Biomedical subjects

Sibylla Richter-Mueksch

Publications and source records attributed to Sibylla Richter-Mueksch.

7 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2006

Reading performance of patients with uveitis-associated cystoid macular edema.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the extent of the visual impairment caused by uveitis-associated cystoid macular edema (CME) and compare the results with lesion size. DESIGN: Observational case series. METHODS: setting: Uveitis outpatient clinic of the Department of Ophthalmology and Optometry, Medical University of Vienna. patient population: CME was verified in 30 eyes of 30 consecutive uveitis patients with optical coherence tomography and lesion size was assessed with retinal thickness analyzer. main outcome measures: Distance visual acuity (VA) (measured with Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study charts), reading acuity, and reading speed (tested with Radner Reading Charts). Results were compared with nonaffected partner eyes. RESULTS: Distance VA was logMAR 0.22 +/- 0.15 in CME eyes vs -0.02 +/- 0.17 in healthy controls. Reading acuity was 75% of logMAR in CME eyes vs 92% of logMAR in control eyes (P = .01). The mean reading speed was 148.4 +/- 36.6 words per minute in patients with CME vs 168.9 +/- 36.3 in patients without CME (P = .04). Reading acuity correlated with both lesion size and distance VA (r = 0.61; P = .01 and r = 0.53; P = .028, respectively). Neither anatomical classification of uveitis nor gender or age had a significant influence on the evaluated parameters. CONCLUSIONS: Reading acuity and reading speed were considerably more impaired than distance visual acuity. The assessed parameters showed a better correlation to lesion size and seem to be a better reflection of macular dysfunction. Analyzing reading function is an important factor when following patients with CME and evaluating success of treatment modalities.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2005

Differences in reading performance of patients with Drusen maculopathy and subretinal fibrosis after CNV.

PURPOSE: To evaluate differences in reading performance and contrast sensitivity on patients with drusen maculopathy and subretinal fibrosis after CNV (choroidal neovascularisation). METHODS: 136 patients (60 with drusen (D), 76 with fibrosis (F)) were studied. Patients were classified according to type of maculopathy and best-corrected visual acuity into groups D1 and F1 (LogMAR 0.2-0.4), groups D2 and F2 (LogMAR>0.4-0.7), and group F3 (LogMAR>0.7-1.3). Reading acuity (in LogRAD) and speed were examined with the Radner Reading charts and compared to the reading speed measured with the long paragraphs of the Zuercher Reading Test. Contrast sensitivity was measured with Pelli-Robson charts. RESULTS: The patients' distance visual acuity was comparable between the drusen and fibrotic CNV groups (D1 versus F1, D2 versus F2). The reading acuity of the corresponding groups D1 and F1 was also comparable, but F2 patients showed a statistically lower reading acuity than D2 patients (P=0.03). All reading speed measurements of the groups F1 and F2 were significantly worse than those of the corresponding groups D1 and D2 (P-values: 0.0005-0.02). The correlation of reading speed between the Radner and Zuercher texts was very high (r=0.73-0.94). The contrast sensitivity was significantly lower in all groups compared with group D1 (P<0.001), but comparable for groups F1, F2, and F3. CONCLUSIONS: Despite comparable results in distance visual acuity, patients with subretinal fibrosis after CNV had a greater reduction in reading ability than the patients with drusen. The distance visual acuity measurements alone, therefore, underestimate the real-life conditions and impact of AMD.

Aged↗

PubMed2005

Influence of laser in situ keratomileusis and laser epithelial keratectomy on patients' reading performance.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the influence of laser in situ keratomileusis (LASIK) and laser-assisted subepithelial keratectomy (LASEK) on reading performance regarding reading acuity, reading speed based on print size, maximum reading speed, and critical print size. SETTING: Department of Ophthalmology, University of Vienna, Vienna, and Auge-und-Laser, Medicent Baden, Austria. METHODS: Fifty-two eyes of 34 patients (26 eyes per group) were studied. Best corrected LogMAR visual acuity (Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study charts), reading acuity, and reading speed were tested monocularly before LASIK or LASEK and 3 weeks after surgery. Reading acuity (LogRAD) and reading speed were determined with the standardized Radner reading charts. RESULTS: Preoperatively, the distance visual acuity and reading acuity were comparable between the LASIK and LASEK patients. Reading speed measurements also showed no statistical difference. Three weeks after refractive surgery, no statistically significant differences in the preoperative measures and between the 2 surgical procedures could be found in any tested parameters. The mean distance visual acuity was LogMAR -0.02 +/- 0.06 (SD) (LASIK) and LogMAR -0.05 +/- 0.07 (LASEK). The mean reading acuity was LogRAD 0.00 +/- 0.12 (97.7% of LogMAR) (LASIK) and LogRAD 0.04 +/- 0.16 (93.7% of LogMAR) (LASEK). The mean maximum reading speed was 235 +/- 35 words per minute (LASIK) and 240 +/- 37 words per minute (LASEK), and the mean critical print size was at LogRAD 0.48 +/- 0.19 (LASIK) and 0.49 +/- 0.17 (LASEK). CONCLUSIONS: In a standardized reading test setting, no significant effects of LASIK and LASEK on individual reading performance could be evaluated. This indicates that patients can expect to retain their normal visual function after refractive surgery with these 2 procedures under full light conditions.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

Proliferative vitreoretinopathy--at what risk is the fellow eye?

PURPOSE: To find out if patients with proliferative vitreoretinopathy (PVR) due to complicated retinal detachment are at risk to acquire the same disease or other vision-threatening retinal abnormalities in the fellow eye. To furthermore assess in what time-period they appear and if subgroups of patients have special risks. METHODS: 100 consecutive PVR-patients were studied retrospectively. 21 patients with PVR graded lower than C3, traumatic PVR, diabetic retinopathy or congenital vitreoretinal diseases were excluded. Age, gender, best-corrected visual acuity at the first and last visit, refraction, ocular disease in both eyes and observation-time were recorded. RESULTS: After a mean follow-up of 8.5 years, 42 of 79 patients (53.4%) showed vision-threatening abnormalities in their fellow eyes: among them, 9 patients (11.4%) had PVR, 13 (16%) simple retinal detachments and 14 (17.3%) retinal breaks. Abnormalities in the fellow eye did not develop after a certain time following surgery of the primary eye; 71.4% appeared within 5 years. Aphakic and pseudophakic patients had retinal breaks significantly more often (p = 0.011) than phakic patients. Myopia did not increase the risk for any abnormality. Men developed retinal detachment (p = 0.037) and PVR (p = 0.025) significantly more often than women. CONCLUSION: Patients with PVR have a greater than 50% risk of developing vision-threatening retinal abnormalities in their fellow eye. Because of this increased risk, these patients need regularly-scheduled long-term follow-up. SUMMARY STATEMENT: Patients with PVR have a greater than 50% risk of developing vision-threatening retinal abnormalities in their fellow eye and a 37% risk to develop PVR from rhegmatogenous retinal detachment. More than two thirds of abnormalities in the fellow eye developed within five years of surgery of the primary eye.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

Informed consent and decision making by cataract patients.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate decision making by patients on the day before cataract surgery and to evaluate to what extent the informed consent process influences the patients' decision regarding consent. METHODS: On the day before surgery, 70 patients (mean +/- SD age, 70.3 +/- 10.3 years) underwent a standardized informed consent procedure. They were also invited to answer 15 questions established in interdisciplinary cooperation among clinical psychologists, lawyers, and ophthalmologists. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: We assessed presurgical information and personal estimation of risks in cataract surgery; the patient-physician relationship regarding surgery-related decisions; and evaluations of the informed consent procedure and the patients' decision. RESULTS: Questionnaire answers indicated that 28 (40%) of the 70 participating patients arrived for surgery without any information; 16 (23%) believed that there were surgical procedures without risks; and 53 (76%) estimated that there were no risks for their cataract surgery. A physician-dominated decision for surgery was preferred by 31 patients (44%); 16 (26%) wanted to decide together with their ophthalmologist. Possible risks of a sight-threatening complication did not influence 54 patients' (77%) decisions, and 55 patients (78%) said the informed consent process did not influence their decision. The remaining 15 (22%) stated that the informed consent process positively confirmed their decision. CONCLUSIONS: Informed consent 1 day preoperatively does not seem to influence the decision for cataract surgery. Cognitive dissonance as part of a decision-making process makes changes in an already chosen option unlikely. The resulting limited decisive potential is very important for credibility in a trial and has to be considered in ophthalmologic surgery.

Aged↗

PubMed2002

The validity and reliability of short German sentences for measuring reading speed.

PURPOSE: To investigate whether short German sentences that have been developed to be highly comparable in number and length of words, as well as in difficulty and construction, are reliable and valid test items for measuring reading speed in order to use them for measuring simultaneously reading acuity and speed with the "Radner Reading Charts". METHODS: Tests were performed in 198 persons: 99 university students (average age 23.6+/-2.8 years) and blue-collar apprentices (average age 18.4+/-2.5 years). Reading speed and the number of errors were determined first with 24 sentences for our recently developed German reading charts (14 words equal in difficulty, length and construction) and secondly with long paragraphs of the "Zuercher Reading Test" (ZRT; paragraphs 3-5, 261 words). RESULTS: The overall mean reading speed obtained with short sentences was 209.6+/-41.0 words per minute (wpm), compared with 169.2+/-35.0 wpm for the ZRT ( P<0.001). The correlation between the short sentences and the ZRT was high ( r=0.9). Students read faster and made fewer errors than did the apprentices. Reliability analyses yielded an overall Cronbach's alpha coefficient of 0.98. The coefficient of selectivity of the 24 sentences (test items) varied from 0.75 to 0.88. CONCLUSION: The present study indicates that the 24 short single sentences we have tested are highly comparable in terms of both lexical difficulty and reading length, and it has demonstrated the validity and reliability of such sentences as test items for determining reading speed.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2002

Reading performance with a refractive multifocal and a diffractive bifocal intraocular lens.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the reading performance of a diffractive bifocal (811E, Pharmacia) and a refractive multifocal (SA40N, Allergan) intraocular lens (IOL) and compare it with that of a monofocal IOL (811C, Pharmacia) with respect to reading acuity, reading speed based on print size, maximum reading speed, reading distance, and critical print size. SETTING: Department of Ophthalmology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria. METHODS: This study comprised 120 pseudophakic eyes of 70 patients; each IOL group had 40 eyes. The patients' age, sex, and best corrected logMAR visual acuity were recorded. Reading acuity and speed were tested monocularly. Reading acuity was determined in logRAD (ie, the reading equivalent of logMAR). Patients with bifocal and multifocal IOLs read with best distance correction and patients with a monofocal IOL, with an addition of +3.0 diopters. RESULTS: The age, mean spherical equivalent, cylinder, and best corrected distance visual acuity were comparable among the 3 groups. The mean logRAD reading acuity was 0.17 +/- 0.18 (SD) in the 811E group (94.0% of logMAR), 0.31 +/- 0.13 in the SA40N group (73.2% of logMAR), and 0.24 +/- 0.22 in the 811C group (94.1% of logMAR). The reading acuity in the SA40N group was statistically significantly lower than in the 811E and 811C groups. The best reading distance was 30 cm in the 811E group and 40 cm in the SA40N group. The mean maximum reading speeds in words per minute were comparable: 187.5 +/- 26.1 (811E), 171.0 +/- 21.1 (SA40N), and 179.4 +/- 21.6 (811C). The reading speed, which ranged from logRAD 0.7 to 0.3, and the critical print size in the SA40N group were significantly worse than in the 811E and 811C groups. The mean critical print size in the 811E group was significantly worse than in the 811C group. CONCLUSIONS: Reading performance was acceptable in the bifocal and multifocal IOL patients, with the diffractive bifocal IOL performing best in a standardized reading test setting.

Aged↗