Evaluation of the visual pathway with ERG, mfERG and mfVEP in inherited eye disorders

This thesis will describe the clinical phenotypes, with emphasis on electrophysiology, in patients with different hereditary eye diseases and to further evaluate and modify the mfVEP technique for clinical use. Bothnia Dystrophy is a tapetoretinal disorder with a mutation in the RLBP1 gene. Early in the disease the fundus may have a normal appearance. The full-field ERG demonstrates an absence of the rod response but normal amplitudes for the cones. However, after prolonged dark adaptation the rods recover completely. MfERG can be used for objective documentation of the disturbed macular function. Patients with retinitis pigmentosa may not always follow the typical natural course of the disorder with progressive loss of the central visual fields, which may in some patients remain unaffected for several decades. MfERG and mfVEP may be of clinical use in evaluating remaining visual function in these patients. Patients with dominant optic atrophy and a known mutation in the OPA-1 gene have a very variable clinical phenotype. MfVEP and ocular blood flow measurements are two new methods for improved identification and characterization of this disorder. A patient with a known mutation for Leber`s hereditary optic neuropathy (LHON) was followed during the acute stage of the disease with mfVEP, demonstrating a correlation to the progression of the disease. The mfVEP may be of clinical value as an objective method for monitoring the course of this disease. MfVEP demonstrates the cortical response corresponding to the central visual field. An improvement for the clinical value of the method was the use of an IR-camera for both stimulation and for controlling the fixation. By introducing a two channel system it was possible to describe the uncrossed/crossed visual pathways and analyze inter-ocular differences

Reduced full-field electroretinogram (ERG) in a patient treated with methotrexate.

Purpose: To examine retinal function in a patient with decreased vision possibly due to treatment with methotrexate. Methods: Ophthalmological examination included testing of visual acuity (VA), fundus inspection, fundus photography and kinetic perimetry. Retinal function was tested objectively with three electrophysiological methods: full-field electroretinography (ERG), multifocal electroretinography (mfERG) and electro-oculography (EOG). Results: A 13-year-old boy with psoriasis arthritis had been treated with methotrexate on a weekly basis for 8.5 years. After terminating treatment, his VA, which was reduced to 0.3 in both eyes initially, improved during the following 3 years but did not return to normal. No visual field defects were found with kinetic perimetry. The rod and cone responses in the full-field ERG were markedly reduced in b-wave amplitude initially, but grew slowly to nearly normal values 3 years later. After withdrawal of the drug, the mfERG demonstrated normal responses in the macular region. The Arden index in the EOG was normal. Conclusion: Chronic treatment with methotrexate may affect VA, and may reversibly reduce rod and cone function. In patients who use systemic medication and whose vision is reduced, objective evaluation of retinal function with electrophysiological methods is recommended

Case report: Bilateral damage to the immature optic radiation and secondary massive loss of retinal ganglion cells causing tunnel vision

We describe the case of a 30-year-old woman, who needed a formal report on her visual impairment to seek support from society. She was born preterm, and during her neonatal period, she suffered from bilateral intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH) grade 3, a condition that can cause cerebral visual impairment (CVI) due to damage to the retro-geniculate visual pathways. Individuals with such brain damage of this severity are often restricted by cerebral palsy (CP) and intellectual disability, and thus have a limited ability to cooperate in the assessment of visual function. However, our patient was capable of providing reliable test results, and she manifested only a small island of central vision in each eye, with additional reduced visual acuities. She cooperated well in examinations involving MRI of the brain, optical coherence tomography (OCT) of retinal ganglion cells, and multi-focal visual evoked potentials, with each test providing information about potential limitations in the structural prerequisites for visual function. What distinguishes our case is the severity of the damage to the optic radiations and the massive secondary loss of most of her retinal ganglion cells (GCs). However, there is some measurable visual function, which may be due to developmental neuroplasticity during early development, when surviving GCs prioritize the central visual field. Despite her visual difficulties, she is a keen portrait painter. Our patient may be representative of, and a spokesperson for, other individuals with extensive brain damage of the same etiology, who are unable to perform perimetric tests and therefore run the risk of not being recognized as severely visually impaired, and consequently, not being given the best conditions for habilitation. OCT may serve as a helpful diagnostic tool.Aim: This study aims to describe visual behavior and practical applications of visual function in relation to structural prerequisites for visual function

Dexamethasone eye-drops for treatment of retinopathy of prematurity

Both studies on animals and humans have demonstrated the role of inflammatory mediators on the retinopathy process.2,3 Dexamethasone is a glucocorticoid with a known reductive effect on several of these mediators and on the expression of VEGF.4Starting in 2016, infants receiving laser ablation for type 1 ROP at Skåne University Hospital were administered dexamethasone eye-drops postoperatively, usually three times daily. None of the infants receiving postoperative topical steroids needed retreatment, in comparison to a general retreatment frequency of 26% nationally when postoperative dexamethasone wasn’t administered routinely.5 During 2018 and 2019, two premature infants started the dexamethasone regimen before the planned laser treatment could be performed and in one the laser could be postponed, in the other the laser treatment was cancelled. Successively, several other infants with type 2 ROP that were considered at very high risk of requiring laser ablation were administered dexamethasone drops preoperatively and the regression of ROP changes were observed on multiple occasions. Consequently, for infants with type 2 ROP born in 2020, all were administered dexamethasone drops before the laser treatment, but usually in a lower dosage of one drop daily.We therefore aim to compare the treatment frequency for screened infants in the southern healthcare region of Sweden born during 2016 through 2020 to make a systematic retrospective analysis to compare dexamethasone treated and untreated infants.The retrospective study was carried through in accordance with the declaration of Helsinki and received ethical approval from the Swedish ethical board. The study followed the Strengthening and Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology (STROBE) reporting guideline for cohort studies

Electrophysiologic findings in two young patients with Bothnia dystrophy and a mutation in the RLBP1 gene

Purpose: To characterize the clinical phenotype, with emphasis on electrophysiology, of two children with suspected Bothnia dystrophy. Methods: Two unrelated affected patients, 10 and 11 years old, were studied. Ophthalmological examination included testing of visual acuity, fundus inspection and fundus photography, kinetic perimetry, full-field electroretinogram (ERG), and multifocal ERG. The presence of a mutation in exon 7 of the RLBP1 gene was investigated by DNA sequencing. Results: Both patients were homozygous for the Arg234Trp-causing mutation in the RLBP1 gene, but the resulting disease phenotype appeared to vary somewhat between them. Visual acuity was moderately reduced in one patient and normal in the other. Fundus inspection at this age revealed no pathology in either patient and there were no signs of retinitis punctata albescens, which has been described previously as a frequent clinical feature of Bothnia dystrophy. The result of kinetic perimetry was normal. The final rod threshold was moderately elevated. Full-field ERG demonstrated the uncommon combination of absent rod response and normal cone response after 40 minutes of dark adaptation. However, after prolonged dark adaptation (20-24 h), both the rod response and the dark adaptation threshold became normal. Multifocal ERG was performed in one of the patients (the one with normal visual acuity and normal fundus appearance) and showed a reduced cone response in the central region of the tested area. There was no improvement of the multifocal ERG result after 20-24 h of dark adaptation. Conclusion: Patients with mutations in the RLBP1 gene (Arg234Trp) may have a normal fundus appearance early in the disease course. Multifocal ERG can be used for the objective documentation of the disturbed macular function, especially when the patient's visual acuity and fundus appearance are normal. The rod response is absent in the electroretinogram; however, after prolonged dark adaptation (20-24 hours), the rods recover completely. The central cones do not seem to recover

Macular Dysfunction and Morphology in Spinocerebellar Ataxia Type 7 (SCA 7)

Purpose: To characterize the clinical phenotype regarding retinal function and macular appearance in patients with spinocerebellar ataxia type 7 (SCA 7), with an emphasis on electrophysiological findings. Methods: Three patients from two Swedish families were given an ophthalmological examination including visual acuity, fundus inspection, Farnsworth's color vision test, Goldmann perimetry, full-field electroretinography (full-field ERG), multifocal electroretinography (mfERG) and optical coherence tomography (OCT). DNA was analyzed with polymerase chain reaction for CAG trinucleotide expansion repeats in the SCA 7 gene. Results: Molecular analysis demonstrated abnormally expanded CAG repeats in the gene for SCA 7, which encodes the protein ataxin-7, thus confirming the diagnosis SCA 7. In the oldest patient very discreet pigmentary changes in the maculae were found, but with that exception the patients had a normal ophthalmoscopic fundus appearance and OCT demonstrated only minor changes. MfERG indicated predominantly central involvement, especially in the early disease stages, which in pace with disease progression extended from the center to the more peripheral areas. Full-field ERG in the oldest patient demonstrated bilaterally distinctly prolonged 30-Hz flicker implicit time, verifying widespread cone photoreceptor degeneration. Conclusions: The patients with genetically confirmed SCA 7 presented an early macular dysfunction, preceding any signs of abnormalities in fundus appearance. According to the electrophysiological findings the primary dysfunction involves the cone photoreceptors in the foveal region, however in an older patient involvement of cone photoreceptors throughout the retina was verified. This is in accordance with the theory that ataxin-7 interacts with CRX transcription, since it is known that mutations in the CRX gene cause cone-rod dystrophy

Multifocal Visual Evoked Potentials (mfVEP) in Diabetic Patients with and without Polyneuropathy.

Previously not shown this study support that mfVEP is an indicator of optic nerve neuropathy in diabetic patients and there could be a correlation between the optic nerve dysfunction and diabetic poly neuropathy. The early optic nerve involvement might explain some of the visual complain in this group of diabetic patients

Alterations in electroretinograms and retinal morphology in rabbits treated with vigabatrin

PURPOSE: To determine whether long-term treatment with the anti-epileptic drug vigabatrin causes damage to rabbit retina.METHODS: Five rabbits were treated continuously with a daily dose of vigabatrin solution per orally during a period of 1-8 months. Two rabbits receiving water were used as controls. Repeated full-field electroretinograms (every two weeks) were assessed during this period. Vigabatrin serum concentration was repeatedly measured for securing successful drug administration. After termination of treatment the rabbits were sacrificed and the morphology of the sectioned retina was studied.RESULTS: In all rabbits treated with vigabatrin the serum analyses repeatedly demonstrated elevated drug concentration. Full-field electroretinograms demonstrated normal rod function in all treated rabbits, but reduced cone function in two of the five treated rabbits verified by 30Hz flicker stimulation. Morphologic studies of the sectioned retina demonstrated GFAP immunoactivity of the glial cells localized in the retinal periphery in all five treated rabbits, one of which had staining also in the centrally localized glial cells. The treated rabbits also demonstrated a weaker GAD staining in the IPL and less positive amacrine cells, compared to the controls. Only two treated rabbits had normal GABA staining while three had an enhanced GABA immunoreactivity and undistinguishable fibers in the IPL. In three out of five treated rabbits the Müller cells were short, stubby and fragmented, with swollen endfeet.CONCLUSION: This study demonstrates changes in histopathology caused by vigabatrin in an animal model, which has not been reported previously. We have found that vigabatrin orally administrated to rabbits does not affect rod function but may reduce cone function in the full-field electroretinogram, which is similar to the previously reported vigabatrin effect on the human ERG. The results indicate that vigabatrin may damage or influence, at least one cell type in the rabbit retina