Kawasaki Disease Increases the Incidence of Myopia.

The prevalence of myopia has rapidly increased in recent decades and has led to a considerable global public health concern. In this study, we elucidate the relationship between Kawasaki disease (KD) and the incidence of myopia. We used Taiwan's National Health Insurance Research Database to conduct a population-based cohort study. We identified patients diagnosed with KD and individuals without KD who were selected by frequency matched based on sex, age, and the index year. The Cox proportional hazards regression model was used to estimate the hazard ratio and 95% confidence intervals for the comparison of the 2 cohorts. The log-rank test was used to test the incidence of myopia in the 2 cohorts. A total of 532 patients were included in the KD cohort and 2128 in the non-KD cohort. The risk of myopia (hazard ratio, 1.31; 95% confidence interval, 1.08-1.58; P < 0.01) was higher among patients with KD than among those in the non-KD cohort. The Cox proportional hazards regression model showed that irrespective of age, gender, and urbanization, Kawasaki disease was an independent risk factor for myopia. Patients with Kawasaki disease exhibited a substantially higher risk for developing myopia.

Overnight orthokeratology is comparable with atropine in controlling myopia.

BACKGROUND: Many efforts have been invested in slowing progression of myopia. Among the methods, atropine administration and orthokeratology (OK) are most widely used. This study analyzed the efficacy of atropine and OK lens in controlling myopia progression and elongation of axial length. METHODS: This retrospective study included 105 patients (210 eyes) who wore OK lenses and 105 patients (210 eyes) who applied 0.125% atropine every night during the 3 following period. Student t-test, linear regression analysis, repeated measure ANOVA, and Pearson's correlation coefficient were used for statistical analysis. RESULTS: The change in axial length per year was 0.28 ± 0.08 mm, 0.30 ± 0.09 mm, and 0.27 ± 0.10 mm in the OK lens group, and 0.38 ± 0.09 mm, 0.37 ± 0.12 mm, and 0.36 ± 0.08 mm in the atropine group for years 1, 2, and 3, respectively. Linear regression analysis revealed an increase in myopia of 0.28 D and 0.34 D per year, and an increase in axial length of 0.28 mm and 0.37 mm per year in the OK lens and atropine groups, respectively. Repeated measure ANOVA showed significant differences in myopia (p = 0.001) and axial length (p < 0.001) between the atropine and OK lens groups; in astigmatism, there was no significant difference in these parameters (p = 0.320). Comparison of increases in axial length in relation to baseline myopia showed significant correlations both in the OK lens group (Pearson's correlation coefficient, r = 0.259; p < 0.001) and atropine group (r = 0.169; p = 0.014). High myopia patients benefited more from both OK lenses and atropine than did low myopia patients. The correlation of baseline myopia and myopia progression was stronger in the OK lens group then in the atropine group. CONCLUSIONS: OK lens is a useful method for controlling myopia progression even in high myopia patients.

Association of genes on chromosome 6, GRIK2 , TMEM217 and TMEM63B (linked to MRPL14 ) with diabetic retinopathy.

PURPOSE: Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is one of the most common complications of diabetes mellitus (DM). The susceptibility genes responsible for increasing the risk for DR in type 2 diabetes (T2D) were sought in this study. METHODS: A case-control study was carried out, comprising 749 unrelated T2D individuals with (n = 174) and without (n = 575) DR. Genotypic distributions of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were determined for subjects with and without DR. RESULTS: Eight chromosome 6 SNPs, having the most significant differences, were delineated: rs10499298, rs10499299, rs17827966, rs1224329, rs1150790, rs713050, rs2518344 and rs487083; all were associated with genes TMEM217, MRPL14 and GRIK2. After adjusting for the duration of DM and levels of hemoglobin A(1c), the TT genotype of rs713050, and the AG + AA genotypes of rs2518344 and rs10499298, differed significantly between those with and without DR. Haplotype analysis revealed haplotype C-A-C, residing in rs10499299, rs10499298 and rs17827966, to have significant linkage disequilibrium. CONCLUSIONS: We identified new loci on chromosome 6 associated to DR; all loci showed high levels of linkage disequilibrium.

Novel susceptibility genes associated with diabetic cataract in a Taiwanese population.

PURPOSE: To identify genetic variants that predispose to type 2 diabetes (T2D) with cataract. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Genome-wide association study (GWAS) of T2D patients with cataract, as graded by Lens Opacities Classification System (LOCS). A total of 109 T2D patients with cataract score equal to or above 10 designated as the study group, 649 T2D patients with cataract score equal to or below 3 as the control group. Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) with p-values < 10(-5) were considered to be putatively associated with the diabetic cataract. RESULTS: Fifteen SNPs were found to be putatively associated with diabetic cataract. These variants were located near the following genes: PPARD, CCDC102A, GBA3, NEDD9, GABRR1/2, RPS6KA2, tcag7.1163, TAC1, GALNTL1 and KIAA1671. We defined haplotype 1 to haplotype 4 from the alternative alleles of related polymorphisms. Distribution of haplotype 2 on chromosome 4 and haplotype 4 on chromosome 7 revealed significant differences (OR = 1.86 and 1.69, respectively; 95% confidence interval were 1.26-2.76 and 1.23-2.31, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: The 15 loci coded on chromosomes 4, 6, 7, 14, 16 and 22 were associated with diabetic cataract. Gene functions are either with mechanisms of regulating blood sugar or formation of cataract. High linkage disequilibrium appeared on chromosome 4p15.31 and chromosome 7q21.3.

Single-nucleotide polymorphisms in chromosome 3p14.1- 3p14.2 are associated with susceptibility of type 2 diabetes with cataract.

PURPOSE: Type 2 diabetes (T2D) is highly prevalent worldwide and cataracts are of high incidence in T2D patients. In this study, we identify genetic variants that predispose type 2 diabetes (T2D) patients to cataracts in the Han-Chinese residing in Taiwan. METHODS: We conducted a genome-wide association study with a total of 1,715 cases and 2,000 random controls. In the haplotype study, we defined haplotype 1 (Ht 1) to haplotype 4 (Ht 4) as the alternative alleles of the DM and cataract related chromosome 3p14.1- 3p14.2 polymorphisms. RESULTS: The most significant association was detected with rs11129182, rs17047573, and rs17047586 in chromosome 3p14.1- 3p14.2 (p value=3.52x10(-7), 8.35x10(-8), and 7.65x10(-8), respectively). In genotype analysis, the "CT" genotype of rs11129182, the 'GG' genotype of rs17047573, and the 'GG' genotype of rs17047586 were significantly different in the T2D and cataract groups (OR=3.03, 7.47, and 7.51, individually; 95% confidence index (CI): 1.97-4.65, 3.36-16.6, and 3.38-16.7, individually). In the haplotype study, the distribution of the Ht3 and Ht4 between the DM and cataract group and the control group differed significantly between the two groups (p=0.0004). The odds ratio (OR) of Ht4 was 1.89 and the 95% confidence interval (CI) was 1.36-2.65. CONCLUSIONS: The major functions of the genes are voltage-dependent anion-selective channel proteins, long myosin light chain kinase, adenylyl cyclase-associated proteins and retinoic acid receptors and are all closely related with the pathogenesis of T2D and cataractogenesis. This has helped us understand the pathogenesis of T2D patients with cataracts.