Meibomian Gland Morphology Changes After Cataract Surgery: A Contra-Lateral Eye Study

Purpose: To evaluate the morphology changes of meibomian glands (MGs) after cataract surgery.Setting: Hangzhou Branch of the Eye Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Zhejiang, China.Methods: In this contra-lateral eye study, 40 patients received unilateral cataract surgery for age-related cataract. All the patients underwent the evaluation of non-invasive break-up time (NIBUT) and lower tear meniscus height (TMH) before the surgery and 6 months post-operatively. The MGs were evaluated via ImageJ and Meibomian Gland Bio-image Analyzer. MG dropout, length, width, area, gland diameter deformation index (DI), and gland signal index (SI) were recorded.Results: MG length, width, area, DI, and SI were significantly decreased after cataract surgery in the study group (operated eyes, P < 0.001, P = 0.003, P < 0.001, P = 0.001, and P < 0.001, respectively) and showed no significant changes in the control group (non-operated eyes) (all P > 0.05). MG loss increased more in the study group (P = 0.030), and the changes in TMH and NIBUT were not significantly different between the two eyes (both P > 0.05).Conclusion: Cataract surgery aggravated meibomian gland morphology, such as MG loss, MG length, width, area, and SI, and produced no change in NIBUT and TMH at 6 months post-operatively.

Automated Keratoconus Detection by 3D Corneal Images Reconstruction

This paper presents a technique for the detection of keratoconus via the construction of a 3D eye images from 2D frontal and lateral eye images. Keratoconus is a disease that affects the cornea. Normal case eyes have a round-shaped cornea, while patients who suffer from keratoconus have a cone-shaped cornea. Early diagnosis can decrease the risk of eyesight loss. Our aim is to create a method of fully automated keratoconus detection using digital-camera frontal and lateral eye images. The presented technique accurately determines case severity. Geometric features are extracted from 2D images to estimate depth information used to build 3D images of the cornea. The proposed methodology is easy to implement and time-efficient. 2D images of the eyes (frontal and lateral) are used as input, and 3D images from which the curvature of the cornea can be detected are produced as output. Our method involves two main steps: feature extraction and depth calculation. Machine learning from the 3D images dataset Dataverse, specifically taken by the Cornea/Anterior Segment OCT SS-1000 (CASIA), was performed. Results show that the method diagnosed the four stages of keratoconus (severe, moderate, mild, and normal) with an accuracy of 97.8%, as compared to manual diagnosis done by medical experts.

A Novel Test of the Duchenne Marker: Smiles After Botulinum Toxin Treatment for Crow’s Feet Wrinkles

Smiles that vary in muscular configuration also vary in how they are perceived. Previous research suggests that “Duchenne smiles,” indicated by the combined actions of the orbicularis oculi (cheek raiser) and the zygomaticus major muscles (lip corner puller), signal enjoyment. This research has compared perceptions of Duchenne smiles with non-Duchenne smiles among individuals voluntarily innervating or inhibiting the orbicularis oculi muscle. Here we used a novel set of highly controlled stimuli: photographs of patients taken before and after receiving botulinum toxin treatment for crow’s feet lines that selectively paralyzed the lateral orbicularis oculi muscle and removed visible lateral eye wrinkles, to test perception of smiles. Smiles in which the orbicularis muscle was active (prior to treatment) were rated as more felt, spontaneous, intense, and happier. Post treatment patients looked younger, although not more attractive. We discuss the potential implications of these findings within the context of emotion science and clinical research on botulinum toxin.

Complicated Grief With Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Addressed With Accelerated Resolution Therapy: Case Discussions

Complicated grief is a significant health concern for older adults, resulting in significant psychological and physical morbidity. Elements of post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are often present in individuals with complicated grief. Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART) is a brief form of psychotherapy that utilizes the techniques of imaginal exposure, rescripting of events, and lateral eye movements that may be useful in complicated grief with PTSD symptoms. Two cases where ART was used for complicated grief with PTSD are presented. Both individuals had attempted to come to terms with their loss through traditional grief therapy with an inadequate response and substantial residual grief symptoms. These cases illustrate how ART can be used to address CG and PTSD and describe situations where it may be appropriate. Clinical and research implications are also discussed.

Monocular elevation deficit after scleral perforation repair

Monocular elevation deficit can result from either inferior rectus restriction, superior rectus palsy or from supranuclear causes. We report a case of monocular elevation deficit after scleral perforation repair which was managed by surgery on contra lateral eye. This improved elevation of the affected eye with no diplopia in the postoperative period.

New insights into the evolution of lateral compound eyes in Palaeozoic horseshoe crabs

Vision allows animals to interact with their environment. Aquatic chelicerates dominate the early record of lateral compound eyes among non-biomineralizing crown-group euarthropods. Although the conservative morphology of lateral eyes in Xiphosura is potentially plesiomorphic for Euarthropoda, synziphosurine eye organization has received little attention despite their early diverging phylogenetic position. Here, we re-evaluate the fossil evidence for lateral compound eyes in the synziphosurines Bunodes sp., Cyamocephalus loganensis, Legrandella lombardii, Limuloides limuloides, Pseudoniscus clarkei, Pseudoniscus falcatus and Pseudoniscus roosevelti. We compare these data with lateral eyes in the euchelicerates Houia yueya, Kasibelinurus amicorum and Lunataspis aurora. We find no convincing evidence for lateral eyes in most studied taxa, and Pseudoniscus roosevelti and Legrandella lombardii are the only synziphosurines with this feature. Our findings support two scenarios for euchelicerate lateral eye evolution. The elongate-crescentic lateral eyes of Legrandella lombardii might represent the ancestral organization, as suggested by the phylogenetic position of this taxon in stem-group Euchelicerata. Alternatively, the widespread occurrence of kidney-shaped lateral eyes in stem-group Xiphosura and stem-group Arachnida could represent the plesiomorphic condition; Legrandella lombardii eyes would therefore be derived. Both evolutionary scenarios support the interpretation that kidney-shaped lateral eyes are ancestral for crown-group Euchelicerata and morphologically conserved in extant Limulus polyphemus.

Lateral Eye Movements Do Not Increase False-Memory Rates: A Failed Direct-Replication Study

In this direct replication of Houben, Otgaar, Roelofs, and Merckelbach ( Clinical Psychological Science, 6, 610–616, 2018), we tested whether making eye movements during memory recall increases susceptibility to creating false memories. Undergraduates ( N = 206) watched a video of a car crash, after which they recalled the video with or without simultaneously making eye movements. Next, participants received misinformation about the video. Finally, during the critical test, they were questioned about video details. The results showed that making eye movements did not increase endorsement of misinformation (i.e., false memory), nor did it reduce (correct) memory details or memory vividness and emotionality. Random variation in sampling or measurement, low reliability of the test instrument, and observer-expectancy effects may explain discrepancies between study effects. Only multiple direct replications by different (independent) laboratories with standardized instruments will allow for assessing whether the effect is robust and largely independent of random variation and moderators.