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Biomedical subjects

R D Stulting

Publications and source records attributed to R D Stulting.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

Corneal thickness changes after high-risk penetrating keratoplasty. Collaborative Corneal Transplantation Study Group.

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether ultrasonic measurements of corneal thickness are of prognostic value after high-risk penetrating keratoplasty. DESIGN: A prospective, multicenter, randomized trial. PATIENTS: Four hundred fifty patients at high risk for graft failure because of previous immunologic graft failure or because of two or more quadrants of stromal vascularization. Patients underwent surgery and were treated according to a specific protocol and observed at frequent intervals. INTERVENTION: At each postoperative visit, ultrasonic measurement of central corneal thickness was performed and the corneal status was determined by biomicroscopic examination. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Graft failure owing to immunologic or nonimmunologic causes. RESULTS: Corneal thickness stabilized by 3 months at a median thickness of 0.54 mm. The range of corneal thicknesses in patients with corneal grafts judged to be clear was large. In 49% of eyes, development of an allograft reaction episode was accompanied by an increase in corneal thickness of at least 10%; the greater the increase in thickness, the more likely the graft would fail. Clear grafts with central thicknesses of 0.59 mm or greater at 1, 3, or 6 months had a much greater risk of failure than those with thicknesses of less than 0.59 mm. CONCLUSION: Corneal thickness measurements after high-risk penetrating keratoplasty are of prognostic value.

Cornea↗

Changes in keratometric astigmatism after suture removal more than one year after penetrating keratoplasty.

BACKGROUND/PURPOSE: Selective removal of interrupted sutures and adjustment of a running suture can minimize astigmatism after penetrating keratoplasty, but the long-term effects of early suture manipulations remain largely unknown. The authors tested the hypothesis that the cornea becomes "fixed" more than 1 year after keratoplasty so that desirable refractive results will remain when all sutures are eventually removed. METHODS: The authors reviewed retrospectively the changes in astigmatism that occurred when all remaining sutures were removed from 162 eyes 1 to 6 years after penetrating keratoplasty. Single-running sutures were used in 130 eyes, double-running sutures in 20 eyes, and a combination of interrupted and running sutures in 12 eyes. RESULTS: Removal of single-running sutures caused an average decrease in astigmatism of 0.52 diopters (D) from 6.10 +/- 4.41 D to 5.57 +/- 3.14 D. However, the astigmatism in 62% of eyes changed 2 or more D (range, 11.94 to -17.87 D), and the range changed more than 20 degrees in 55% of eyes. The average vectorial change was 6.5 +/- 4.3 D (range, 0.59 to 19.8 D). There was no decrease in the amount of astigmatic change with increasing time between surgery and suture removal. Graft size and diagnosis had no effect on the amount of astigmatic change. Astigmatic errors became stable, with less than 1 D of change between successive examinations within 6 months after suture removal. Similar results were obtained for eyes with double-running and interrupted-running sutures. CONCLUSIONS: Corneal astigmatism may change unpredictably and by large amounts when all remaining sutures are removed 1 to 6 years after penetrating keratoplasty.

Astigmatism↗

Herpes simplex virus type 1 transcription is not detectable in quiescent human stromal keratitis by in situ hybridization.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to determine whether herpes simplex virus (HSV) transcripts are present in the corneas of patients with chronic herpetic stromal keratitis. METHODS: Corneal buttons from patients with a history of stromal keratitis, but no ongoing active disease, together with positive and negative control tissues, were analyzed by in situ hybridization using single-stranded RNA probes for all three classes of viral lytic cycle transcripts as well as for the latency-associated transcripts (LATs). Tissues also were screened for presence of HSV genomic DNA using the polymerase chain reaction (PCR). RESULTS: HSV DNA was detected in 7 of 13 quiescent corneas by PCR, but no viral transcripts were detected in any of these corneas by in situ hybridization. CONCLUSIONS: At the level of detection afforded by in situ hybridization, HSV persistent in scarred human corneas after stromal keratitis appears to be transcriptionally dormant. This contrasts with the situation in neurons of latently infected sensory ganglia, in which LATs are present at high levels.

Animals↗

Penetrating keratoplasty in patients with rheumatoid arthritis.

The authors reviewed in a retrospective manner 47 penetrating keratoplasties performed on 23 eyes of 21 patients with rheumatoid arthritis. The indications for the first penetrating keratoplasty were corneal melt in 19 eyes (83%), infectious keratitis in 2 eyes (9%), and corneal scarring after ulceration in 2 eyes (9%). Twelve of the 23 eyes required 24 repeat penetrating keratoplasties. Seventeen of the 23 eyes (74%) had clear grafts at the last follow-up visit, a median of 13.7 months after the last penetrating keratoplasty. The final best corrected visual acuity was greater than or equal to 20/60 in 4 eyes (17%), 20/70 to 20/100 in 1 eye (4%), 20/200 to 20/400 in 7 eyes (30%), counting fingers in 4 eyes (17%), hand motions in 2 eyes (9%), and light perception in 4 eyes (17%). One eye (4%) was enucleated. Anatomic success (absence of phthisis bulbi, enucleation, or conjunctival flap) was achieved in 20 eyes (87%). The survival probability for the 21 patients was only 48% 5 years after the first penetrating keratoplasty. The authors conclude that penetrating keratoplasty is often anatomically successful in patients with rheumatoid arthritis; however, the prognosis is poor for both vision and survival of the patient.

Adult↗

Current practices in the prevention and treatment of corneal graft rejection.

Three hundred fourteen members of the Castroviejo Society were surveyed to determine current practices in the prevention and treatment of corneal graft rejection. One hundred thirty-seven responses were received and tabulated for routine postoperative prophylactic immunosuppression as well as treatment of epithelial rejection, endothelial rejection (three patterns), subepithelial infiltrates, acutely and progressively opacifying grafts without inflammation, and photophobia. All respondents applied topical steroids in the postoperative period, while about half also administered steroids subconjunctivally. For the treatment of obvious endothelial rejection, 100% of respondents used topical steroids, 57% used subconjunctival steroids, and 37% used systemic steroids. Prednisolone acetate, 1%, was the preferred topical preparation for all conditions (55-68% of respondents). Individual responses to the questionnaire showed a surprisingly wide variation in treatment preferences.

Administration, Topical↗

Detection of herpes simplex virus type 1 latency-associated transcripts in corneal cells of inbred mice by in situ hybridization.

We have previously recovered herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV) from the corneas of latently infected mice by cultivation in vitro. It could be argued, however, that these data do not definitively distinguish between persistent and latent corneal infection. We have now used RNA hybridization in situ to resolve this question by determining the expression of HSV genes in the corneas of BALB/c mice during latent infection. Two to four months after topical corneal inoculation with HSV, when no active ocular disease or infectious virus was present, corneas were removed and digested with collagenase. Dissociated cells pooled from two corneas were hybridized with 3H- or 35S-labeled 2.6-kb single-stranded RNA probes to detect sense and antisense ICP-0 transcripts. Twenty-five percent of the pools hybridized with the probe for antisense ICP-0 (latency-associated transcript, LAT), while only 3% hybridized with the probe for ICP-0 (p less than 0.03). Of the cells in positive pools, 0.6-7.0% showed a positive hybridization signal for LAT. No infectious virus was found by culture of supernatants from the probed pools or control latently infected corneas. These data provide further evidence that HSV can establish a true latent infection in the mouse cornea.

Animals↗

The severity of herpes simplex viral keratitis in mice does not reflect the severity of disease in humans.

Four herpes simplex type 1 virus (HSV) isolates were selected from patients with mild ocular disease and four from patients with severe ocular disease on the basis of the number of epithelial recurrences, presence or absence of stromal disease, visual acuity, and the need for corneal transplantation. The scarified right corneas of 20 BALB/c mice were inoculated with each low-passage HSV isolate (1.0 x 10(7) plaque-forming units/ml) and examined three times per week for 2 weeks for the presence and severity of epithelial and stromal disease. The eight individual virus isolates differed with respect to the incidence of dendritic disease (P less than 0.001), the severity of dendritic disease (P less than 0.001), the incidence of stromal disease (P = 0.002), and the severity of stromal disease (P = 0.001) they produced in the mouse. The severity of disease was compared for the two groups of viruses: (1) those that had caused mild disease in their human hosts and (2) those that had caused severe disease. There were no statistically significant differences in the severity or incidence (44 versus 43 animals, respectively) of dendritic disease or stromal disease (27 of 80 animals in each group) between the two groups. These data suggest that the naive BALB/c mouse model of acute HSV keratitis after topical ocular inoculation does not reflect clinically significant differences in the severity of human HSV keratitis that might be caused by variations in the virus genome.

Animals↗

Viral keratitis.

Viruses that affect the cornea produce changes that range from benign, self-limited conjunctivitis to sight-threatening scarring and vascularization of the cornea. In this article, the forms of viral keratitis most commonly encountered by the clinician are reviewed. The epidemiology, clinical presentation, and treatment of infection by Herpes simplex virus, varicella zoster virus, and the adenoviruses are discussed. Also included are other viral infections of the cornea.

Adenoviridae Infections↗

Ocular and periocular infections.

The eye is an important site for infectious disease because an incorrect diagnosis can cause loss of vision or loss of life. An approach to accurate diagnosis, intervention, and therapy is outlined.

Blepharitis↗

Corneal transplantation in a patient with congenital sensory neuropathy.

We describe penetrating keratoplasty for corneal scarring in a patient with congenital sensory neuropathy and repeated self-mutilation. This patient underwent a successful penetrating keratoplasty but suffered a series of postoperative complications necessitating three repeat grafts. Some of these complications were attributable to decreased corneal sensation while others were caused by self-mutilation. Since his last penetrating keratoplasty 4 years ago, this patient has had functional visual acuity.

Child↗

Corneal ulcer and adverse reaction rates in premarket contact lens studies.

We analyzed clinical data on 22,739 contact lens wearers who were studied and whose lenses were approved under 48 manufacturer-sponsored studies for the Food and Drug Administration between 1980 and 1988. The incidence of corneal ulcers was low in the cosmetic (nontherapeutic) daily-wear soft and rigid gas-permeable lens wearers (1/1,923 and 1/1,471 patient-years, respectively). Corneal ulcers and severe adverse reactions occurred two to four times more frequently in extended-wear cosmetic soft and rigid gas-permeable lens wearers than in cosmetic daily-wear lens wearers. Aphakic extended-wear soft lens users were nine times more likely to develop a corneal ulcer when compared to the soft daily-wear cosmetic group. Corneal abrasions and keratitis accounted for 81 of 159 severe adverse reactions, whereas corneal ulcers accounted for 28 of 159 adverse reactions. The data indicate that overnight extended wear of contact lenses is associated with a greater risk of serious, sight-threatening complications than daily wear.

Aphakia↗

Gentamicin resistance in staphylococcal corneal ulcers.

Gentamicin sulfate is frequently included in the initial treatment of suspected bacterial keratitis. We present the gentamicin susceptibility test results for coagulase-negative staphylococci and Staphylococcus aureus isolated from corneal ulcers in nine patients. All were resistant to gentamicin by standard disk diffusion techniques. The minimum inhibitory concentrations were very high, some exceeding the concentration normally achieved by frequent topical application of antibiotics. Clinicians should be aware that strains of staphylococci extremely resistant to gentamicin may cause keratitis. An antibiotic with broad activity against Gram-positive organisms, such as a cephalosporin or vancomycin, should be included as part of the initial therapy for corneal ulcers that might be caused by staphylococci.

Contact Lenses↗