Association of Birth Parameters with Refractive Status in a Sample of Caucasian Children Aged 4–17 Years

Purpose. To investigate the association of birth parameters with refractive status in different age groups of Caucasian children. Materials and Methods. This cross-sectional study included 564 eyes of 282 children aged 4 to 17 years. All children underwent complete ophthalmologic examination. The children were divided into three groups according to their refractive status (emmetropia,myopia, and hyperopia), ages (4–7, 8-9, 10–12, and 13–17), and appropriateness for gestational age, respectively. Results. The mean age of the children was 9.2±2.8 (age range 4–17 years). The mean spheric equivalent was +0.3±1.7 (range: (−10.0)–(+10.0) diopters). The mean birth weight and gestational age were 2681.1±930.8 grams (750–5000 grams) and 37.2±3.7 weeks (25–42 weeks). According to multinominal logistic regression analysis, children with myopia were more likely to have higher birth weights than emmetropic children (OR: 1.0, 95% CI: 1.000–1.001, and P=0.028). The hypermetropes were found to be significantly small for gestational age between 13 and 17 years of age. Conclusion. Birth weight and appropriateness for gestational age as birth parameters may have an impact on development of all types of refractive errors. The hypermetropic children tended to be small for gestational age

Relation between Smartphone Use and Unilateral Ocular Pain and Headache

Ocular pain and headache may stem from many causes, ranging from infections and inflammations to radiating pain. Nowadays, use of smartphones may be an emerging cause of unilateral ocular pain and headache, especially in young population. In this study, we implemented a survey and examined the eyes of patients who used smartphones with 20/20 vision. The patients with normal neurologic and ear-nose-throat (ENT) examination findings comprised the study group. The age, duration of smartphone use, ocular examination findings, and results of ocular surface disease index (OSDI) were recorded. An association between smartphone use and ocular pain/headache was found. Spherical equivalent values of the patients with headache or ocular pain were significantly lower than those who had no pain. The OSDI scores of patients with ocular pain were significantly higher than others without ocular pain. Adverse effects of smartphone use on ocular surface and over accommodation induced by near vision may have an effect on the occurrence of ocular pain and headache

10.4274/tjo.91249

Reversible posterior leukoencephalopathy syndrome is characterized by headache, nausea, seizures, altered consciousness, visual disturbance, and convulsion. It usually develops due to hypertension, eclampsia, autoimmune diseases, blood transfusion, hypercalcemia, hypomagnesemia, and immunosuppressive therapy. The radiological feature of this syndrome is reversible bilateral white matter abnormalities predominantly located in the posterior regions of the cerebral hemispheres. With symptomatic therapy, clinical and radiologic recovery can be achieved. In this case report, we aimed to present clinical and radiological findings of transient posterior leukoencephalopathy syndrome due to intrathecal methotrexate usage in a case with acute lymphoblastic leukemia. (Turk J Ophthalmol 2014; 44: 243-5

Sociodemographic status of severely disabled and visually impaired elderly people in Turkey

ABSTRACT Purpose: To identify the prevalence of ophthalmologic diseases in elderly patients who had been classified as severely disabled and to identify the ophthalmologic conditions leading to visual impairment and blindness. Methods: The medical records of 2806 patients who had applied to the Health Board of the Erzurum Region Training and Research Hospital between January 2011 and December 2012 were reviewed. One hundred ninety-nine patients aged >64 years who were classified as severely disabled with disability rates of over 50%, and who were unable to care for themselves or to move and/or communicate without help were included in the study. Results: The most frequently seen disabilities were neurological (47.2%) and those resulting from eye diseases (17.1%). The most common ophthalmologic diseases were cataract, glaucoma, and age-related macular degeneration. The mean right and left eye visual acuities were 1.17 ± 1.10 logMAR and 1.13 ± 1.0 logMAR, respectively. Of the 60 patients with ophthalmologic diseases or conditions, 33 were blind (visual acuity worse than 20/400) and 10 were visually impaired (visual acuity worse than 20/70 but better than 20/400). Cataracts were the main cause of blindness. The mean age of the patients who were still being followed up at the time of application to the disability board was significantly lower than that of the others (p =0.015). Seventy-nine percent of the blind patients were from rural areas, and 88% of these had no regular follow-up. Among the blind and visually impaired, significantly more patients from urban areas had social security insurance (SSI) than those from rural areas (p =0.043). Nearly 64% of the blind patients were women. The follow-up rate was significantly lower in women (p =0.025). According to multinomial logistic regression analysis, the visually impaired and blind patients were more likely to have lower follow-up rates than the other types of severely disabled patients (OR: 0.231, 95% Cl: 0.077-0.688, p=0.009). Conclusions: Blindness gives rise to severe disability, and the most common ophthalmologic diseases that cause severe disabilities in elderly patients are cataract, glaucoma, and age-related macular degeneration. Sociodemographic factors that may affect the accessibility of visually impaired and blind people to health services include their place of residence and gender