Ocular Causes Research Articles

Causes of Blindness at Jordan University Hospital

During the academic year 1982/83 a programmed study was conducted on 5,000 consecutive cases examined at the outpatient department. A complete eye examination was performed, and statistical analysis was done Although this study cannot be considered as representative of Jordan, it does give us some insight into the problem of ocular diseases and causes of blindness in Jordan.

The ocular pulse and intraocular pressure as a screening test for carotid artery stenosis.

The ocular pulse and applanation tension were measured with a recording applanation tonometer in 38 patients suspected of having internal carotid artery stenosis. Abnormalities of the ocular pulse amplitude, intraocular pressure, or combinations of these two measurements were found in 23 (82%) of 28 patients who were subsequently found to have angiographic evidence of 50% or more stenosis of one or both internal carotid arteries. Of 10 patients without angiographic evidence of carotid stenosis the ocular pulse amplitude, intraocular pressure, or both were abnormal in five, but two patients had an ocular cause for abnormality and two of the remaining three had evidence of carotid disease in the form of atheromatous plaques. These results suggest that measurement of the amplitude of the ocular pulse in addition to the intraocular pressure can predict the presence of carotid artery stenosis and indicate the need for further investigation. If a tonometer capable of measuring the pulse amplitude was used routinely in ophthalmic examinations, it would provide a useful screening test for the early diagnosis and treatment of carotid artery disease and might thereby reduce the frequency of strokes.

A performance test to accompany ophthalmic examination in the young school age child: the "draw a bicycle" test.

A performance test is proposed as an addition to the routine eye examination of the child performing poorly in school. Performance on the "draw a bicycle test" has a strong correlation with academic performance among children in grades one through three. Poor performance on the "draw a bicycle test" by children who have otherwise normal eye findings implicates a non ocular cause for the poor academic performance. Since the results of this simple test are immediately visible and readily understood by an attending parent, the ophthalmologist's role in counseling the parents against further ocular investigation and therapy is apparent.

Chin up and Chin down Head Positions

This section of the symposium on abnormal head position reviews the ocular causes of the chin up and chin down head positions. The conditions discussed are Double Elevator Palsy, Thyroid Myopathy, ...

Cystoid Macular Edema Occurring 13 Years after Cataract Extraction

Thirteen years after cataract extraction, a patient complained of diminished visual acuity. In the interim visual acuity was 6/6 (20/20), or 6/7.5 (20/25+2). Fluorescein angiography demonstrated cystoid macular edema. Except for vitreous adherence to the inner surface of the cataract wound, no ocular cause for the macular edema was apparent.

Dizziness and Vertigo, Diagnosis and Treatment.

This monograph contains contributions from 21 authors covering the anatomy, physiology, history, examination techniques, clinical syndromes, and treatment of dizziness and vertigo. The contributors were given free rein to express a searching, even partison to their subjects. This approach makes critical reviewing difficult and time-consuming since the reader must act as his own editor and maintain a vigilance for facts versus fiction and prejudice. There is a six page chapter on the ocular causes of vertigo. The author states there is no truly ocular and then goes on to redefine vertigo as an unsteadiness or disorientation caused by a conflict in the data gathered by the eyes, the labyrinth, and the proprioceptive receptors. These symptoms are produced, according to the author, by extraocular muscle paralysis, uncomfortable spectacles, great heights, and travel. However, he does not define unsteadiness or disorientation. By unsteadiness he does not mean ataxia and by

Progression of defects in visual fields produced by hyaline bodies in optic disks.

The types of defects in the visual field produced by drusen in the optic papilla are well known.^1-3However, only a paucity of references relate to the changes in the visual fields on succeeding examinations of patients having these hyaline masses.⁴We wish to report on 14 cases encountered at the Mayo Clinic in which one or more examinations of the visual fields were conducted at periods of 6 months to 24 years after the initial examination. <h3>Report of Cases</h3><h3>Case 1.</h3> —A 46-year-old woman registered at the clinic in 1925 with the complaint of headaches. Evaluation in the Section of Ophthalmology failed to uncover any ocular cause for the headaches. She related that the left eye always had been "poor" and that during childhood "it turned in." Visual acuity, with correction, was 20/200 with the right eye and 20/400 with the left eye. Hyperopia and astigmatism measured