PURPOSE: To evaluate the outcomes of inferior oblique (IO) weakening surgery, whether recession or myectomy, and to assess the dose-response relationship and correlation with angle of preoperative hypertropia. METHODS: The medical records of all patients with vertical deviation in primary gaze who underwent unilateral IO-weakening surgery, either recession or myectomy, at Boston Children's Hospital over an 8-year period with a minimum postoperative follow-up of 1 month were reviewed retrospectively. Outcome measures were effect of IO weakening surgery on vertical deviation in primary gaze and its correlation with the preoperative angle of hyperdeviation. Secondary outcomes included resolution of abnormal head posture, reduction of ocular torsion, and postoperative under- and overcorrection RESULTS: A total of 94 patients were identified (mean age at surgery, 29.3 ± 19.8 years; range, 1-69). The mean postoperative follow-up period was 17.2 ± 15 months. IO recession was performed in 30 patients; IO myectomy, in 64. Surgical success in primary position was achieved in 72 patients (77%), with resolution of anomalous preoperative head posture in 93%. The mean effect on alignment in primary position was 11.3 ± 6.8. The response to IO-weakening surgery was strongly correlated with the preoperative hyperdeviation for both recession (R = 0.53) and myectomy (R = 0.87). CONCLUSIONS: As with other types of strabismus surgery, IO weakening has a "self-grading" contribution, in which the surgical effect strongly correlates with the magnitude of preoperative deviation. A large range of vertical misalignment can be corrected with the same surgical approach.

Importance: Corneal endothelial cell (CEnC) damage and loss are major issues in eye banking and transplantation. The underlying mechanisms for CEnC loss are incompletely understood, and cytoprotective strategies that enhance CEnC viability could have a major effect on donor tissue quality and graft survival. Objective: To investigate the cytoprotective role of neuropeptide α-melanocyte-stimulating hormone (α-MSH) in preventing CEnC loss in eye bank cold-stored corneas under oxidative and inflammatory cytokine-induced stress. Design, Setting, and Participants: This single-center comparative research study conducted ex vivo experiments using 16 pairs of research-grade human donor corneas (courtesy of Eversight Eye Bank). Data were collected from June 2018 to November 2019, and data were analyzed from December 2019 to January 2020. Exposures: Two corneas from the same donor were randomized to either control or 0.1 mmol/L of α-MSH treatment and then subjected to oxidative stress (1.4 mmol/L of hydrogen peroxide-phosphate-buffered saline for 15 minutes at 37 °C; n = 8 pairs) or cytokine-induced stress (100 ng/mL of tumor necrosis factor-α and 100 ng/mL of interferon γ for 18 hours at 37 °C; n = 8 pairs). Corneas were then stored at 4 °C. Specular images were taken at baseline and repeated twice per week using a calibrated wide-field specular microscope. CEnC viability was assessed using a fluorescent live/dead viability assay. Main Outcome and Measures: Endothelial morphometry analysis, central corneal thickness measurements, and percentage of dead cells at day 11. Results: Of 16 donors who provided corneas, 9 (56%) were male, and the mean (SD) age was 57.9 (12.4) years. Corneas were paired, and baseline parameters were comparable between all groups. At all time points, CEnC loss was lower in the α-MSH groups compared with the control groups. This difference was statistically significant after cytokine-induced stress (20.2% vs 35.2%; sample estimate of median, -14.9; 95% CI, -23.6 to -6.3; P = .008). Compared with the control group, α-MSH treatment resulted in a smaller increase in central corneal thickness (cytokine-induced stress: 89.3 μm vs 169.8 μm; sample estimate of median, -84.9; 95% CI, -131.5 to -41.6; P = .008; oxidative stress: 43.6 μm vs 111.9 μm; sample estimate of median, -68.8; 95% CI, -100.0 to -34.5; P = .008) and a smaller proportion of cell death (cytokine-induced stress: 2.7% vs 10.4%; difference, -7.7; 95% CI, -13.1 to -2.4; P = .01; oxidative stress: 2.9% vs 12.4%; difference, 9.5; 95% CI, 5.1 to 13.9; P = .006). Conclusions and Relevance: In this study, α-MSH treatment attenuated CEnC loss during cold storage after acute oxidative and cytokine-induced stress in human eye bank cold-stored corneas. These data suggest that supplementation of corneal storage solution with α-MSH may positively affect CEnC survival after transplant and protect the endothelium from proinflammatory cytokines and oxidative stress after full-thickness or endothelial keratoplasty, which is particularly valuable in patients at high risk of graft failure.

The current severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic has had an enormous impact on society worldwide, threatening the lives and livelihoods of many. The effects will continue to grow and worsen if economies begin to open without the proper precautions, including expanded diagnostic capabilities. To address this need for increased testing, we have developed a sensitive reverse-transcription loop-mediated isothermal amplification (RT-LAMP) assay compatible with current reagents, which utilizes a colorimetric readout in as little as 30 min. A rapid inactivation protocol capable of inactivating virions, as well as endogenous nucleases, was optimized to increase sensitivity and sample stability. This protocol, combined with the RT-LAMP assay, has a sensitivity of at least 50 viral RNA copies per microliter in a sample. To further increase the sensitivity, a purification protocol compatible with this inactivation method was developed. The inactivation and purification protocol, combined with the RT-LAMP assay, brings the sensitivity to at least 1 viral RNA copy per microliter in a sample. This simple inactivation and purification pipeline is inexpensive and compatible with other downstream RNA detection platforms and uses readily available reagents. It should increase the availability of SARS-CoV-2 testing as well as expand the settings in which this testing can be performed.

Purpose: Early detection and treatment of age-related macular degeneration require a clear understanding of the early progress of the disease. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether minimal macular ophthalmoscopic changes corresponded to changes in visual function. Methods: Color macular photos from a group of older subjects who were classified as grade 0 on AREDS simplified grading were further evaluated by a retinal specialist using 5x magnification for possible minimal macular anomalies. Group 0-A ( = 15) were defined as subjects with no visible macular anomalies while Group 0-B ( = 19) comprised subjects for whom minimal macular mottling, pigment changes or very small drusen (< 63 µm) were observed in the study eye. All subjects had best VA of 20/25 or better and had no evidence of other retinal diseases in the study eye. All subjects underwent a series of visual function tests such as standard ETDRS VA, low luminance ETDRS VA, Pelli-Robson contrast sensitivity, variable contrast flicker (VCF) sensitivity, and reading speed (words per minute, wpm) using both MNRead and low luminance reading on a tablet. Results: There was no significant difference between the mean age between the two groups (74.8 ± 5.2 years for 0-A vs 74.5 ± 4.4 for 0-B, = 0.82). None of the visual function tests identified any significant difference between the two groups. Mean ETDRS VA was 0.0 ± 0.11 for 0-A subjects and 0.08 ± 0.12 for 0-B ( = 0.063). Mean Pelli-Robson log contrast sensitivity was 1.75 ± 0.29 for 0-A and 1.78 ± 0.17 for the 0-B group ( = 0.73). VCF threshold was 0.47 ± 0.25 for 0-A and 0.43 ± 0.22 for 0-B ( = 0.64). Reading speed using MNRead was 214 ± 47.4 wpm for 0-A and 210 ± 64.7 for 0-B ( = 0.85). Low luminance tablet reading speed was 137 ± 71.8 wpm for 0-A and 151 ± 39.4 (0-B) ( = 0.49). Conclusion: A panel of psychophysical tests did not demonstrate significant differences between subjects with and without minimal macular changes.

PRECIS: In open-angle glaucoma, when neuroretinal rim tissue measured by volumetric optical coherence tomography (OCT) scans is below a third of the normal value, visual field (VF) damage becomes detectable. PURPOSE: To determine the amount of neuroretinal rim tissue thickness below which VF damage becomes detectable. METHODS: In a retrospective cross-sectional study, 1 eye per subject (of 57 healthy and 100 open-angle glaucoma patients) at an academic institution had eye examinations, VF testing, spectral-domain OCT retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) thickness measurements, and optic nerve volumetric scans. Using custom algorithms, the minimum distance band (MDB) neuroretinal rim thickness was calculated from optic nerve scans. "Broken-stick" regression was performed for estimating both the MDB and RNFL thickness tipping-point thresholds, below which were associated with initial VF defects in the decibel scale. The slopes for the structure-function relationship above and below the thresholds were computed. Smoothing curves of the MDB and RNFL thickness covariates were evaluated to examine the consistency of the independently identified tipping-point pairs. RESULTS: Plots of VF total deviation against MDB thickness revealed plateaus of VF total deviation unrelated to MDB thickness. Below the thresholds, VF total deviation decreased with MDB thickness, with the associated slopes significantly greater than those above the thresholds (P<0.014). Below 31% of global MDB thickness, and 36.8% and 43.6% of superior and inferior MDB thickness, VF damage becomes detectable. The MDB and RNFL tipping points were in good accordance with the correlation of the MDB and RNFL thickness covariates. CONCLUSIONS: When neuroretinal rim tissue, characterized by MDB thickness in OCT, is below a third of the normal value, VF damage in the decibel scale becomes detectable.

PURPOSE: To develop an artificial intelligence (AI) dashboard for monitoring glaucomatous functional loss. DESIGN: Retrospective, cross-sectional, longitudinal cohort study. PARTICIPANTS: Of 31 591 visual fields (VFs) on 8077 subjects, 13 231 VFs from the most recent visit of each patient were included to develop the AI dashboard. Longitudinal VFs from 287 eyes with glaucoma were used to validate the models. METHOD: We entered VF data from the most recent visit of glaucomatous and nonglaucomatous patients into a "pipeline" that included principal component analysis (PCA), manifold learning, and unsupervised clustering to identify eyes with similar global, hemifield, and local patterns of VF loss. We visualized the results on a map, which we refer to as an "AI-enabled glaucoma dashboard." We used density-based clustering and the VF decomposition method called "archetypal analysis" to annotate the dashboard. Finally, we used 2 separate benchmark datasets-one representing "likely nonprogression" and the other representing "likely progression"-to validate the dashboard and assess its ability to portray functional change over time in glaucoma. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The severity and extent of functional loss and characteristic patterns of VF loss in patients with glaucoma. RESULTS: After building the dashboard, we identified 32 nonoverlapping clusters. Each cluster on the dashboard corresponded to a particular global functional severity, an extent of VF loss into different hemifields, and characteristic local patterns of VF loss. By using 2 independent benchmark datasets and a definition of stability as trajectories not passing through over 2 clusters in a left or downward direction, the specificity for detecting "likely nonprogression" was 94% and the sensitivity for detecting "likely progression" was 77%. CONCLUSIONS: The AI-enabled glaucoma dashboard, developed using a large VF dataset containing a broad spectrum of visual deficit types, has the potential to provide clinicians with a user-friendly tool for determination of the severity of glaucomatous vision deficit, the spatial extent of the damage, and a means for monitoring the disease progression.

Cyclodestruction aims to reduce aqueous humor production through the coagulation or destruction of the ciliary body and has been an important treatment choice for glaucoma since the 1930s. The purpose of the current review is to highlight the evidence regarding the safety and efficacy of various cyclodestructive modalities, emphasizing peer-reviewed articles from the last 20 years and the most common variants of these procedures. The review focuses primarily on the two most common variants of transscleral cyclophotocoagulation (TS-CPC), continuous-wave diode cyclophotocoagulation (CW-TSCPC) and MicroPulse diode cyclophotocoagulation (MP-TSCPC) as well as endoscopic cyclophotocoagulation (ECP) and high-intensity focused ultrasound cyclodestruction (HIFU). We believe that the role of cyclodestruction in glaucoma treatment will only continue to expand given the advances in the field, particular with regards to targeted ciliary body destruction and improvement in the safety profile.

Intraocular inflammation in patients with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection is commonly due to infectious uveitis. Ocular lesions due to opportunistic infections (OI) are the most common and have been described extensively in the pre highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) era. Many eye lesions were classified as acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) defining illnesses. HAART-associated improvement in immunity of the individual has changed the pattern of incidence of these hitherto reported known lesions leading to a marked reduction in the occurrence of ocular OI. Newer ocular lesions and newer ocular manifestations of known agents have been noted. Immune recovery uveitis (IRU), the new menace, which occurs as part of immune recovery inflammatory syndrome (IRIS) in the eye, can present with significant ocular inflammation and can pose a diagnostic and therapeutic challenge. Balancing the treatment of inflammation with the risk of reactivation of OI is a task by itself. Ocular involvement in the HAART era can be due to the adverse effects of some systemic drugs used in the management of HIV/AIDS. Drug-associated retinal toxicity and other ocular side effects are being increasingly reported. In this review, we discuss the ocular manifestations in HIV patients and its varied presentations following the introduction of HAART, drug-associated lesions, and the current treatment guidelines.

PURPOSE: Since the original description of "dacryadenoma" by Jakobiec and associates, the data on this unusual epibulbar lacrimal gland lesion remain sparse. The aim of this study was to characterize clinically, morphologically, and immunohistochemically this isolated epibulbar lacrimal gland lesion. DESIGN: Retrospective observational case series. METHODS: Institutional pathology records between 2000 and 2019 were searched for all cases of isolated epibulbar lacrimal gland lesions. Tissue from 3 normal lacrimal glands and 1 complex choristoma were included for comparative analysis. Clinical, histopathologic, and immunohistochemical findings were recorded. RESULTS: Four patients with isolated epibulbar lacrimal gland lesions, 2 male and 2 female, with a median age of 18 years (range, 12-57) were identified. All patients presented with recent onset of unilateral pink-to-orange, well-circumscribed subepithelial juxtaforniceal (3/4, 75%), or nasal (1/4, 25%) bulbar conjunctival nodules, which were asymptomatic (3/4, 75%) or associated with foreign body sensation (1/4, 25%). When compared with the normal lacrimal gland and complex choristoma, all isolated epibulbar lacrimal gland lesions were composed predominantly of variably dilated, branching tubular structures with pseudo-apocrine snouts, and either totally absent (2/2, 50%) or rare (2/2, 50%) ducts and rare acinar zymogen granules (3/4, 75%). CONCLUSION: Our study confirms that a subset of isolated epibulbar lacrimal gland lesions differs morphologically and immunohistochemically from normal lacrimal gland tissue and the lacrimal gland in a complex choristoma. These differences range from subtle to overt, suggesting that isolated epibulbar lacrimal gland lesions may have originated from precursor cellular elements indigenous to the conjunctiva (hamartia) and grew into disorganized lacrimal gland tissue.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Artificial intelligence has already provided multiple clinically relevant applications in ophthalmology. Yet, the explosion of nonstandardized reporting of high-performing algorithms are rendered useless without robust and streamlined implementation guidelines. The development of protocols and checklists will accelerate the translation of research publications to impact on patient care. RECENT FINDINGS: Beyond technological scepticism, we lack uniformity in analysing algorithmic performance generalizability, and benchmarking impacts across clinical settings. No regulatory guardrails have been set to minimize bias or optimize interpretability; no consensus clinical acceptability thresholds or systematized postdeployment monitoring has been set. Moreover, stakeholders with misaligned incentives deepen the landscape complexity especially when it comes to the requisite data integration and harmonization to advance the field. Therefore, despite increasing algorithmic accuracy and commoditization, the infamous 'implementation gap' persists. Open clinical data repositories have been shown to rapidly accelerate research, minimize redundancies and disseminate the expertise and knowledge required to overcome existing barriers. Drawing upon the longstanding success of existing governance frameworks and robust data use and sharing agreements, the ophthalmic community has tremendous opportunity in ushering artificial intelligence into medicine. By collaboratively building a powerful resource of open, anonymized multimodal ophthalmic data, the next generation of clinicians can advance data-driven eye care in unprecedented ways. SUMMARY: This piece demonstrates that with readily accessible data, immense progress can be achieved clinically and methodologically to realize artificial intelligence's impact on clinical care. Exponentially progressive network effects can be seen by consolidating, curating and distributing data amongst both clinicians and data scientists.