Incredible Associations!

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When i saw the headline Corneal arcus `associated with eye pressure' I did a double take!

There was a recent publication in the November issue of Archives of Ophthalmology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals, showing that corneal arcus was present in the right eyes of 57.9 per cent of people with elevated eye pressure. Renyi Wu, M.D., Ph.D., of the Singapore Eye Research Institute, and colleagues examined the prevalence and consequences of corneal arcus among 3,015 individuals age 40 to 80. Participants underwent an interview and eye examinations, including corneal measurements, assessment of intraocular pressure and identification of corneal arcus using a slitlamp.

Here is the best part: "There is no known explanation for the association of corneal arcus with higher intraocular pressure," the authors write.

If there was some link between lipid deposition localized to the cornea and IOP, I can see the point, but do you?

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Autologous Stem Cell Treatment Restores Vision In Patients With Severe Eye Damage From Burns.

The AP reports, that, according to a study published online June 23 in the New England Journal of Medicine and reported last week at a meeting of the International Society for Stem Cell Research, dozens of people who were blinded or otherwise suffered severe eye damage when they were splashed with caustic chemicals had their sight restored with transplants of their own stem cells -- a stunning success for the burgeoning cell-therapy field. In fact, Italian researchers say that the treatment worked completely in 82 of 107 eyes and partially in 14 others, with benefits lasting up to a decade so far.

The Time "Wellness" blog reported, In a study of 106 patients treated between 1998 and 2007, researchers were able to extract adult stem cells from healthy eye tissue, grow additional stem cells in the lab, and secure them over the damaged eye tissue. But, the treatment technique is limited to people who still have some healthy eye tissue and at least partial vision, as it requires extracting some living stem cells to cultivate new ones. Vision for many of the patients "was restored within mere months of treatment.

Interestingly, the procedure was successful in some patients who had been burned years before entering the study, HealthDay reported. Patients 22, 26 and 46, for example, were nearly blind in one of their eyes, with completely opaque corneas, after suffering alkali burns; they had undergone unsuccessful surgery, respectively, 13, 30, and three years before admission to the study. The researchers were able to restore a stable corneal covering to all three, with patients 22 and 46 regaining complete visual acuity.

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• Stem Cell Technique Restores Sight to Burn-Injured Eyes (nlm.nih.gov)

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Corneal Transplant Rejection More Likely In Patients With Neovascularization

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According to a study published in the July issue of Ophthalmology, corneal transplant rejection is more likely to occur in people who have abnormal vessel growth in their eyes before undergoing the surgery.

But, patients with such neovascularization might improve their chances of a successful transplant when administered antiangiogenic drugs beforehand, such as ranibizumab and bevacizumab.

After reviewing 19 studies encompassing approximately 24,500 corneal transplants, researchers also found that patients who do not have vascularization when they undergo transplantation have a greater than 80 percent chance of retaining good eye health five years after their surgery.

The U.S. National Library of Medicine has more on corneal transplantation.

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• Study finds new key to corneal transplant success (eurekalert.org)

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