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#Preferred Practise Pattern

30 articles
  1. Articles 1 Jun 2021 10 min read

    Ten Microbiological Facts on Mucormycosis All Ophthalmologists Should Know

    The present overview highlights major microbiological aspects of mucormycosis and attempts to increase the awareness of this ubiquitous group of fungi that are responsible for the difficult-to-manage infections presently being encountered in the setting of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. 1. What is Mucormycosis and why is mucormycosis emerging as a serious threat in the present COVID-19 pandemic? Mucormycosis (previously called zygomycosis; sometimes called black fungus infection) is a serious, but rare fungal infection caused by a group of molds belonging to the order Mucorales(1). Mucormycosis is a fulminant disease with high rates of morbidity and mortality that mainly affects immunocompromised patients. Depending on the location of the infection, the mucormycosis can be rhino-orbito-cerebral (most common), pulmonary, gastrointestinal, cutaneous, or disseminated. Although it has a low incidence rate, varying from 0.005 to 1.7 per million population, a sudden rise in cases of rhino-or

  2. Students Gallery 27 May 2021 12 min read

    i-File: COVID-19 associated Mucormycosis

    A 53-year-old female presented to the emergency with chief complaints of drooping of the left eyelid for 3 days and sudden loss of vision in the left eye for 2 days. History of Present Illness: The patient was recovering from COVID-19 infection prior to presentation when she noticed a sudden, rapidly progressive drooping of the left eyelid over 3 days duration. It was associated with the limitation of extraocular movements. Loss of vision was sudden, associated with pain, and fullness around the eye. She had a history of the left-sided nasal block along with altered sensation over the left cheek for 1 day. She had no history of fever, toothache, trauma, hospitalization, or intake of steroids. Past Ocular History: Underwent cataract surgery in both eyes 2 years back. Past Medical History/ History of Medication: She tested COVID positive 2 weeks prior to the current presentation and was advised home quarantined. CT chest score was 3, and spO2 was maintained throughout the quarantine peri

  3. Interesting Reads 11 May 2021 8 min read

    Seven Points You Should Know about Mucormycosis

    What is Mucormycosis? Mucormycosis is a fungus that is ubiquitous. This organism is present in the soil and all around us and is also a commensal that is present in the nose and oropharynx. It is an opportunistic organism – this means that it invades and causes infection only when the host’s immune system is compromised. A normal healthy person’s immune system would easily be able to fight a fungal infection like mucormycosis. It invades the nose and the paranasal sinuses. It then gradually spreads to the neighboring structures which is the orbit-it then affects the extraocular muscles, the optic nerve and the orbital apex beyond which it then spreads intracranially involving the cavernous sinus, the leptomeninges, and the brain. This form of invasive mucormycosis which is the commonest clinical manifestation is called Rhino-Orbital-Cerebral Mucormycosis (ROCM). Why are we seeing so much of it now? Typically one would come across fewer than a handful of cases of mucormycosis in an enti

  4. Articles 5 May 2021 23 min read

    Simple Limbal Epithelial Transplantation: A Review

    I. Introduction The cornea is lined by non-keratinized, stratified squamous epithelium. At the limbus, there is a gradual transition of these cells to non-keratinized, stratified columnar epithelial cells, along with mucin-secreting goblet cells, forming the conjunctival epithelium. The corneoscleral limbus lies between these two epithelia in a healthy eye. The limbus contains palisades of Vogt, the basal layer of which function as a repository for the corneal epithelial stem cells.(1, 2) These limbal epithelial stem cells (LESC’s) divide whenever the corneal epithelium is required to be replenished. As the stem cells divide, one of the daughter cells retains the primitive nature of the parent cell and functions to maintain the stem cell pool. The other daughter stem cell differentiates to acquire the physiological nature of a specific tissue, like the corneal epithelium. These cells are known as ‘transient amplifying cells’, which then divide and migrate centripetally, circumferential

  5. Articles 21 Apr 2021 16 min read

    Facial Spasms: Diagnosis and Management

    Introduction Dystonia is defined as a movement disorder characterized by sustained or intermittent muscle contractions causing abnormal, often repetitive, movements, postures, or both [1]. They may be isolated or combined with other neurological symptoms or movement disorders [1]. Dystonia is classified based on the age of onset, etiology, clinical features, and body distribution. The body distribution may be either focal, segmental, multifocal, generalized, or hemi-dystonia. Only one region of the body is affected by focal dystonia. It emerges in late adulthood [1]. Patients with movement disorders isolated to the facial region often visit an Ophthalmologist. A brief knowledge about the identification and differentiation of the various facial movement disorders is essential. The disorder can be functionally or socially distressing to the patients. The facial movement disorders include orbicularis myokymia, Benign Essential Blepharospasm (BEB), Apraxia of Lid Opening (ALO), Hemifacial

  6. Articles 12 Apr 2021 25 min read

    Choroidal Neovascular Membrane: Made Easy For Postgraduates

    Introduction Choroidal neovascularization (CNV) or choroidal neovascular membrane (CNVM) is a growth of new choroidal vessels into the subretinal space through breaks in the Bruch's membrane. Ophthalmoscopically the CNVM appears as a greenish-grey lesion, often with a detachment of the sensory retina, subretinal blood, and exudates. Choroidal neovascularization can be multifactorial with the commonest being due to age-related macular degeneration (AMD), called the wet or exudative AMD. The other causes of include high myopia, angioid streaks, presumed ocular histoplasmosis syndrome, choroidal rupture post-trauma, osteoma, macular telangiectasia, inflammatory and idiopathic. Since the most common cause of CNVM remains age-related, this writeup will focus on the same. Age-related macular degeneration is the most common cause of blindness in the western world over the age of 65 years. With a worldwide UN estimate of about 20-25million, 8 million individuals are in the USA alone.1 The numb

  7. Articles 1 Apr 2021 18 min read

    Proliferative Diabetic Retinopathy

    Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is the leading cause of visual impairment worldwide. It almost accounts for 2.6% of treatable blindness globally (1). It is estimated that the overall prevalence of diabetic retinopathy is 34.6 % worldwide, while the prevalence of proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR) is 6.96% and that of vision-threatening DR (VTDR) is computed to be 10.2% (2). Currently, the prevalence of PDR in India is estimated to be 17% which is significantly higher compared to patients from other locations of Asia (3). Early detection and treatment is the only key to avoiding complications and risks of vision loss (4). But the major obstacle ahead of us in India is the failure to diagnose DR in early stages; as it is observed that only 18–35% of diabetics undergo ophthalmologic evaluation regularly (5). Pathogenesis Diabetic retinopathy is recognized as a neuro-vascular complication of diabetes. The triad of hyperglycemia, inflammation, and hypoxia along with retinal neurodegeneratio

  8. Articles 1 Apr 2021 20 min read

    Uveitic Macular Edema

    Introduction: Macular edema is defined as swelling of the layers of neurosensory retina within the macula. Cystoid macular edema (CME) is a subtype of macular edema characterized by extracellular accumulation of fluid within the outer plexiform layer of the retina in the form of intraretinal cyst. It is known as one of the complications, that develops consequent to a final common pathway in diverse diseases affecting the blood-retinal barrier. CME is a major cause of visual loss in uveitis. The overall reported prevalence of visual impairment associated with uveitic CME is 33–42 % and is influenced by the age, location, severity, and duration of retinal edema. [1,2] In young age, the retinal tissue shows resistance to development of CME, but advanced age is independently associated with early development of CME, regardless of the duration of uveitis. In contrast, the most frequent causes of visual loss in pediatric uveitis are retinal scars and glaucoma. [3] Panuveitis and intermediate

  9. Interesting Reads 1 Apr 2021 19 min read

    Understanding Retinal Imaging : What Lies Ahead of Us?

    “Be careful, now that I can see the Inner You.” -Imaging modalities today Retinal imaging has come a long way today. From times of appropriately concentrating the fluorescein dye from scratch in the lab itself to times where we have a dye free angiography system, technology has covered vast boundaries. There is a platter of different modalities in the market today, each having their own ebb and flow. And what the future beholds for us is certainly inexplicable. To throw a light on these modalities, we have a special interview with someone who continues to extensively work on these technologies and modalities day in and out, Dr Muna Bhende. Dr. Muna Bhende is a senior consultant and deputy director of Shri Bhagwan Mahavir VR Services, Medical research foundation, Sankara Nethralaya, Chennai. eOphtha: There is a wide discussion on OCT Angiography (OCT-A) replacing FFA in the field of the medical retina in the near future. What is your take on that? How do you compare the clinical output

  10. Articles 1 Apr 2021 15 min read

    The Effects & Techniques of Scleral Buckle in Treatment of Retinal Detachment

    Introduction: Scleral buckle surgery is indicated for uncomplicated rhegmatogenous retinal detachments. Scleral buckling indents the sclera and the overlying choroid retinal pigment epithelium complex towards the retinal break in the detached retina, resulting in retinal reattachment. Scleral buckle surgery evolved out of the works of Jules Gonin, who identified retinal breaks as the cause of retinal detachment, Custodis, Lincoff and Schepens who devised ways of using an epi / intrascleral implant to “buckle” the sclera inward to create the indent.1-3 Principles of scleral buckling: The aim of scleral buckling is to close all retinal breaks to achieve permanent reattachment of the retina. General principles of retinal detachment surgery- Search for the breaks, find all the breaks, seal all the breaks, and relieve vitro retinal traction. This is achieved by - Identification of the retinal break Retinopexy – creating a sterile inflammatory reaction that would result subsequently in chori

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