Changes in contrast sensitivity after surgery for intermittent exotropia.

To determine whether intermittent exotropia (IXT) surgery affects contrast sensitivity (CS), this retrospective study evaluated the changes in monocular and binocular CS and the binocular summation ratio (BSR) quantified as the ratio between the values of the binocular and the better monocular CS score (BSR = binocular CS score/better monocular CS score) after surgery for IXT. The subjects were patients who had undergone IXT-correcting surgery with a postoperative follow-up of > 3 months and had pre- and postoperative records of Mars CS test scores. In total, 64 patients (128 eyes) were evaluated. Both the binocular and monocular CS scores of the operated eyes were significantly worse on postoperative 1 day than the preoperative scores, but they were recovered after 1 week. The monocular CS scores of the operated eyes were significantly worse than those of the non-operated eyes until 1 week. There was no significant difference in monocular CS scores between the one-muscle and two-muscle surgeries and in binocular CS scores between the successful alignment and overcorrection groups even on the first day after surgery. The mean BSR was significantly decreased until postoperative month 1, however, recovered to preoperative levels after month 3. In conclusion, IXT-correcting surgery may temporarily worsen the CS, but it is recovered to preoperative levels. Thus, changes in CS in the immediate postoperative period after strabismus surgery should not be of concern.

Effect of Alternate Treatment with Intravitreal Corticosteroid and Anti-VEGF for Macular Edema Secondary to Retinal Vein Occlusion.

PURPOSE: To evaluate whether treatment with intravitreal corticosteroid and anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) injections alternately can improve treatment outcomes of macular edema (ME) caused by retinal vein occlusion (RVO). METHODS: This dual-center retrospective study included 112 eyes with treatment-naïve ME secondary to RVO that were alternately treated with intravitreal corticosteroid and anti-VEGF injections (33 eyes, alternate group) or treated only with intravitreal anti-VEGF injections (79 eyes, anti-VEGF group) on a pro re nata basis. RESULTS: During the 12-month follow-up period, the alternate group achieved a visual acuity gain of 0.39 logMAR, while the anti-VEGF group achieved a gain of 0.21 logMAR (P=0.042). The alternate group demonstrated a reduction in the central macular thickness of 229.9-µm, while the anti-VEGF group achieved a reduction of 220.1 µm (P=0.887). The alternate group required an average of 5.2 injections, while the anti-VEGF received 4.2 injections (P < 0.001). In a propensity score-matched cohort to compensate for the differences in the injection numbers between the two groups, the alternate group achieved a better visual acuity gain than the anti-VEGF group at month 12 (0.39 logMAR vs. 0.17 logMAR, P=0.048). CONCLUSIONS: In ME secondary to RVO, treatment with intravitreal corticosteroid and anti-VEGF injections alternately resulted in a more favorable visual outcome compared with intravitreal anti-VEGF monotherapy.

A Study of the Association Between Retinal Vessel Geometry and Optical Coherence Tomography Angiography Metrics in Diabetic Retinopathy.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate whether optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) metrics are related to retinal vessel geometry parameters in diabetic retinopathy (DR). Methods: In total, 119 eyes (119 patients) were included in this retrospective cross-sectional study. Retinal vessel geometry parameters were analyzed using semi-automated software. OCTA metrics were analyzed using automated manufacturer-provided algorithms. Associations between the severity of DR and retinal vessel geometry parameters and OCTA metrics were evaluated. Multivariable regression analyses were performed to evaluate associations between retinal vessel geometry parameters and OCTA metrics after adjusting for clinical characteristics and DR severity. Results: DR severity was negatively associated with the following: arteriole-venular ratio (P = 0.039), arteriolar network fractal dimension (FDa; P = 0.003), arteriolar junctional exponent deviation (P = 0.037), venular junctional exponent deviation (P = 0.036), vessel area density (VAD) of the superficial capillary plexus (SCP) and deep capillary plexus (DCP; P < 0.001, both), vessel length density (VLD) of the SCP and DCP (P < 0.001, both), and foveal avascular zone (FAZ) circularity (P < 0.001). DR severity was positively associated with the central retinal venular equivalent caliber (P = 0.005), arteriolar branching coefficient (BCa; P = 0.010), venular branching coefficient (P = 0.007), and FAZ size (P = 0.002). In multivariable regression analyses, the following retinal vessel geometry parameters and OCTA metrics were associated: FDa with VAD of the SCP (ß = 0.40, P < 0.001), FDa with VLD of the SCP (ß = 0.01, P < 0.001), and BCa with FAZ circularity (ß = -1.02, P = 0.001). Conclusions: In DR, changes in retinal arteriolar geometry parameters were significantly associated with OCTA metrics, which reflect DR pathophysiology.

Alkali-Activated Slag Paste with Different Mixing Water: A Comparison Study of Early-Age Paste Using Electrical Resistivity.

This paper reports the electrical resistivity measurements on KOH-activated ground-granulated blast-furnace slag, which was mixed with deionized water or natural seawater at three different activator-to-binder ratios (0.4, 0.45, and 0.5). Compressive strength and X-ray diffraction analyses were performed on the samples after the measurement. The type of mixing water did not affect the setting time of samples, whereas the setting time was delayed with an increase in activator-to-binder (a/b) ratio. Regardless of the mixing water type, the increasing ratio of electrical resistivity between a/b 0.45 and 0.5 was larger than that between a/b 0.4 and 0.45. For the same a/b ratio, the pastes mixed with seawater produced higher electrical resistivity and early strength than those with deionized water. The increase in the electrical resistivity in seawater-mixed pastes could be attributed to the formation of Cl-bearing phases such as Cl-hydrocalumite, AlOCl, and aluminum chloride hydrate. It is believed that the reaction products in seawater-mixed samples were helpful in preventing water percolation, and thus, the electrical resistivity increased compared with the deionized water-mixed sample.