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Biomedical subjects

M McKibbin

Publications and source records attributed to M McKibbin.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

The incidence of visual impairment due to diabetic retinopathy in Leeds.

AIM: A key aim of the photographic screening model for diabetic retinopathy advocated by the National Screening Committee is a reduction in new blindness due to diabetic retinopathy within 5 years. This study determines the incidence of visual impairment due to diabetic retinopathy in Leeds in 2002 and provides a benchmark against which the success of the retinopathy screening programme in Leeds will be judged. METHODS: A retrospective review of all blind and partially sighted registrations for 2002 was conducted. The 2001 Census data and the diabetes prevalence model developed by the Yorkshire and Humber Public Health Observatory were used to determine the total and diabetic populations of Leeds. RESULTS: Diabetic retinopathy was the primary cause of registration in 24 of the 398 completed records obtained; seven patients were registered blind and 17 partially sighted. For the total population in 2002, the incidence of blind and partially sighted registration due to diabetic retinopathy was 10 per million and 24 per million per year, respectively. For the diabetic population of Leeds in 2002, the incidence of blind and partial sighted registration due to diabetic retinopathy was 337 and 817 per million per year, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The incidence of blind registration due to diabetic retinopathy in Leeds in 2002 is similar to the estimate provided by the National Screening Committee but higher than the figure from other UK centres.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2004

Is screening for interferon retinopathy in hepatitis C justified?

BACKGROUND/AIM: In the treatment of hepatitis C, the National Institute for Clinical Excellence advocates use of a combination of interferon alfa and ribavirin for selected patients. Retinopathy is a well recognised side effect of interferon therapy and is characterised by retinal haemorrhages, cotton wool spots, and macular oedema. The aim of this study was to document the incidence and natural history of the retinopathy in patients treated with a long acting (pegylated) interferon and ribavirin for hepatitis C and to assess the need to screen for retinal complications. METHODS: All patients started on treatment from September 2002 to August 2003 were invited to participate in the study. The past medical and ocular history, visual symptoms, and the results of a full ophthalmological assessment performed 3 months after starting treatment were noted. Any patient with retinal changes was followed up at 3 month intervals until the changes resolved. RESULTS: Of the 25 patients examined, four had evidence of retinopathy including deep retinal haemorrhage and cotton wool spots. Two of the patients were diabetic and one hypertensive. None had any visual symptoms and in all four the retinopathy resolved while the patients completed their course of treatment. CONCLUSIONS: The incidence of retinopathy with pegylated interferon is low. The retinal complications resolve while treatment is continued and are asymptomatic. This study does not support routine screening for retinopathy in patients treated with pegylated interferon and ribavirin for hepatitis C.

Adult↗
PubMed2003

The prevalence of ocular disease in chronic lymphocytic leukaemia.

AIM: Previous surveys of ocular disease in leukaemia patients have shown the retina, choroid, and orbit as the most commonly involved sites. Depending on the type of leukaemia and the study design, the prevalence of ocular disease in leukaemia varies from 30 to 90%. Although chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (CLL) is the most common leukaemia in Western countries, the prevalence of ocular disease in CLL is not known. The aim of this prospective study was to estimate the prevalence of ocular disease in CLL. PATIENTS AND METHODS: All CLL patients attending either a teaching or district general hospital haematology clinic were invited to undergo a full eye examination. The clinical stage of the CLL (Binet) at the time of the eye examination and the most recent full blood count (FBC) indices were recorded for each patient. RESULTS: Over 6 months, 25 patients with an average age of 65 were recruited. A total of 18 patients had Binet stage A disease, three had stage B, and four stage C. The mean FBC indices at the time of examination were haemoglobin 13.5 g/dl, white cell count 37.4 x 10(9)/l, and platelets 172 x 10(9)/l. Only three patients (12%) had ocular disease that was likely to be a secondary complication of CLL. These secondary complications included bilateral posterior subcapsular cataract following radiotherapy, unilateral acute retinal necrosis, and unilateral conjunctival vascular anomalies. The presence of ocular complications was not related to the CLL stage or to the current FBC parameters. DISCUSSION: This study demonstrates that ocular involvement in CLL is uncommon, a reflection of the indolent course of CLL as compared to other leukaemias. Although sight-threatening ocular complications have been documented in this and other studies, the low prevalence of complications and the lack of association with disease parameters make it impossible to identify a 'high-risk' group. Routine screening of CLL patients for ocular complications is not justified.

Aged↗
PubMed2001

Does the shared epitope genotype influence either the susceptibility to or the phenotype of corneal melting?

PURPOSE: To investigate the role of the shared epitope alleles in determining susceptibility to and the phenotype of corneal melting in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). METHODS: The HLA class 1 and 2 genotype was determined for 17 patients with rheumatoid-associated comeal melting by the phototyping method. HLA-DR4 subtyping was performed by PCR sequence-based typing. The frequency of all the shared epitope alleles and, in particular, of the higher-risk *0401 and *0404 alleles, was compared with healthy controls and unrelated RA patients, with and without extra-articular manifestations. A comparison was also made between the shared epitope genotype of the corneal melt patients and local, ocular disease characteristics. RESULTS: Thirteen (76%) patients with corneal melt possessed at least one shared epitope allele and 5 (29%) possessed two alleles. The dominant alleles were variants of the DR4 family, notably the *0401, *0404 and *0408 alleles. Both the allele frequency and a double dose of shared epitope alleles were more common in the three RA patient groups than in the healthy, control group (p < 0.005). Although the frequency of the higher-risk alleles was similar in the three RA patient group, a trend existed for a double dose of higher-risk alleles to be more common in the patients with either corneal melt or other extra-articular manifestations (p > 0.2). No association was found between the number or type of shared epitope alleles and any of the ocular disease characteristics studied. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study suggest that the shared epitope alleles do not influence the ocular disease phenotype of corneal melt in RA patients. Shared epitope determination of RA patients may help to identify those susceptible to either corneal melt or other extra-articular disease. RA patients with a double dose of higher-risk alleles may have an increased risk of corneal melt.

Alleles↗
PubMed2001

Short-term mortality among middle-aged cataract surgery patients.

PURPOSE: To investigate the short-term mortality of middle-aged patients undergoing cataract surgery in the United Kingdom (UK), to compare this with the expected mortality for the UK population of similar age and to try to identify at-risk groups. METHODS: In a retrospective study, the 5-10 year mortality of all middle-aged patients undergoing cataract surgery between 1989 and 1993 was determined. Expected mortality was calculated from UK Interim Life Tables for 1991. Cox's regression analysis was performed using age, sex and self-assigned ethnic group as variables. RESULTS: From the 709 patients in the study group, there were 86 deaths. This is significantly greater than expected (p < 0.01). Ethnic minority status (hazard ratio = 1.72, confidence interval = 1.12-2.64) and male sex (HR = 1.68, CI = 1.08-2.63) were found to be significantly associated with early mortality (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: This study suggests that, for some middle-aged patients, cataract is associated with a reduced life expectancy and may be a feature of premature ageing, reflecting systemic ill-health. Screening these and younger patients for systemic disease when they present with cataract provides the best opportunity to affect this increased mortality. The findings of this study are particularly relevant for patients from ethnic minority groups.

Adult↗
PubMed2001

Foveal ectopia in X-linked retinoschisis.

BACKGROUND: This study compared the position of the foveal center in patients with X-linked retinoschisis (XLRS) and controls and estimated the frequency of foveal ectopia in XLRS. METHOD: Fundus photographs of 23 patients with XLRS and 25 controls were reviewed. The position of the foveal center relative to the vertical center of the optic disk was determined from magnified images and expressed as the angle between the disk and foveal centers, relative to the horizontal meridian. The shortest distance between the foveal and disk centers was also measured, using the horizontal disk diameter (HDD) as the relative size unit. RESULTS: The position of the foveal center could be determined accurately for 43 eyes of the 23 patients with XLRS. The foveal center was located an average of 4.7 degrees (standard deviation, 9.3) below and 3.2 HDD (standard deviation, 0.4) temporal to the vertical disk center. In 9 (21 %) of the eyes, the fovea was above the horizontal meridian. For the control eyes, the foveal center was an average of 7.8 degrees (standard deviation, 2.3) below and 2.9 HDD (standard deviation, 0.4) temporal to the vertical disk center. According to a previous definition, foveal ectopia was present in 13 (30%) of the eyes with XLRS and none of the control eyes (P < 0.001). CONCLUSION: Foveal ectopia occurs in at least 30% of eyes with XLRS. This finding may provide a useful diagnostic sign for XLRS and may have implications for its pathogenesis.

Eye Abnormalities↗
PubMed2000

No strong association between alleles of tumour necrosis factor alpha and interleukin-1 receptor antagonist and corneal melting associated with systemic vasculitis.

AIMS: To investigate polymorphism within the tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) promoter region and within the interleukin-1 receptor antagonist (IL-1Ra) gene in a group of patients with vasculitis associated corneal melting. METHODS: The polymorphic regions at position -308 on the TNF-alpha promoter region and in intron 2 of the IL-1Ra gene were amplified by the polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The resultant products were separated by electrophoresis on agarose gels and visualised by ethidium bromide staining. Genotype and allele frequencies for the 20 patients were compared with healthy controls from the same geographical area. RESULTS: The allele frequencies in the patient and control groups respectively for the TNF-alpha and IL-1Ra sites studied were as follows: TNF1, 82.5% and 80.2%; TNF2, 17.5% and 19.8%; IL-1Ra*1, 82. 5% and 78.3%; IL-1Ra*2, 15% and 20%; IL-1Ra*3 2.5% and 1.5%. Although there was a trend for the IL1Ra*2 allele to be more common in the control group, no allele was found to have a statistically significantly association with the patient group: TNF1 p = 0.89; TNF2 p = 0.89; IL-1Ra*1 p = 0.65; IL-1Ra*2 p = 0.68; IL-1Ra*3 p= 0. 50. CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that the polymorphic alleles of TNF-alpha and IL-1Ra studied play little or no part in the susceptibility to corneal melting among these patients with systemic vasculitis.

Alleles↗
PubMed1999

Recurrent amaurosis fugax without haemodynamically significant ipsilateral carotid stenosis.

PURPOSE: This study was performed to investigate the causes of recurrent amaurosis fugax in patients without haemodynamically significant carotid stenosis. METHODS: Pulsatile ocular blood flow (POBF), ocular pulse amplitude (PA) and ocular perfusion pressure (OPP) were recorded for 15 patients and 15 age-matched controls. RESULTS: No significant difference in OPP or POBF was found between the two groups. However, the PA was significantly greater in the control group (p=0.01). CONCLUSION: The results of this study suggest that for some patients with recurrent amaurosis fugax, their symptoms may occur secondary to ocular small vessel disease.

Aged↗