Neurosciences News

Optic nerve sheath decompression can improve or maintain vision among patients with idiopathic intracranial hypertension and cerebral venous thrombosis, a study by researchers in India suggests.

A new system for imaging flavoprotein autofluorescence may be useful for helping to earlier detect and monitor retinal and optic nerve diseases, a study by researchers at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor suggests.

As more surgeons and patients turn to multifocal IOLs as a treatment option for presbyopia, patient complaints of overlapping images, reduced contrast sensitivity and halos have been on the rise. The process of neuroadaptation can help patients adapt more quickly and successfully to these lenses, according to several clinicians who spoke with Ocular Surgery News on the topic.

BARCELONA — The key to improving visual function is focusing on patients' brains, rather than their eyes, because visual defects can be improved using specific exercises that exploit the nervous system's ability to adapt and acquire new skills, according to a specialist speaking here.

A 49-year-old woman was referred by her primary care provider for further management of long-standing ptosis, with new onset of decreased vision, eye pain and an inability to close her right eye. She had a history of multiple eyelid surgeries, including bilateral levator advancement 25 years ago, lower eyelid external tarsoaponeurectomies 20 years ago and multiple revisions for each of these surgeries. Six months prior, she underwent bilateral frontalis suspensions. Over the past several months, she developed increasing eye pain despite aggressive lubrication, along with decreased vision of the right eye.

If you think about what is happening these days in ophthalmology generally, with compelling science driving new retina drugs to market and previously untreatable diseases seeing much investment in time and energy, you might wonder: “If neuro-ophthalmology is the most cognitive of subspecialties, where is the cutting-edge research and advances one might expect of it? Where is the creativity? Where is the innovation? Where is the change?”

NEW ORLEANS — Training glaucoma patients to use their remaining vision more effectively can help them maintain their independence and self-esteem after visual loss, a glaucoma expert said here.

Injecting botulinum toxin type A into one or more extraocular muscles can help reduce diplopia and may improve binocular function in patients with internuclear ophthalmoplegia, according to a retrospective study by researchers in India. However, patients often require repeat injections, which can limit the treatment benefits, the authors noted.

STOCKHOLM – Endophthalmitis is generally considered the most severe complication of cataract surgery, but there are other complications that occur more frequently and have similarly devastating consequences, according to the Binkhorst Medal Lecturer here. Cataract surgery has become a safer and more effective procedure over the last 10 years, Ulf Stenevi, MD, said.

Performing transphenoidal medial wall decompression of the optic nerve canal can cause physical damage to the optic nerve, according to a study on cadaver eyes. "Any hypothetical value in dural-arachnoid sheath opening must be weighed against the potential for harm ... caused by the surgical intervention," the study authors said.