Patient Preferences for Long-Term Implant Care in Cochlear, Glaucoma and Cardiovascular Diseases.

In the process of developing and implementing innovative implant technologies the consideration of patient preferences can be beneficial for patients, doctors and developers. Nevertheless, in existing literature, there is still scarce knowledge of patients' perspectives on long-term implant care. In this study, three discrete choice experiments (DCEs) were conducted in the context of cochlear implants (CI, n = 92), glaucoma implants (GI, n = 21) and cardiovascular implants (CVI, n = 23), examining the relative importance of attributes of long-term implant care from the patients' perspective. The participants chose between differently shaped options for implant-related care. The attributes of these care options were generated and selected based on previous literature reviews, group discussions and a diary study with patients. The choice data were analyzed via binary logit regression. In CI-DCE, the technological compatibility of the implant with newer implant models, accessories or devices from other manufacturers was highly valued by participants, whereas in GI-DCE the (in)dependency on glaucoma medication post-implantation had the greatest influence on participants' choice behavior. In CVI-DCE, the attribute with the highest relative importance related to the means of securing long-term treatment success. In all three DCE, shared decision making was relatively important for participants. Our results emphasized the importance of an adequate transfer of technological advancements in implant care for promoting patient benefits, such as the availability of comprehensible, understandable, high-quality information about current developments. Similarly, promoting technological health literacy and further pushing the technological compatibility, durability and safety of implants are directions for future implant development in accordance with patients' preferences. Therefore, the participation of implant wearers in the development process is encouraged.

Social, Educational and Medical Aspects after Cataract Surgery of Bilaterally Blind Children in Kinshasa-Perception of Parents and Children.

The study investigated the influence of bilateral cataract surgery on the social and educational development of previously bilaterally blind children in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), where the prevalence of blindness due to cataract is higher than in high-income countries. The views of both, parents and children, were evaluated with structured interviews based on a newly developed questionnaire related to surgery, follow-up, and family life after surgery. The mean age of the children at interview was 14.4 ± 8.1 years, with 27 females and 26 males. Satisfaction with the outcome of the surgery was reported by 91% of parents. Parents would recommend surgery, because of the children being happy and able to act more independently, with personal, educational and familial factors essentially contributing to the reported satisfaction. The results also showed that 85.0% of children did not wear eyeglasses. Reasons given were mainly cost-related, but also included limited communication between families and health institutions. Providing and maintaining a high-quality and accessible pediatric cataract surgery and healthcare service for follow-up is a major requisite to reduce childhood blindness in SSA. Our study proved the necessity and effectiveness of a community-based rehabilitation program that cares about each individual child, whatever his or her social background.

Health Literacy in the Context of Implant Care-Perspectives of (Prospective) Implant Wearers on Individual and Organisational Factors.

The continuous development of medical implants offers various benefits for persons with chronic conditions but also challenges an individual's, and the healthcare system's, ability to deal with technical innovation. Accessing and understanding new information, navigating healthcare, and appraising the role of the implant in body perceptions and everyday life requires health literacy (HL) of those affected as well as an HL-responsive healthcare system. The interconnectedness of these aspects to ethically relevant values such as health, dependence, responsibility and self-determination reinforces the need to address HL in implant care. Following a qualitative approach, we conducted group discussions and a diary study among wearers of a cochlear, glaucoma or cardiovascular implant (or their parents). Data were analysed using the documentary method and grounded theory. The data reveal the perceptions of implant wearers regarding the implant on (1) the ability to handle technical and ambiguous information; (2) dependence and responsibility within the healthcare system; and (3) the ethical aspects of HL. Knowing more about the experiences and values of implant wearers is highly beneficial to develop HL from an ethical perspective. Respective interventions need to initially address ethically relevant values in counselling processes and implant care.

Progression to severe visual impairment and blindness in POAG patients: pace and risk factors-a cohort study using German health claims data.

OBJECTIVE: Glaucoma is a leading cause of severe visual impairment and blindness (SVI/B) worldwide. Hence, it is of utmost importance to explore relevant risk factors and study the pace of progression to SVI/B. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: We used a random sample of 250 000 persons from administrative individual-level health records of the Allgemeine Ortskrankenkassen between 2004 and 2015. We identified 3535 primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) patients aged 55 and older and followed them for up to 10 years. Monocular and binocular SVI/B were defined by the ICD-10 classifications H54.0 and H54.4. Ophthalmological and chronic disease risk factors were analysed by applying a multivariable Cox proportional hazard model. RESULTS: The risk of SVI/B in POAG patients was significantly increased by the presence of specific additional eye diseases such as secondary glaucoma (HR: 3.08, p<0.001), retinal vascular occlusion (HR: 3.00, p<0.001) or age-related macular degeneration (AMD) (HR: 2.26, p<0.001). The risk was highest in the first 2 years after the POAG diagnosis and significantly decreased after the fifth year (HR: 0.36, p=0.002). Ocular injuries, other ocular diseases, non-ophthalmological comorbidities, and age and sex had no significant influence (p>0.05). CONCLUSION: Although progression to SVI/B is relatively rare in POAG patients in Germany, one must be aware of additional risk factors, such as secondary glaucoma, retinal vascular occlusion and AMD. Regular ophthalmological examinations help prevent the progression of SVI/B, especially in the first years after the POAG diagnosis. Specific, targeted, and timely treatments for the other eye diseases could help prevent or delay SVI/B.

Clinical Congenital Anophthalmos and Microphthalmos-Experiences of Patients and Their Parents after More than 10 Years of Treatment.

Congenital clinical anophthalmos and blind microphthalmos describe the absence of an eye or the presence of a small eye in the orbit. Between 1999 and 2013, 97 children with anophthalmos or microphthalmos were treated with self-inflating, hydrophilic gel expanders at the Rostock Eye Clinic. More than a decade later, this study investigated the perspective of patients and parents regarding the treatment, the surgical outcome, and the emotional and social well-being of the patients. A total of 22 families with 16 patients sighted in the other eye and six patients blind in both eyes participated. Questionnaires were developed, including items on physical, emotional, social, and medical aspects. The patients felt emotionally stable and integrated into their social environment, with no major limitations reported by the majority. These statements were confirmed by most of the parents. Parents (67%) indicated that the success of the operation was already apparent after the first intervention and that the current situation did not play a role in the patients' social environment. The study provided new insights into the therapy results, the postoperative care, and the social and emotional stability of the prosthesis-wearing patients, indicating the chosen expander methods as promising in terms of positive postoperative care.

Ocular Morbidity-A Critical Analysis to Improve Outpatient Services in an Eye Department in a Sub-Saharan Megacity.

The aim of this study was to analyse outpatient services in an ophthalmic clinic of a church-run hospital providing secondary level care in an African megacity, paying special attention to the poorest users of the services. The range of examination was reviewed from 500 patient records of all ages consecutively chosen on random days attending the outpatient department for the first time in order to optimize workflow and to analyse the offered treatment modalities. Mean age was 41.9 ± 21.9 years, and 53.6% of the patients were female. Of the patients, 74.8% presented with visual impairment. The most frequent findings were refractive errors (35.8%), presbyopia (21.2%), allergic conjunctivitis (14.0%), cataract (13.2%) and glaucoma (6.4%). Patient management consisted of optical treatment (49.6%), surgery (11.4%) and medical treatment (39.0%). These results show the importance of the demand in refractive services and the need to train specific service providers. Knowing the frequencies of common conditions enables more appropriate diagnostic and treatment strategies, e.g., the importance of refractive errors, and should lead to improvements in training, staffing, therapeutics and patient outcomes. This approach can be applied to many other outpatient services and should be evaluated in light of the city's impoverished health outreach and educational situation.

Incidence, individual, and macro level risk factors of severe binocular visual impairment and blindness in persons aged 50 and older.

OBJECTIVE: This study aims to estimate the incidence of severe binocular vision impairment and blindness (SVI/B) and to identify eye diseases and regional risk factors of persons with SVI/B at ages 50 years and older. METHODS: We designed an observational cohort study based on longitudinal, multifactorial, and administrative information of a random sample of 250,000 persons at ages 50+. All individuals were included in the process-produced health claims register of the Allgemeine Ortskrankenkasse in 2004, and were followed until 2015. We analyzed ten selected eye diseases and regional characteristics as risk factors for SVI/B using Cox models, adjusting for demographic characteristics and multi-morbidity. RESULTS: The age-standardized incidence was 79 new diagnoses of SVI/B per 100,000 person-years (95%-CI: 76-82); 77 for males (72-82) and 81 for females (77-85). By adjusting for multiple factors, the model revealed and confirmed that individuals who were very old (Hazard ratio90+: 6.67; 3.59-12.71), male (1.18; 1.01-1.38), had multi-morbidities (three+ diseases: 3.36; 2.51-4.49), or had diabetes (1.26; 1.07-1.49) had an increased risk of SVI/B. Compared to persons without the particular eye disease (all p<0.001), persons diagnosed with secondary glaucoma had a multiple-adjusted 4.66 times (3.17-6.85) higher risk, those with retinal vascular occlusion had a 4.51 times (3.27-6.23) higher risk, and those with angle-closure glaucoma had a 4.22 times (2.60-6.85) higher risk. Population density was not a risk factor, while persons living in wealthier regions had 0.75 times (p=0.003) to 0.70 times (p<0.001) the risk of SVI/B than persons in the least wealthy regions of Germany. CONCLUSION: The study revealed and confirmed some profound risk factors of SVI/B at both the individual and the macro level. The sizes of the effects of the characteristics of the living context were smaller than those of the individual characteristics, especially for some severe eye diseases. While urbanity and access to health services had no effect, regional economic wealth was a risk factor for SVI/B. Future health care measures and advice by physicians should take these dimensions of inequalities in SVI/B into account.

Patterns and Facilitators for the Promotion of Glaucoma Medication Adherence-A Qualitative Study.

Primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) is a chronic optic neuropathy causing irreversible nerve fiber damage. Initially asymptomatic, it progresses slowly without any notable sign of vision loss, thus early detection and treatment is essential. The standard treatment being non-invasive topical administration of eye drops harbors the problem of patients not being adherent. This study aimed to explore the experiences and thoughts of glaucoma patients about their medication management to improve our knowledge on how adherence works for the individual patient. Narrative interviews were conducted with 21 glaucoma patients. Data were analyzed using inductive content analysis and the documentary method. Different patterns of adherence were identified which depended on personal biographies, living conditions, or the patient's knowledge about the disease. Interpreting eye drop medication as a ritual, a task, or routine was helpful for some patients, whereas other patients, who were aware of the consequences of not taking the drops, were motivated by intrinsic or extrinsic factors. The patterns identified here represent strategies for managing and adhering to daily glaucoma medication at an individual level. Linking daily drop application or medication intake to these patterns may help to promote correct medication management of patients with chronic diseases who lack a regular medication regimen.

Treatment Complexity in Primary Open-Angle Glaucoma (POAG): Perspectives on Patient Selection in Micro-Invasive Glaucoma Surgery (MIGS) Using Stents. / Versorgungskomplexität beim primären Offenwinkelglaukom (POWG): Perspektiven zur Patientenauswahl in der mikroinvasiven Glaukomchirurgie (MIGS) mit Stents.

BACKGROUND: Primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) is still one of the most common causes of impaired vision worldwide, despite the further development of therapy options, and can lead to blindness. Micro-invasive glaucoma surgery (MIGS) using stents aims at reducing intraocular pressure (IOP), as it is the main risk factor. With regard to adherence and adverse drug reactions it also aims at reducing the drug burden on patients. The study investigates under everyday conditions the criteria according to which ophthalmologists in Germany select patients for MIGS using stents. In addition, it will be investigated which patients (could) benefit most from the therapy. MATERIAL AND METHODS: In this qualitative study, 11 narrative interviews were conducted between May 2017 and July 2018 with ophthalmologists working in the hospital or in a private practice. They were interviewed on their experiences in the treatment of POAG with microstents. The interviews were analysed by an interdisciplinary team using the qualitative content analysis. RESULTS: The stages of therapy escalation form the frame of reference for patient selection in MIGS using stents. Only if the IOP cannot be sufficiently reduced by drop therapy or when this causes drug-related side effects that are intolerable for the patients, stents are apparently used as the next higher escalation stage. The intensive post-operative medication and the frequent check-up appointments are perceived as barriers by the interviewees, especially for people with or without disabilities, who are dependent on external help and/or those living in rural areas. The active cooperation of the patients in the demanding aftercare seems to be indispensable for the ophthalmologists. In addition, necessary revisions are sometimes stressful for patients (physical/psychological) and doctors (work organisation/therapy). Against the background of the organisational and economic challenges in the outpatient spectrum of tasks, especially physicians in private practice seem to weigh up carefully for which patients microstent therapy would be reasonable. CONCLUSION: In view of the therapeutic requirements, the current microstent therapy seems to be used in a selected, adherent patient group. Further qualitative and quantitative studies (in other health care regions and structures) are necessary to verify and extend the available results.

Pharmacoepidemiological assessment of adherence and influencing co-factors among primary open-angle glaucoma patients-An observational cohort study.

The goal of this study was to assess the adherence of primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) patients to medication, and to determine co-factors influencing adherence, using a representative sample of members of the largest German public health insurer. The observational cohort study was based on a longitudinal data set from 2010-2013 and included 250,000 insured persons aged 50 and older with 10,120 diagnosed POAG patients. Uni- and multivariate analysis was performed to investigate several aspects of glaucoma, such as prevalence, adherence, and co-factors influencing adherence. The main outcome measured adherence with prescriptions filled within a year. Multivariate panel regression analysis was used to determine the co-factors influencing this adherence. Prevalence of POAG was 3.36% [CI: 3.28-3.43%], with 2.91% [CI: 2.81-3.01%] for males and 3.71% [CI: 3.61-3.81%] for females, increasing with age. The mean level of adherence in terms of prescriptions filled was 66.5% [CI: 65.50-67.60%]. The results of this analysis revealed a significant influence of age, duration of the disease, care need, distance to death, and multimorbidity as co-factors of non-adherence, whereas gender had no influence. The analysis provided detailed information about POAG health care aspects concerning prevalence and adherence. The most endangered risk groups for non-adherence were patients aged 50-59, patients older than 80 years, patients with a longer duration of POAG, patients with care needs, and patients with three or more severe diseases in addition to glaucoma. To know the predictors responsible for an increased risk to develop POAG is of importance for all persons involved in health care management. Therefore effective strategies to increase awareness of patients and medical care personnel about non-adherence and the importance of a regular and continuous medication to avoid further nerve fiber damage and possible blindness have to be developed.

Action potential characterization of human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes using automated patch-clamp technology.

Recent progress in embryonic stem cell (ESC) and induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) research led to high-purity preparations of human cardiomyocytes (CMs) differentiated from these two sources-suitable for tissue regeneration, in vitro models of disease, and cardiac safety pharmacology screening. We performed a detailed characterization of the effects of nifedipine, cisapride, and tetrodotoxin (TTX) on Cor.4U(®) human iPSC-CM, using automated whole-cell patch-clamp recordings with the CytoPatch™ 2 equipment, within a complex assay combining multiple voltage-clamp and current-clamp protocols in a well-defined sequence, and quantitative analysis of several action potential (AP) parameters. We retrieved three electrical phenotypes based on AP shape: ventricular, atrial/nodal, and S-type (with ventricular-like depolarization and lack of plateau). To suppress spontaneous firing, present in many cells, we injected continuously faint hyperpolarizing currents of -10 or -20 pA. We defined quality criteria (both seal and membrane resistance over 1 GΩ), and focused our study on cells with ventricular-like AP. Nifedipine induced marked decreases in AP duration (APD): APD90 (49.8% and 40.8% of control values at 1 and 10 µM, respectively), APD50 (16.1% and 12%); cisapride 0.1 µM increased APD90 to 176.2%; and tetrodotoxin 10 µM decreased maximum slope of phase to 33.3% of control, peak depolarization potential to 76.3% of control, and shortened APD90 on average to 80.4%. These results prove feasibility of automated voltage- and current-clamp recordings on human iPSC-CM and their potential use for in-depth drug evaluation and proarrhythmic liability assessment, as well as for diagnosis and pharmacology tests for cardiac channelopathy patients.

Interference of a novel indolylmaleimide with microtubules induces mitotic arrest and apoptosis in human progenitor and cancer cells.

Indolylmaleimides display a broad spectrum of biological activity and offer great opportunity to influence several aspects of cell fate, as proliferation and differentiation. In this study we describe the effect of PDA-66, a newly synthesised indolylmaleimide, showing a strong dose dependent anti-proliferative effect on immortalised human progenitor and cancer cells. We demonstrated a highly depolymerizing effect on in vitro tubulin assembly and conclude that PDA-66 acts as microtubule destabilising agent. In addition we found that PDA-66 induces mitotic arrest of cells in the G2/M phase of the cell cycle. Subsequently cells undergo apoptosis, indicating the major mechanism of the anti-proliferative effect. To prove a potential anti-cancer activity of PDA-66 we examined the effect of PDA-66 on human SH-SY5Y neuroblastoma and A-459 lung cancer cells, showing a significant reduction in cancer cell proliferation in a dose dependent manner. Thus PDA-66 is a new anti-mitotic compound with an indole-core with the potential to be used for cancer therapy.

Real time monitoring of the cell viability during treatment with tumor-targeted toxins and saponins using impedance measurement.

This work describes the application of an impedance-based measurement for the real time evaluation of targeted tumor therapies in cell culture (HeLa cells). We used a treatment procedure that is well established in cells and mice. Therein, tumor cells are treated with a combination of an epidermal growth factor-based targeted toxin named SE and particular plant glycosides called saponins. In the present study HeLa cells were seeded in different numbers onto interdigitated electrode structures integrated into the bottom of a 96 well plate. The cells were treated with SE in the presence and absence of the saponin SpnS-1 (isolated from Saponaria officinalis roots). The impedance was directly correlated with the viability of the cells. As expected from known end point measurements, a concentration dependent enhancement of toxicity was observed; however, with the impedance measurement we were for the first time able to trace the temporal changes of cell death during the combination treatment. This substantially added to the understanding of initial cellular mechanisms in the augmentation of the toxicity of targeted toxins by saponins and indicated the superiority of real time monitoring over end point assays. The method is less labor intensive and label-free with ease of monitoring the effects at each time point.

Differentiation of human neural progenitor cells in functionalized hydrogel matrices.

Hydrogel-based three-dimensional (3D) scaffolds are widely used in the field of regenerative medicine, translational medicine, and tissue engineering. Recently, we reported the effect of scaffold formation on the differentiation and survival of human neural progenitor cells (hNPCs) using PuraMatrix™ (RADA-16) scaffolds. Here, we were interested in the impact of PuraMatrix modified by the addition of short peptide sequences, based on a bone marrow homing factor and laminin. The culture and differentiation of the hNPCs in the modified matrices resulted in an approximately fivefold increase in neuronal cells. The examination of apoptotic and necrotic cells, as well as the level of the anti-apoptotic protein Bcl-2, indicates benefits for cells hosted in the modified formulations. In addition, we found a trend to lower proportions of apoptotic or necrotic neuronal cells in the modified matrices. Interestingly, the neural progenitor cell pool was increased in all the tested matrices in comparison to the standard 2D culture system, while no difference was found between the modified matrices. We conclude that a combination of elevated neuronal differentiation and a protective effect of the modified matrices underlies the increased proportion of neuronal cells.

Lymphatic vessel density in correlation to lymph node metastasis in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: In head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC), metastatic dissemination to regional lymph nodes serves as a major prognostic indicator for incipient disease progression and constitutes the guideline for subsequent therapeutic strategies. In this study, whether intratumoral (IT) and peritumoral (PT) lymphatic vessel density (LVD) might be a predictive indicator to the risk of lymph node metastasis was investigated. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Tumour lymph vessels in fresh frozen sections of 105 head and neck cancer were quantified by immunostaining for the lymphatic endothelial marker LYVE-1. These results underwent correlation with the nodal status of the patient. RESULTS: There was a significant relationship between a high IT LVD and nodal metastasis (N+) (p=0.049, Mann-Whitney test). Analysed separately by anatomic regions, a significant correlation was only shown in oral carcinoma (p=0.032, Mann-Whitney test). Intratumoral LVD was lower compared to peritumoral LVD. Logistic regression, however, showed that the only predictive parameter for the nodal status was the localisation of the primary tumour but not LVD. CONCLUSION: This study confirmed that IT LVD is low in HNSCC. In this group of tumours there was a significant correlation between IT LVD and nodal involvement.