A review of scleral buckle procedures performed at a tertiary care center in Karachi

Abstract This retrospective study was done to evaluate the visual and anatomic outcomes of scleral buckling for the repair of rhegmatogenous retinal detachment (RRD). All scleral buckle procedures performed at the Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi, from May 1999 to April 2012 were included. A total of 75 eyes of 72 patients were studied. The mean age of patients at surgery was 33.0±17.2 years. The mean logarithm of the minimum angle of resolution (logMAR) visual acuity (VA) was 0.9±0.8 pre-operatively and 0.5±0.6 at 1 year (p=0.018). At baseline, 27(36%) eyes had a best corrected visual acuity (BCVA) of 20/50 or better, while at 1 year after surgery 47(63.5%) eyes had BCVA of 20/50 or better. Retina had successfully attached after first attempt in 70(93.3%) cases. Scleral buckling for the repair of RRD resulted in a high anatomical success rate as well as significant improvement in visual acuity

Visual outcome of cataract surgery.

bstract The aim of this study was to assess whether the visual outcome of cataract surgery in the institution was in accordance with the World Health Organization recommendations. In this retrospective case series, all patients who underwent cataract surgery by a single surgeon from January 2009 till June 2011 were included. Date were collected from medical records on age, gender, visual acuity and causes of sub-optimal outcome. The main outcome was best-corrected visual acuity in the operated eye, measured 4 - 6 weeks after surgery. Data on visual outcome was grouped using WHO\u27s classification. Of the 495 eyes that underwent cataract surgery, 58% were female. Overall, 93.3% of the operated eyes had good visual outcome, while 4.4% and 2.2% had borderline and poor outcomes, respectively. Pre-existing diseases accounted for 93.9% of the borderline/poor outcome. The study showed good visual outcome of cataract surgeries performed using phacoemulsification with intraocular lens (IOL) insertion

Retinopathy of prematurity: an evaluation of existing screening criteria in Pakistan

Abstract AIM: To evaluate if broadening the criteria for retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) screening to include babies with gestational age ≥32 weeks and/or birth weight ≥1500 g, would have an impact on the number of babies diagnosed as having ROP. METHODS: A prospective cohort study was carried out at the Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi, Pakistan. Infants with gestational age ≤35 weeks or birth weight ≤2000 g born in this hospital from May 2010 to December 2012 were screened for the presence of ROP 4-6 weeks after birth. Subsequent examinations were performed at intervals based on the findings of initial eye examinations. Infants diagnosed as having ROP were treated with argon laser therapy. Neonatal risk factors were also assessed. Cumulative incidence of ROP was calculated for babies falling within and outside current screening criteria. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed to examine the predictors of ROP. RESULTS: A total of 301 infants were screened: 27 (9%) babies developed ROP, of which 19 had stage 3 ROP or worse. None of the babies falling outside the current screening criteria developed ROP. The incidence of ROP in the infants meeting the current screeningcriteria was 11.5%. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that only gestational age (adjusted relative risk 0.774, 95% CI 0.603 to 0.994) was independently associated with the development of ROP. CONCLUSIONS: In our population ROP was not seen to occur in infants older than 32 weeks gestational age and/or weighing more than 1500 g