de desarrollo alimentario actual y para ir adquiriendo las habilidades esperadas en elfuturo cercano y tardío
Subject(s)
Humans , Infant, Newborn , Infant , Breast Feeding , Diet , Feeding and Eating Disorders of Childhood , Infant , Infant Care , Infant Nutrition , Infant, Newborn/physiologyABSTRACT
PURPOSE: To evaluate the efficacy of occlusion therapy in amblyopia patients older than 9 years of age. METHODS: A retrospective study on 16 amblyopes older than 9 years was performed to evaluate initial best-corrected visual acuity, final best-corrected visual acuity, the type of amblyopia, and compliance. RESULTS: The average age at initiation of amblyopia therapy was 10.5 years and the average follow-up 24 months. Anisometropia was present in 11 patients, strabismus in 2, and both anisometropia and strabismus in 3 patients. The initial visual acuity was 0.2 or less in three, 0.3 to 0.5 in seven, 0.6 to 0.7 in six patients. The refractive errors of amblyopic eye were myopic in seven, hyperopic in seven and astigmatism in two patients. The amount of anisometropia was 2.56 diopters. Strabismus was exotropia in 5 patients. Initial therapy consisted of optical correction for the amblyopic eye and full-time occlusion for the nonamblyopic eye in 14, and part-time occlusion in two patients. Maintenance therapy of part-time occlusion with a patch in 11 patients and with Min's glasses in 3 patients followed improvement of visual acuity. Fifteen out of 16 patients improved their visual acuity over 3 lines of visual acuity and one remaining patient showed poor compliance. Final visual acuities were 0.7 or better in 14 patients, and 0.5 and 0.4 in each remained patient. CONCLUSIONS: Given compliance, occlusion therapy for anisometropic and strabismic amblyopia can be successful even if started after 9 years of age.