ABSTRACT
In Japan, all 3-year-old children undergo a three-step municipal vision screening that includes home-based screening, secondary screening at a health center, and comprehensive ophthalmologic examination, if warranted. We investigated whether screening by a certified orthoptist (CO) could improve the detection of visual dysfunctions, including amblyopia. Three-year-olds in Nobeoka City were invited to undergo primary and secondary screenings from April 2008 to March 2011. COs performed the secondary screening tests; children with a positive secondary screening received a comprehensive ophthalmologic examination. Of the 3,303 eligible children, 98 were positive on detailed examination. Of these, 25% were classified as false-negatives. Eight children with amblyopia in the false-negative group accounted for 24% of all 33 amblyopia cases detected on detailed examination.
Subject(s)
Amblyopia , Vision Screening , Allied Health Personnel , Amblyopia/diagnosis , Certification , Child, Preschool , Humans , Referral and ConsultationABSTRACT
PURPOSE: Superior segmental optic hypoplasia (SSOH) is a congenital disorder that is expected not to progress. This study aimed to determine the prevalence and clinical characteristics of coexistent open-angle glaucoma (OAG) in patients with SSOH. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed the records of 61 patients diagnosed with SSOH. The estimated prevalence and clinical characteristics of concomitant OAG among patients with SSOH were investigated. RESULTS: Of the 61 patients with SSOH, 12 patients presented with concomitant OAG (mean age, 44.8±19.2 y). Mean follow-up period was 84.9±50.9 months. Five patients (8.2%) were diagnosed with both high-tension glaucoma (HTG) and SSOH; 4 had HTG and SSOH in both the eyes; and the other had HTG only in the eye with SSOH. Seven patients (11.5%) were diagnosed with both normal-tension glaucoma (NTG) and SSOH. Two patients had NTG and SSOH in both eyes and 5 patients had unilateral NTG. The estimated prevalence of OAG in patients with SSOH was 19.7% (95% confidence interval, 9.7%-29.7%). CONCLUSIONS: Primary OAG, including HTG and NTG, could develop in eyes with SSOH, regarded as having a nonprogressive visual field defect. The estimated prevalence of OAG, including both NTG and HTG, might be relatively higher in the SSOH patients. Thus, continuous follow-up examinations of patients with SSOH are required.
Subject(s)
Eye Abnormalities/complications , Glaucoma, Open-Angle/complications , Optic Disk/abnormalities , Adult , Aged , Eye Abnormalities/diagnosis , Female , Glaucoma, Open-Angle/diagnosis , Humans , Intraocular Pressure/physiology , Low Tension Glaucoma/complications , Low Tension Glaucoma/diagnosis , Male , Middle Aged , Nerve Fibers/pathology , Retinal Ganglion Cells/pathology , Retrospective Studies , Visual Fields/physiology , Young AdultABSTRACT
PURPOSE: The purpose of the present study was to clarify the role of Rho-kinase and/or protein kinase C in the resting tension of the isolated pig iris sphincter muscle. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The motor activity of the isolated pig iris sphincter muscle was measured isometrically. RESULTS: EGTA, a chelator of extracellular Ca(2+), significantly reduced the resting tension. Y27632, a Rho-kinase inhibitor, significantly reduced the resting tension in a concentration-dependent manner. The resting tension diminished by Y27632 was significantly recovered by the addition of calyculin A, a myosin light chain phosphatase (MLCP) inhibitor, in a concentration-dependent manner. GF109203X, a protein kinase C inhibitor, had no effect on the resting tension. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that, in the isolated pig iris sphincter muscle, Rho-kinase plays an important role in the generation of spontaneous tone in the resting phase via the inhibition of MLCP activity.
Subject(s)
Iris/enzymology , Muscle, Smooth/physiology , Protein Kinase C/physiology , rho-Associated Kinases/physiology , Animals , Dose-Response Relationship, Drug , Enzyme Inhibitors/pharmacology , Muscle Contraction/drug effects , Muscle Contraction/physiology , Muscle, Smooth/innervation , Myosin-Light-Chain Phosphatase/antagonists & inhibitors , Myosin-Light-Chain Phosphatase/physiology , Parasympathetic Nervous System/physiology , Protein Kinase C/antagonists & inhibitors , Pupil/physiology , Swine , rho-Associated Kinases/antagonists & inhibitorsABSTRACT
A simple and sensitive spectrophotometry for formaldehyde in water by membrane solubilization technique was proposed. Formaldehyde was converted into a blue cationic dye with 3-methyl-2-benzothiazolinone hydrazone, and the dye was retained on a membrane filter as an ion-associate with tetraphenylborate anion. The filter retaining the blue dye was dissolved in 2-methoxyethanol containing sulfuric acid, and the absorbance of the solution was measured at 670 nm against the reagent blank. The formaldehyde from 0.007 to 0.2 mg L(-1) was determined with an RSD of less than 5%, and the detection limit was 0.002 mg L(-1). The proposed method was very simple and rapid. Twenty minutes was sufficient for the entire analytical procedure. When the method was applied to rainwater, the analytical results were in good agreement with those obtained by GC/MS.
