Central Serous Chorioretinopathy after Rhinoplasty

We report a case of central serous chorioretinopathy after rhinoplasty for deviation of the nasal septum in a 23-year-old Caucasian man. The patient complained of deterioration of vision in the right eye 4 days after rhinoplasty. At presentation, visual acuity of the right eye was 6/9 with metamorphopsia. Fluorescein angiography revealed a focal retinal pigment epithelium leakage and optical coherence tomography an increase in macular thickness to 245 μm. The left eye was normal. One month after the operation, without any treatment, visual acuity returned to 6/6, the leakage of the retinal pigment epithelium disappeared and the macular thickness returned to 183 μm. To the best of our knowledge, central serous chorioretinopathy after rhinoplasty has not been previously reported. This case report shows a possible association between the postoperative stress and central serous chorioretinopathy. Moreover, it widens the spectrum of drugs associated with the occurrence of the disease

New modelling technique for improving crop model performance - Application to the GLAM model

Crop models simulate growth and development and they are often used for climate change applications. However, they have a variable skill in the simulation of crop responses to extreme climatic events. Here, we present a new dynamic crop modelling method for simulating the impact of abiotic stresses. The Simultaneous Equation Modelling for Annual Crops (SEMAC) uses simultaneous solution of the model equations to ensure internal model consistency within daily time steps; something that is not always guaranteed in the usual sequential method. The SEMAC approach is implemented in GLAM, resulting in a new model version (GLAM-Parti). The new model shows a clear improvement in skill under water stress conditions and it successfully simulates the acceleration of leaf senescence in response to drought. We conclude that SEMAC is a promising crop modelling technique that might be applied to a range of models

Isolated descemetorhexis for anterior synechiolysis prior to endothelial keratoplasty - case report and technique.

To describe the utilization of descemetorhexis for reformation of the anterior chamber in eyes with central iridocorneal synechiae before endothelial keratoplasty (EK). A 71-year-old man with a history of trabeculectomy complicated by hypotony presented with bullous keratopathy in the presence of extensive iridocorneal synechiae and a flat anterior chamber. In order to proceed with EK, synechiolysis with the use of viscoelastic and scissors was attempted. Despite successful dissection of the peripheral strands, the pupillary margin of the iris remained attached to the endothelium. Therefore, descemetorhexis was performed to detach the Descemet membrane along with central synechiae and create sufficient space for safe EK at a later stage. Corneal clarity was restored by ultrathin Descemet stripping automated endothelial keratoplasty, leaving a fibrous membrane in the pupillary plane, which was excised 2 months later, allowing an improvement of best-corrected visual acuity to 0.5. Isolated descemetorhexis was successfully employed to reform the anterior chamber and proceed with EK in a case of bullous keratopathy and resistant iridocorneal synechiae. This stepwise approach may be considered in similar cases in order to avoid a more invasive treatment, ie, penetrating keratoplasty and synechiolysis

Integrating Plant Science and Crop Modeling: Assessment of the Impact of Climate Change on Soybean and Maize Production

Increasing global CO₂ emissions have profound consequences for plant biology, not least because of direct influences on carbon gain. However, much remains uncertain regarding how our major crops will respond to a future high CO₂ world. Crop model inter-comparison studies have identified large uncertainties and biases associated with climate change. The need to quantify uncertainty has drawn the fields of plant molecular physiology, crop breeding and biology, and climate change modeling closer together. Comparing data from different models that have been used to assess the potential climate change impacts on soybean and maize production, future yield losses have been predicted for both major crops. When CO2 fertilization effects are taken into account significant yield gains are predicted for soybean, together with a shift in global production from the Southern to the Northern hemisphere. Maize production is also forecast to shift northwards. However, unless plant breeders are able to produce new hybrids with improved traits, the forecasted yield losses for maize will only be mitigated by agro-management adaptations. In addition, the increasing demands of a growing world population will require larger areas of marginal land to be used for maize and soybean production. We summarize the outputs of crop models, together with mitigation options for decreasing the negative impacts of climate on the global maize and soybean production, providing an overview of projected land-use change as a major determining factor for future global crop production

Effects of combined abiotic stresses on nutrient content of European wheat and implications for nutritional security under climate change

Climate change is causing problems for agriculture, but the effect of combined abiotic stresses on crop nutritional quality is not clear. Here we studied the effect of 10 combinations of climatic conditions (temperature, CO2, O3 and drought) under controlled growth chamber conditions on the grain yield, protein, and mineral content of 3 wheat varieties. Results show that wheat plants under O3 exposure alone concentrated + 15 to + 31% more grain N, Fe, Mg, Mn P and Zn, reduced K by − 5%, and C did not change. Ozone in the presence of elevated CO2 and higher temperature enhanced the content of Fe, Mn, P and Zn by 2–18%. Water-limited chronic O3 exposure resulted in + 9 to + 46% higher concentrations of all the minerals, except K. The effect of climate abiotic factors could increase the ability of wheat to meet adult daily dietary requirements by + 6% to + 12% for protein, Zn and Fe, but decrease those of Mg, Mn and P by − 3% to − 6%, and K by − 62%. The role of wheat in future nutrition security is discussed

Web Accessibility Barriers and their Cross-disability Impact in eSystems: A Scoping Review

Data availability: No data was used for the research described in the article.Accessibility is an important component in the implementation of Web systems to ensure that these are usable, engaging, and enjoyable by all regardless of the level of ability, condition, or circumstances. Despite manifold efforts, the Web is still largely inaccessible for a plurality of reasons (e.g. poor navigation, lack of/unsuitable alternative text, complex Web forms) with significant impact on disabled users. The impact of Web accessibility barriers varies per disability, but current measures for the impact of barriers treat disabilities as a homogeneous group. In this work, we present a scoping review of the Web accessibility research landscape. Following a structured approach, 112 studies were reviewed, and findings are reported on common Web accessibility barriers and practices within the Web Accessibility Lifecycle. An assessment framework is further proposed to measure the impact of such barriers across disabled groups. Finally, the need for extensive qualitative research into organizational change and multinational studies on Web activity and disturbance by barriers per disabled user group are discussed as future avenues for accessibility research

Corneal Clarity and Visual Outcomes after Small-Incision Lenticule Extraction and Comparison to Femtosecond Laser-Assisted In Situ Keratomileusis

Purpose. To evaluate corneal clarity and visual outcomes after small-incision lenticule extraction (SMILE) and compare them to femtosecond laser-assisted in situ keratomileusis (FS-LASIK). Materials and Methods. Fifty-eight myopic eyes of 33 patients who underwent SMILE were compared to 58 eyes of 33 patients treated with FS-LASIK. All procedures were performed using VisuMax® femtosecond laser and MEL 80® excimer laser (Carl Zeiss Meditec AG, Germany). Pentacam™ (Oculus, Germany) was used for pre- and 3-month postoperative corneal densitometry (CD) analysis. CD was evaluated at 3 optically relevant, concentric radial zones (0–2 mm, 2–6 mm, and 0–6 mm annulus) around the corneal apex and at 3 different anatomical corneal layers (anterior, central, and posterior). Associations of postoperative CD values with the lenticule thickness and ablation depth were examined. Preoperative and postoperative corrected distance visual acuity (CDVA) values were also compared. Results. After SMILE, the total CD (all corneal layers) at 0–6 mm annulus showed no significant change compared to preoperative values (P=0.259). After FS-LASIK, the total CD was significantly reduced (P=0.033). Three-month postoperative CD showed no significant differences between the 2 groups for all examined annuli (0–2 mm: P=0.569; 2–6 mm: P=0.055; and 0–6 mm: P=0.686). Total CD after SMILE at 0–6 mm annulus displayed a weak negative association with the lenticule thickness (P=0.079, R2=0.0532) and after FS-LASIK displayed a weak negative association with the ablation depth (P=0.731, R2=0.0015). Postoperative CDVA was similar for both groups (P=0.517). Conclusion. Quantification of corneal clarity using the Scheimpflug CD showed similar results before and 3 months after SMILE. Compared to FS-LASIK, no significant differences of corneal clarity and CDVA were found 3 months postoperatively

Keratoconus Treatment Algorithm.

Keratoconus management has significantly changed over the last two decades. The advent of new interventions such as cornea cross-linking, intrastromal corneal ring segments, and combined treatments provide corneal clinicians a variety of treatment options for the visual rehabilitation of keratoconus patients. This review summarizes current evidence for these treatments and highlights their place in keratoconus management while new promising emerging therapies are being investigated