Comparison of different endophthalmitis prophylactic measures in cataract surgery - An analysis of 2.4 lakh cases.

Purpose: To compare different endophthalmitis prophylaxis methods adopted in cataract surgery (manual small-incision cataract surgery and phacoemulsification) between the years 2013 and 2021 in the community eye care section of a tertiary eye care hospital in South India and report their outcomes. Methods: All cataract surgeries performed from January 2013 to December 2021 (2,46,874 surgeries) at a single center were included in this retrospective study. The different endophthalmitis rates with each regimen were analyzed and evaluated. Results: 70,081 surgeries were performed from January 2013 to February 2015, where Tobramycin was added to Balanced Salt Solution (BSS) (Group A). From March 2015 to January 2017, 63,245 surgeries were performed when intracameral Moxifloxacin was given (Group B). From February 2017 to December 2021, 1,13,548 surgeries were performed were Amikacin was added to BSS (Group C). In total, 42 cases of postoperative endophthalmitis were reported during the study period (0.02%). There was no significant difference in the endophthalmitis rates between groups A and B (P = 0.4152); however, there was a significant decrease in endophthalmitis rates in group C when compared with group A (P = 0.04) and group B (P = 0.006). Conclusion: There was a significant reduction in the rates of endophthalmitis following the addition of amikacin in irrigating BSS. Nocardia was one of the predominant organisms isolated from these endophthalmitis patients. This is the first single-center study to report a comparative analysis of different endophthalmitis prophylactic measures in a community eye care set up with a high incidence of Nocardia endophthalmitis prevented with amikacin in BSS irrigating solution.

A virtual model to assess maximum treatable area in LASIK and feasibility of a temporal hinge.

PURPOSE: To generate virtual models using different hinge locations and to investigate the advantages of a temporal hinge to a superior in LASIK. METHODS: The study design was cross sectional. An image processing software was used to construct virtual LASIK models of 56 slit lamp photos of eyes. For a given hinge location and width, the largest flap diameter and maximum treatable stromal bed area were calculated, comparing temporal hinge to superior. RESULTS: Temporal hinge allowed a greater flap diameter than superior and thus a greater treatment zone area for a given hinge width. A temporal hinge allowed a greater hinge width than a superior hinge for a given treatment zone area. CONCLUSION: We provide a rational basis for a mechanically stable temporal hinge. Moreover, we provide a method to pre-operative model flap size and hinge location, using a slit lamp camera and an image editing software.

Non-invasive assessment of tear film stability with a novel corneal topographer in Indian subjects.

The aim of the study is to investigate the applicability of a newly developed corneal topographer in assessing tear film stability in Indian subjects. A prospective comparative study of 25 Indian subjects with dry eyes attending a tertiary eye care clinic in South India and 25 normal control subjects was conducted. The diagnosis of dry eye was made based on ocular surface disease index questionnaire. Non-invasive tear film break-up time (NI-TBUT) was measured using a new method based on a corneal topographer equipped with modified scan software. The correlations between the NI-TBUT and the traditional fluorescein tear film break-up time (F-TBUT), Schirmer I test values were determined. A total of 50 patients (100 eyes) were included. The values of NI-TBUT were significantly lower than the values of F-TBUT in both the cases (NI-TBUT 5.78 ± 0.8 s and F-TBUT 7.56 ± 0.5 s; p < 0.02) and controls (NI-TBUT 11.66 ± 1 s and F-TBUT 12.92 ± 1.2 s; p < 0.01). NI-TBUT values were significantly lower than the corresponding F-TBUT values in the varying grades of dry eyes. The mean NI-TBUT values in mild dry eyes was 6.42 ± 0.2 s, moderate dry eyes was 4.70 ± 0.3 s and in severe dry eyes was 2.32 ± 1.2 s. There was a significant difference in the NI-TBUT values for cases and controls (p < 0.001). There was a good correlation seen between the NI-TBUT values and the F-TBUT values, Schirmer I values and the ODSI scores. NI-TBUT was found to have a sensitivity of 86.1 % and a specificity of 81.1 % when the cut-off value was kept at 6.2 s. We investigated the performance of a non-invasive technique for measuring tear film stability to aid in the diagnosis of dry eye disease. It is a useful non-invasive objective method for the detection of dry eye, and its varying grades and may be useful in monitoring the efficacy of therapies for dry eye.