Eyes Test Research Articles

Determinants of Refractive Errors on School-going Children Attending Ophthalmic Clinic of AlMoosa Hospital in Saudi Arabia

Objective: The risk factors for vision problems in youngsters are relatively unknown in Saudi Arabia. The purpose of this study was to examine the determinants of refractive errors among school-going children attending the ophthalmic clinic of AlMoosa Hospital in Saudi Arabia. Methodology: A sample of 161 school-going children were recruited voluntarily to complete a set of measures examining the determinants of refractive errors. The binary logistic regression model was applied to determine the relationship between independent and dependent variables. Results: Refractive errors were common among Saudi school-going children, with myopia being the most common type of refractive error. About 96 (59.6%) samples had myopia, 28 (17.4%) children had hyperopia and 27 (16.8%) children did not have any refractive error. Genetic traits and machine dependence were found to be significant predictors of refractive error. Conclusion: The preschool eye test and routine vision investigation should be performed on children to detect refractive errors early.

Theory of Mind as an endophenotype for schizophrenia spectrum disorder: Study in first episode of psychosis patients and first-degree relatives

BackgroundDeficits in Theory of Mind (ToM) had been suggested as a possible endophenotype for unaffected relatives of first episode of psychosis (FEP) patients. There are a limited number of studies which have evaluated ToM deficits among the siblings and parents of FEP patients. AimThis study aimed to explore ToM deficits and its correlates among FEP patients, their siblings, parents, and controls. MethodologyFEP patients (N=102), their parents (N=135), siblings (N=97), and controls (N=167) were evaluated on ToM performance with the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test (Eyes Test). Interview for sociodemographic variables of age, sex, years of education, and IQ estimation and neurocognitive tests were administered to all groups. ResultsFEP patients had a significantly lower performance on the Eyes Test compared to their siblings and controls. However, no significant differences were found between siblings and parents or siblings and controls. ConclusionAttending our results, we found no evidence for ToM deficits as an endophenotype of SSDs. Furthermore, ToM accuracy may be mediated by interaction with other cognitive domains and play a protective role against psychosis in unaffected siblings.

An emotional interaction-based intervention for emotional understanding in a college design course for individuals with autism spectrum disorder

BackgroundIndividuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) often exhibit difficulties in socialization and communication, especially in emotional understanding. These challenges not only affect their relationships with peers and families, but may also impact their learning and daily life. The aim of the study was to investigate the effectiveness of an emotionally interactive college-designed curriculum based intervention on emotional understanding for individuals with ASD, in order to help individuals with ASD better understand and express their emotions, and thus improve their social interactions and quality of life.Subjects and MethodsThe study divided 130 students with ASD into an experimental group and a control group. Students in the experimental group were enrolled in a college-designed course based on emotional interaction; students in the control group were enrolled in a regular course and the experiment was maintained for one semester. The study used the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test (RMET), a mental health measurement scale, to assess patients’ understanding of emotions.ResultsStudents in the experimental group had significantly higher emotional comprehension scores at the end of the experiment than before the experiment began (P < 0.05), as well as significantly higher emotional comprehension scores at the end of the experiment than students in the control group (P < 0.05).ConclusionsA college-designed curriculum based on emotional interaction helps students with autism to make emotional understanding and produce positive effects for intervention treatment for students with autism.

Altered social cognition in early relapsing remitting multiple sclerosis.

People with multiple sclerosis (pwMS) may suffer from some degree of impaired social cognition (SC), the process that integrates the mental operations underlying social interactions. SC is still not clearly characterized in the early stages of MS, and it is not defined whether SC is independent of cognitive impairment. In this cross-sectional study, we aimed to compare SC measures in a population of early (≤5 years) relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS) with an age, sex, and education-matched control group. All participants performed a clinical and a comprehensive neuropsychological assessment. SC evaluation included assessment of facial emotion recognitionn by the Emotion Recognition Task, affective theory of mind (ToM) by the Reading the Mind in the eyes Test (RMET) and cognitive ToM by the Faux Pas test (FPT). Depression, anxiety, fatigue, and quality of life were also assessed. We included 38 pwMS (mean age 34.8 ± 8.7, 78.9% female sex, mean disease duration 1.9±1.3 years) and 38 healthy controls (mean age 34.9 ± 8.4, 81.6% female sex). Altered social cognition was present in 34.2% of pwMS. Participants with MS performed worse than controls on measures of cognitive ToM, and affective ToM. There were no differences regarding FER. Cognitive ToM and FER correlated with cognitive functions, but no correlation was found between affective ToM and cognitive tests. The only clinical factor associated with altered SC was poor quality of life. Social cognition impairment is already present in a significant percentage of early RRMS patients, namely ToM deficits. While cognitive ToM and FER appears to correlate with impaired cognitive results, affective ToM is likely independent of other cognitive functions.

Fast rendering of central and peripheral human visual aberrations across the entire visual field with interactive personalization

With the recent progress made in areas such as head-mounted displays and vision-correcting devices, there is a growing interest in fast and personalized algorithms for simulating aberrated human vision. Existing vision-simulating approaches are generally hindered by the lack of personalization, computational cost of rendering, and limited types of supported aberrations. This paper presents a fast vision simulation method with interactive personalization capabilities for simulating arbitrary central and peripheral aberrations of the human eye. First, we describe a novel, neural network-based solution for efficiently estimating the physical structure of the simulated eye and calculating the necessary Zernike aberration coefficients for computing the point-spread functions with varying pupil sizes, focus distances, and incidence angles. Our new approach operates in the sub-second regime and produces highly accurate outputs, facilitating the interactive personalization of vision simulation. Next, we present an improved PSF interpolation method for an existing tiled PSF splatting algorithm for rendering. The proposed algorithm significantly improves the computational performance and memory efficiency of the previous approach, allowing the simulation of peripheral vision with arbitrary visual aberrations in low-latency applications. Following the description of our new techniques, we evaluate their performance characteristics and simulation accuracies on several different eye conditions and test scenarios and compare our results to several previous vision simulation algorithms.

Theory of mind deficits in Parkinson's disease are not modulated by dopaminergic medication.

Patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) exhibit deficits in social cognition, particularly with respect to Theory of Mind (ToM) capacities. It is unclear whether they are associated with PD-related dopamine deficiency and modulated by levodopa replacement therapy. A total of 15 persons with PD and 13 healthy controls (HC) participated in the study. They performed different neuropsychological tasks, including the Faux Pas Recognition Test (FPRT), assessing different dimensions of cognitive ToM (e.g., detection, inappropriateness, intentions), and the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test (RMET) as an index of affective ToM. Persons with PD were tested twice, once under their regular treatment and another time after at least 18 h of levodopa withdrawal (MED-ON and MED-OFF, respectively). On either occasion, serum drug levels and motor symptom severity [Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS)] were measured. MED-ON and MED-OFF conditions in patients with PD were confirmed by higher serum drug levels in the former than in the latter state and a corresponding amelioration of the motor deficit. In so doing, no performance difference in any ToM-related task was identified as a function of the levodopa therapy. Generally, patients performed worse than controls in both affective and cognitive ToM tests. Patients with PD have deficits in cognitive and affective ToM. Dopamine replacement, effective for improving the motor condition, does not appear to counteract these dysfunctions.

Quercetin protects against Aspergillus fumigatus keratitis by reducing fungal load and inhibiting TLR-4 induced inflammatory response

PurposeTo investigate the antifungal and anti-inflammatory effects of quercetin in Aspergillus fumigatus (A. fumigatus) keratitis. MethodsDraize eye test was performed in mice to evaluate the toxicity of quercetin, and the antifungal effects on A. fumigatus were assessed via scanning electron microscopy (SEM), propidium iodide uptake, and adherence assay. In fungal keratitis (FK) mouse models, immunostaining was performed for investigating toll-like receptor 4 (TLR-4) expression and macrophage infiltration. Real-time PCR, ELISA, and Western blot were used to evaluate the expression of pro-inflammatory factors IL-1β, TNF-α, and IL-6 in infected RAW264.7 cells. Cells were also treated with TLR-4 siRNA or agonist CRX-527 to investigate mechanisms underlying the anti-inflammatory activity of quercetin. ResultsQuercetin at 32 μM was non-toxic to corneal epithelial and significantly inhibited A. fumigatus growth and adhesion, and also altered the structure and reduced the number of mycelia. Quercetin significantly reduced macrophage infiltration in the mouse cornea, and attenuated the expression of TLR-4 in the corneal epithelium and stroma of mice with keratitis caused by A. fumigatus. In RAW264.7 cells infected by A. fumigatus, quercetin downregulated TLR-4 along with pro-inflammatory factors IL-1β, TNF-α, and IL-6. RAW cells with TLR-4 knockdown had reduced expression of factors after A. fumigatus infection, which was decreased even further with quercetin treatment. In contrast, cells with CRX-527 had elevated inflammatory factors compared to control, which was significantly attenuated in the presence of quercetin. ConclusionQuercetin plays a protective role in mouse A. fumigatus keratitis by inhibiting fungal load, disrupting hyphae structure, macrophage infiltration, and suppressing inflammation response in macrophages via TLR-4 mediated signaling pathway.

Modifying Escherichia coli to mimic Shigella for medical microbiology laboratory teaching: a new strategy to improve biosafety in class.

Laboratory teaching of medical microbiology involves highly pathogenic microorganisms, thus posing potential biosafety risks to the students and the teacher. To address these risks, non/low-pathogenic microorganisms were modified to mimic highly pathogenic ones or highly pathogenic microorganisms were attenuated directly using the CRISPR/Cas9 technology. This study describes the modification of Escherichia coli DH5α to mimic Shigella and its evaluation as a safe alternative for medical laboratory teaching. To generate E. coli DH5α△FliC△tnaA2a, the tnaA and FliC genes in E. coli DH5α were knocked out using CRISPR/Cas9 technology; a plasmid bearing the O-antigen determinant of S. flexneri 2a was then constructed and transformed. Acid tolerance assays and guinea pig eye tests were used to assess the viability and pathogenicity, respectively. Questionnaires were used to analyze teaching effectiveness and the opinions of teachers and students. The survey revealed that most teachers and students were inclined towards real-time laboratory classes than virtual classes or observation of plastic specimens. However, many students did not abide by the safety regulations, and most encountered potential biosafety hazards in the laboratory. E. coli DH5α△FliC△tnaA2a was biochemically and antigenically analogous to S. flexneri 2a and had lower resistance to acid than E. coli. There was no toxicity observed in guinea pigs. Most of teachers and students were unable to distinguish E. coli DH5α△FliC△tnaA2a from pure S. flexneri 2a in class. Students who used E. coli DH5α△FliC△tnaA2a in their practice had similar performance in simulated examinations compared to students who used real S. flexneri 2a, but significantly higher than the virtual experimental group. This approach can be applied to other high-risk pathogenic microorganisms to reduce the potential biosafety risks in medical laboratory-based teaching and provide a new strategy for the development of experimental materials.

Theory of mind and executive dysfunction in chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy.

Although chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP) is understood as a disease affecting the peripheral nervous system, mild cognitive dysfunction, particularly in the executive domain, has been described to form part of the condition. Here our interest lay in CIDP-related theory of mind (ToM) capacities as an aspect of social cognition relevant for many aspects of everyday life. Twenty-nine patients with CIDP and 23 healthy controls participated in this study. They were subjected to overview cognitive testing, different executive function (EF) tasks, as well as to the Faux Pas Recognition Task (FPRT) for assessing cognitive ToM and the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test (RMET) with respect to affective ToM. Persons with CIDP and controls did not differ with respect to their overall cognitive state. However, in the German verbal fluency standard, the digit span forward and the digit span backward tests used as EF tasks patients performed significantly worse than controls. Further, performance was abnormally low in the FPRT, whilst the groups did not differ with respect to RMET results. The FPRT and digit span backward results correlated with each other. Patients with CIDP showed deficits in cognitive ToM performance together with EF dysfunction, whilst affective ToM was preserved. Altogether, the results suggest that low cognitive ToM capacities in patients with CIDP arise as a particular aspect of disease-related executive dysfunction.

The relationship between socio-cognitive skills and ethnic prejudice in preservice special education teachers

ABSTRACT The current cross-sectional study aimed to increase the knowledge about socio-cognitive skills of preservice special education teachers that may affect their ethnic prejudices. In particular, the purpose of the study was to analyze the mediating role of empathy dimensions in the relationship between affective theory of mind and blatant and subtle prejudices. Participants included 531 Italian preservice special education teachers (76.4% females and 22.4% males), with an average age of 34.79 (SD = 6.10). Data were collected during the 2020–2021 academic year and all participants were administered, via the Google Form, the Reading the Mind in the Eyes test, Interpersonal Reactivity Index, and Subtle and Blatant Prejudice Scale. Path analysis showed that perspective taking and empathic concern play mediating roles in the relationship between the ability to infer people’s feelings and blatant and subtle prejudices. In addition, direct relations from affective theory of mind to ethnic prejudice and from empathic abilities to ethnic prejudice were found. These findings suggest that affective theory of mind and empathy are two cognitive-social skills involved in the expression of prejudice. The limitations and implications of the study were discussed.

Emotion dysregulation and social communication problems but not ToM properties may predict obsessive-compulsive disorder symptom severity

Objective Studies have shown that theory of mind, emotion regulation and pragmatic abilities are negatively affected in people with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). We aimed to investigate theory of mind (ToM) abilities, social responsiveness, pragmatic language, and emotion regulation skills in children with OCD and to compare them to healthy controls. Methods This study was designed as a single-center, cross-sectional, case-control study. ToM abilities were evaluated via “Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test” (RMET), “Faces Test”, “Faux-Pas Test”, “Comprehension Test” and “Unexpected Outcomes Test”. Social responsiveness, pragmatic language and emotion regulation were evaluated by Social Responsiveness Scale (SRS), Children’s Communication Checklist- Second Edition (CCC-2), Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS) and Children’s Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale (CY-BOCS). Within the study period, we enrolled 85 adolescents (42 with OCD and 43 controls). Results The OCD group performed significantly lower than healthy controls in the Faux Pass and Comprehension tests (p = 0.003 for both). We found a statistically significant difference between groups in terms of the goal, strategy, non-acceptance subscales of the DERS (p < 0.001, p = 0.006, p = 0.008, respectively) as well as the total DERS score (p < 0.001). CY-BOCS total scores correlated significantly and negatively with Comprehension, Faux Pas and Unexpected Outcomes tests, and positively with CCC total, SRS total and DERS total scores. In regression analysis the DERS, SRS and CCC tests emerged as significant predictors of CY-BOCS total score. Conclusion Addressing ToM, pragmatic, and ER difficulties when planning the treatment of young people with OCD may contribute to positive outcomes.

The Key Role of Empathy in the Relationship between Age and Social Support.

Aging involves several changes depending on genetic and behavioral factors, such as lifestyle and the number and quality of social relationships, which in turn can be influenced by empathy. Here, the change in the perceived social support across the lifespan as a function of empathy was investigated, considering the mediating role of empathy after controlling for gender and education. In total, 441 people (18-91 years old) filled in the Italian short version of the Interpersonal Support Evaluation List (ISEL-12), the Social Support Questionnaire (SSQ6), as well as the Empathy Questionnaire (EQ), and the Reading the Mind in the Eyes test (RMET). The mediation analyses with ISEL-12 showed that age and the EQ fully mediated the relationship between age and appraisal, belonging, and tangible scores. Further, the EQ fully mediated only the relationship between age and SSQ6-People. These results showed that empathic skills are key in the relationships between age and social support. This suggests that empathy can trigger social support and, ultimately, well-being if stimulated across the lifespan, especially from a young age; this would help to form the socio-emotional competence across the years as a sort of cushion that can be useful in the older to fulfill active aging.

Contrasting social knowledge and theory of mind patterns in adults with personality disorders, schizophrenia spectrum disorders, and healthy controls

ABSTRACT Introduction Personality disorders (PD) and schizophrenia spectrum disorders (SSD) are distinct conditions displaying common symptoms, like impairments in social cognition, that make them hard to distinguish, especially in severe cases. To date, few studies have compared theory of mind skills in these two disorders, and none have compared social knowledge skills. This study aims to compare the social cognitive abilities of patients with these conditions. Method Non-parametric analyses of covariance were used to compare severe PD patients (n = 37), SSD patients (n = 44), and healthy controls (HC; n = 49) on the Social Knowledge Test and two measures of theory of mind: the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test and the Combined Stories Test, which incorporates items from various widely used tests. Results While no significant group differences were found on the Social Knowledge Test, SSD patients performed lower than the HC group on both theory of mind tests. PD patients only had lower performance than the HC group on specific items from the Combined Stories Test. Conclusions PD and SSD patients demonstrated distinctive patterns of social cognitive impairments, with items of greater complexity or with an affective orientation being the most discriminant for PD.

Social cognition and psychosocial functioning in schizophrenia and bipolar disorder: Theory of mind as a key to understand schizophrenia dysfunction

Functional impairment is a common symptom in schizophrenia (SZ) and bipolar disorder (BD). Pharmacological treatments have limited functional recovery in both disorders. Social cognition, a cognitive process, has been associated with functioning in mental disorders. Theory of mind (ToM) is considered a key factor in understanding the social cognitive deficits in SZ and BD. Our study aimed to investigate the relationship between ToM and functioning in SZ, BD, and healthy controls (HC) and compare ToM and functioning impairments between groups. A total of 208 participants (HC n = 69; BD n = 89; SZ n = 50) were evaluated with the Functioning Assessment Short Test (FAST), Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test (RMET), the Vocabulary subtest of the Wechsler Abbreviated Scale for Intelligence (WASI) and the Hopkins Verbal Learning Test - Revised (HVLT-R). Comparisons of RMET between low- and high-functioning individuals and multiple linear regression analyses were conducted for each group. Multiple regression analysis revealed that the association between ToM and psychosocial functioning was observed only in SZ (β = –1.352, p = 0.008). Low-functioning SZ participants showed a lower ToM performance compared to participants with high-functioning SZ (t = 1.80, p = 0.039, Cohen's d = 0.938). No significant associations were found in the other groups. ToM is essential to understand the functional impairment in SZ, more than in BD. Furthermore, ToM may be a primary target for intervention strategies in improving functioning in SZ.

Executive Functions and Theory of Mind in Teachers and Non-Teachers

Human teaching is a key behavior for the socialization of cultural knowledge. Previous studies suggest that human teaching behavior would support the development of executive and ToM skills, which in turn would refine the teaching behavior. Given this connection, it raises the question of whether subjects with professional training in teaching also have more efficient executive and ToM systems. To shed light on this issue, in the present study we compared the performance of professional teachers (N = 20, age range = 35–61 years) with a matched control group of non-teachers (N = 20, age range: 29–64 years) on tasks measuring working memory (Sternberg Task), cognitive flexibility (Wisconsin Card Sorting Test), executive control (Attention Network Test), along with online ToM skills (Frith–Happé Animations Task), emotion recognition (Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test) and first-order and second-order ToM (Yoni Task). We found that teachers were significantly more accurate on tasks involving cognitive flexibility (p = .014) and working memory (p = .040), and more efficient on tasks requiring executive control of attention (p = .046), compared to non-teachers. In ToM tasks, differences in accuracy between teachers and non-teachers were not found. But, teachers were slower to respond than non-teachers (about 2 s difference) on tasks involving emotion recognition (p = .0007) and the use of second-order affective ToM (p = .006). Collectively, our findings raise an interesting link between professional teaching and the development of cognitive skills critical for decision-making in challenging social contexts such as the classroom. Future research could explore ways to foster teachers' strengths in cognitive flexibility, working memory, and executive control of attention to enhance teaching strategies and student learning outcomes. Additionally, exploring factors behind slower response times in affective ToM tasks can guide teacher-training programs focused on interpersonal skills and improve teacher-student interactions.

Valence in the eyes: An emotion decoding profile of adults with major depressive disorder and a history of childhood maltreatment.

Individuals with major depressive disorder (MDD) and childhood maltreatment have been proposed to constitute a subgroup with worse illness course and outcomes. To elucidate a potential social cognitive vulnerability in this subgroup, this study compared the emotion decoding abilities of MDD patients with and without a history of childhood maltreatment. Participants with a diagnosis of MDD were recruited from nationwide mental health organizations. Emotion decoding abilities were assessed using the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test, while childhood maltreatment was measured with the Adverse Childhood Experiences Questionnaire. The MDD patients with a history of childhood maltreatment exhibited poorer emotion decoding abilities than MDD patients without such past. This difference applied specifically to the decoding of positive and negative emotions, while no group differences emerged for the decoding of neutral emotions. When specific maltreatment types were considered as predictors only emotional neglect was associated with lower emotion decoding abilities. These associations remained when adjusting for demographic and clinical covariates. By indicating that emotion decoding difficulties characterize the MDD subgroup with childhood maltreatment, the findings highlight a potential vulnerability that merits further examination in terms of its developmental antecedents and prognostic relevance.

Triphenylamine-based chemosensor and its application in rapid naked eye detection, test strips, bioimaging and complete removal of Hg2+ from water samples

A new, sensitive and highly selective chemosensor (N, N-diphenyl-4-(E)-(E)-thiophen-2-ylmethylene)hydrazono)methyl) aniline (TPA-SB) for Hg2+ was designed and synthesised by combining the triphenylamine motif and thiophene group. The TPA-SB exhibited a remarkable colour change from light yellow to reddish-orange with Hg2+, which was visible to the naked eye. The detection limit of Hg2+ was 0.27 nM. We fabricated a TPA-SB-coated paper sensor to detect Hg2+ rapidly, with excellent selectivity and sensitivity. Adding KI to TPA-SB-Hg2+ recovered the colour and retained the probe TPA-SB as a reversible sensor for real-time applications in solution and paper matrix. Further, we developed a solid-supported adsorbent (TPA-SB-SiO2) and utilised it for the complete removal (100%) of Hg2+ ions from the mercury-contaminated water. Based on the NMR titration, ESI – MS, Job’s plot and DFT study, probable binding mode and biding ratio (1:1) of TPA-SB with Hg2+ have been proposed. Importantly, we can apply the present sensing system for recognising Hg2+ ions in Escherichia coli cells.

HUBUNGAN KOORDINASI MATA-KAKI DAN KELINCAHAN DENGAN KEMAMPUAN DRIBLING PEMAIN SEPAK BOLA SSB GUNUNG TUNGGAL TARAM KECAMATAN HARAU 50 KOTA

ABSTRACT&#x0D; The problem in this study is that the players' dribbling skills are still not good, it is suspected that it is caused by internal factors, namely the players' physical condition. These physical condition factors include agility, balance, leg muscle strength, leg muscle explosive power, eye-foot coordination, foot contact with the ball and so on. Researchers suspect that the physical condition factor that is considered the most dominant has a relationship and influences the dribbling ability variable, namely eye-foot coordination and player agility. This study aims to reveal the causes of the problems that led to a decline in achievement for the Gunung Tunggal FC Football School (SSB) players, Harau District, 50 Kota District.&#x0D; The purpose of this study was to determine the ability level of speed and ankle coordination on dribbling abilities in Gunung Tunggal FC Football School (SSB) players, Harau District, 50 Kota District. The data collection method uses a test survey method. The data obtained were analyzed using quantitative descriptive statistical analysis. The population of this study were students of the Football School (SSB) Gunung Tunggal FC,&#x0D; Harau District, 50 Kota District. The sampling technique was purposive sampling, namely 26 SSB players. Data collection was carried out by measuring agility variables using the Illinois Agility Run Test, eye and foot coordination tests using the Eye-Foot Coordination Test/kicking the ball to a specified target and dribbling tests using the Dribbling Test.&#x0D; Data processing using multiple correlation There is a significant relationship between agility and Dribbling ability tcount 9.78 &gt; t table 1.72 and r = 0.89. There is a significant relationship between eye and foot coordination on Dribbling ability, the results of calculating t count 5.79 &gt; t table 1.72 and r = 0.76. Agility and Coordination of the eyes and feet on Dribbling ability From the results of data analysis obtained Fcount 10.78 &gt; Ftable, there is a significant relationship between Agility and Coordination of Eyes and Feet together with Dribbling with Rcount = 1.46&#x0D; &#x0D; &#x0D; Keyword : Agility, Ankle, Dribble, Soccer

Lived Reality of Retinopathy of Prematurity Eye Examinations: A Study Protocol for the Exploratory Qualitative Study With Whānau Māori

Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) is an eye condition that predominately affects preterm infants born less than 30+6 weeks gestational age and/or with a birthweight less than 1250 g. If left untreated ROP can result in permanent blindness, and early detection with regular eye examinations and appropriate treatment can prevent this outcome. The necessary eye tests can be invasive for the infant and leave whānau (extended family) feeling distressed and anxious, which is often why whānau are encouraged to leave the room while the eye examination takes place. This research will explore the lived experiences of whānau Māori during the eye tests in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). Hui (focus groups/interviews) have been chosen in different locations to obtain diverse whānau Māori lived experiences. During the hui, relationships will be established and in-depth discussions will occur. By carrying out this research, a Māori perspective of the ROP eye test and surrounding protocols will be gained as well as insight into how the experience can be optimised for whānau Māori.

Clinical features of Sudanese patients presenting with binocular vision anomalies: A hospital-based study.

Binocular vision anomalies are major causes of asthenopia symptoms, particularly among the younger population. This study aimed to report the clinical characteristics of Sudanese patients with binocular disorders who attended the orthoptic clinic at Al-Neelain Eye Hospital. In this retrospective hospital-based study, we analyzed data from 304 patients with binocular vision anomalies who visited the orthoptic clinic between October 2020 and June 2021. We collected information on demographics, symptoms, and eye tests such as visual acuity (VA), refractive error (RE), angle of deviation, and the assessment of fusional vergence. Our findings indicated that exophoria was the most common binocular vision anomaly, affecting 79.8% of males and 71.6% of females (p=0.731). Children between 6 and 17 years old showed the highest prevalence of exophoria (75.9%) (p=0.0001). Among patients with exophoria, 100% reported itching associated with tearing during fixation, while 89.5% experienced difficulty in fixation. Refractive error varied by the type of binocular vision disorders (p=0.0001), with higher hyperopia observed in cases of unilateral esotropia and alternate esotropia (+3.571±1.238 D and +3.023±1.553 D, respectively). Positive fusional vergence (PFV) differed by types of binocular vision disorders (p=0.0001) with high PFV in esophoria (18.063±6.848∆) compared to low PFV in exophoria (12.80±5.313∆). The most common types of exophoria were convergence weakness exophoria (45.39%), followed by convergence insufficiency (20.39%). The study concluded that exophoria was the most common binocular vision anomaly among Sudanese patients, with convergence weakness and convergence insufficiency being the predominant anomalies. Headache was commonly prevalent among patients with binocular vision problems. Higher hyperopia was found in esodeviation, while low PFV was associated with exodeviation.