Changes of macular blood flow and structure in acute primary angle closure glaucoma.

PURPOSE: We assessed the relationship between acute primary angle closure glaucoma (APACG) severity and macular microcirculation, as well as the diagnostic ability of blood flow and macular structural parameters on optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) for APACG. METHODS: APACG patients were assigned to mild, moderate, and severe groups in this cross-sectional study. Age-matched primary angle closure suspect (PACS) and healthy control groups were also recruited. The vessel density (VD) and foveal avascular zone (FAZ) in each macular superficial area were measured using OCTA. The retinal nerve fiber layer thickness (RNFLT) and ganglion cell complex thickness (GCCT) of the corresponding regions were measured using OCT. RESULTS: All parameters in the control, PACS, and mild APACG groups differed significantly from those in the moderate and severe APACG groups (all P < 0.05). VD and RNFLT showed high and moderate diagnostic ability, respectively, to distinguish moderate APACG from PACS, with significant differences (P < 0.05) in areas under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUCs) for VD and RNFLT in six macular areas. The diagnostic abilities of VD and RNFLT for distinguishing severe APACG from PACS were increased, with significant differences in the AUCs for VD and RNFLT in five macular areas (P < 0.05). All macular VDs and GCCTs were similar among the three APACG groups (P > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Damage to the VD and FAZ in the macula increased with APACG severity. VD in the macular superficial layer showed a higher diagnostic ability than RNFLT, which was equivalent to that of GCCT.

Epidemiological Characteristics of Inpatients Undergoing Surgery for Glaucoma at Tianjin Eye Hospital from 2013 to 2017.

PURPOSE: To analyze the epidemiological characteristics of inpatients who underwent surgery for glaucoma at Tianjin Eye Hospital from 2013 to 2017. METHODS: All glaucoma inpatients who underwent surgery at Tianjin Eye Hospital from 2013 to 2017 were evaluated. The relationships of age and sex with different types of glaucoma were analyzed. The differences in the prevalence and family history of glaucoma among patients with different systemic diseases were compared. Additionally, the effects of different surgical methods for primary angle-closure glaucoma (PACG) and primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) were compared. RESULTS: A total of 4539 patients with glaucoma were retrospectively analyzed. The most prevalent type was PACG (60.15%), followed by secondary glaucoma (SG, 25.53%), POAG (7.6%), uncontrollable intraocular pressure (IOP) after antiglaucoma surgery (4.71%), mixed glaucoma (MG, 10%), and congenital glaucoma (CG, 0.9%). The main surgical methods were phacoemulsification (phaco), phacotrabeculectomy (phaco-trab), and trabeculectomy (trab). The rate of phaco-trab increased, while that of trab decreased. The proportion of women in the PACG group was higher than those in the POAG and SG groups, and there was a pronounced tendency for family clustering (P < 0.001), while in the POAG and SG groups, the proportions of men and those with diabetes were higher (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: In Tianjin Eye Hospital from 2013 to 2017, the main type of glaucoma was PACG. Female sex and a family history of glaucoma were risk factors for PACG, while male sex and hyperglycemia were risk factors for POAG and SG. Among the antiglaucoma surgery methods, the proportion of phaco-trab increased, while the proportion of trab decreased.

Long non-coding RNA RP11-820 promotes extracellular matrix production via regulating miR-3178/MYOD1 in human trabecular meshwork cells.

Primary open angle glaucoma (POAG) is the most common type of glaucoma. At the mechanistic level, POAG is thought to be caused by extracellular matrix (ECM) deposition in the trabecular meshwork (TM). Growing evidence has shown that long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) are involved in the fibrotic process underlying many diseases. This study was undertaken to explore the role of lncRNA-RP11-820 in ECM production of human TM cells (HTMCs). Our results revealed that lncRNA-RP11-820 was significantly upregulated under oxidative stress in HTMCs. Further investigation revealed that lncRNA-RP11-820 directly binds miR-3178, through which the expression of MYOD1 is regulated. Importantly, MYOD1 can transcriptionally activate ECM genes in HTMCs, in complex with STAT3. Taken together, our data established that oxidative stress-induced lncRNA-RP11-820 plays a key role in regulating the miR-3178/MYOD1/ECM axis in HTMCs. These findings further elucidate the pathogenic mechanism and provide a novel therapeutic target relevant to POAG.

What is the impact of intravitreal injection of conbercept on neovascular glaucoma patients: a prospective, interventional case series study.

BACKGROUND: The aim of the present study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of intravitreal conbercept combined with trabeculectomy and panretinal photocoagulation for neovascular glaucoma (NVG). METHODS: Fifty patients (54 eyes) with NVG were included in this prospective study. Fifty-two eyes initially underwent intravitreal conbercept (0.5 mg/0.05 ml) treatment followed by trabeculectomy and panretinal photocoagulation. Preoperative and postoperative best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), intraocular pressure (IOP), the number of antiglaucoma medications, and surgical complications were recorded. The levels of VEGF-A, TGF-ß1 and PLGF in aqueous humour samples collected during surgery were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Light microscopy and transmission electron microscopy were used to observe the surgically excised trabecular tissue; enucleation was performed in 2 eyes, and light microscopy was used as the histopathological control. RESULTS: The follow-up period after trabeculectomy was 1 year. Of the 52 eyes, 39 completed 1 year of follow-up, and 13 were lost to follow-up. Recurrence of iris neovascularization was observed in 5 eyes, 9 had hyphema, 16 had filter-bled scarring, and no eye had complications attributable to the drug. The mean IOP was reduced from 48.1 ± 14.2 to 23.2 ± 8.7 mmHg, and the mean number of antiglaucoma medications used decreased from 3.0 (3.0, 4.0) to 1.0 (0.0, 1.0) after 1 year (both P < 0.05). The complete success rate was 76.9, 76.9, 71.0, 51.6, and 32.3% at 1 week, 1 month, 3 months, 6 months and 12 months, respectively, when the cut-off IOP was 18 mmHg. After patients underwent intravitreal injection, the concentrations of VEGF-A and TGF-ß1 in the aqueous humour in NVG patients decreased from 168.8 ± 13.4 and 159.6 ± 15.4 pg/ml to 160.2 ± 7.6 and 151.9 ± 2.3 pg/ml, respectively (both P < 0.05). Light microscopy revealed neovascularization regression in the iris in specimens treated with intravitreal conbercept. Electron microscopy revealed trabecular endothelial cell degeneration in the conbercept-treated specimens. CONCLUSIONS: Our initial findings suggest that intravitreal conbercept is an effective treatment for managing NVG that has fewer short-term postoperative complications. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Current Controlled Trials ChiCTR1800019918 , 8 December 2018, retrospectively registered.