Background The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has had a significant impact on practical activities and didactic teaching of residents and fellows. This survey aimed to propose long-term changes for ophthalmology training based on the changes experienced by trainees and their perception of new training opportunities. Methods An online survey was distributed to ophthalmology trainees in multiple countries. Descriptive statistics were used to analyse the data. Results A total of 504 analyzable responses were collected from 32 different countries. The current impact of COVID-19 pandemic was described as "severe" by most trainees (55.2%); however, the future perspective was more optimistic as demonstrated by the greater number of responses reporting a presumed "moderate" (37.3%), "mild" (14.1%) or "slight" (4.2%) long-term impact. The vast majority of trainees reported a decrease ≥50% of clinical activity (76.4%) and >75% of surgical activity (74.6%). Although an initial gap in didactic teaching has been experienced by many (55.4%), regular webbased teaching was reportedly attended by 67.7% of the respondents. A strong agreement was found regarding the worthwhile role of web-based case-presentations in clinical training (91.7%), web-based discussion of edited surgical videos (85.7%) and simulation-based practice (86.9%) in surgical training. Conclusions This survey, focusing on trainees' perspective, strongly reinforces the need to promptly include new technology-based training tools, such as web-based teaching, virtual surgical simulators, and telementoring, in long-term reorganisation of ophthalmology training to ensure its continuity and effectiveness, which would remain available even in the face of another unpredictable crisis within the health system.

Remarkable improvements in optical coherence tomography (OCT) technology have resulted in highly sophisticated, noninvasive machines allowing detailed and advanced morphological evaluation of all retinal and choroidal layers. Postproduction semiautomated imaging analysis with dedicated public-domain software allows precise quantitative analysis of binarized OCT images. In this regard, the choroidal vascularity index (CVI) is emerging as a new imaging tool for the measurement and analysis of the choroidal vascular system by quantifying both luminal and stromal choroidal components. Numerous reports have been published so far regarding CVI and its potential applications in healthy eyes as well as in the evaluation and management of several chorioretinal diseases. Current literature suggests that CVI has a lesser variability and is influenced by fewer physiologic factors as compared to choroidal thickness. It can be considered a relatively stable parameter for evaluating the changes in the choroidal vasculature. In this review, the principles and the applications of this advanced imaging modality for studying and understanding the contributing role of choroid in retinal and optic nerve diseases are discussed. Potential advances that may allow the widespread adoption of this tool in the routine clinical practice are also presented.

Retinal microcirculation shares similar features with cerebral small blood vessels. Thus, the retina may be considered an accessible ‘window’ to detect the microvascular damage occurring in the setting of neurodegenerative disorders. Optical coherence tomography angiography (OCT-A) is a non-invasive imaging modality providing depth resolved images of blood flow in the retina, choroid, and optic nerve. In this review, we summarize the current literature on the application of OCT-A in glaucoma and central nervous system conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and multiple sclerosis. Future directions aiming at evaluating whether OCT-A can be an additional biomarker for the early diagnosis and monitoring of neurodegenerative disorders are also discussed.

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PurposeTo evaluate the efficacy and safety of combined 25-gauge (G) pars plana vitrectomy (PPV) with intravitreal dexamethasone implant (DXI) for the treatment of advanced stage epiretinal membrane (ERM).MethodsForty consecutive pseudophakic eyes with idiopathic stage 3–4 ERM and intraretinal cysts were randomly assigned to two treatment groups. Twenty eyes underwent combined 25-G PPV, ERM peeling and slow-release DXI (DEX group), whereas 20 eyes underwent standard 25-G PPV with ERM peeling only (control group). Differences in postoperative best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), intraocular pressure (IOP), central macular thickness (CMT) were evaluated.ResultsIn all patients, BCVA significantly increased at 1, 3 and 6 months after surgery compared to baseline (all p < 0.05), but at 3 and 6 months, the visual gain was higher in the DEX group (respectively, p = 0.036, p = 0.006). CMT was significantly lower in DEX group compared to control group at 3 and 6 months after surgery (respectively, p = 0.042, p = 0.003). There was no statistically significant difference in IOP change over the course of the follow-up between groups (p > 0.05).ConclusionCombined 25-G PPV with DXI is associated with better anatomical and functional outcomes in patients with advanced stage ERM.

PurposeTo evaluate the various patterns of subretinal fluid (SRF) in eyes with age-related macular degeneration (AMD) in the absence of macular neovascularisation (MNV) and to assess the long-term outcomes in these eyes.MethodsThis retrospective study included only eyes with non-neovascular AMD and associated SRF. Eyes with evidence of MNV were excluded. Spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) was obtained at baseline and at follow-up, and qualitative and quantitative SD-OCT analysis of macular drusen including drusenoid pigment epithelial detachment (PED) and associated SRF was performed to determine anatomic outcomes.ResultsForty-five eyes (45 patients) were included in this analysis. Mean duration of follow-up was 49.7±36.7 months. SRF exhibited three different morphologies: crest of fluid over the apex of the drusenoid PED, pocket of fluid at the angle of a large druse or in the crypt of confluent drusen or drape of low-lying fluid over confluent drusen. Twenty-seven (60%) of the 45 eyes with fluid displayed collapse of the associated druse or drusenoid PED and 24 (53%) of the 45 eyes developed evidence of complete or incomplete retinal pigment epithelial and outer retinal atrophy.ConclusionNon-neovascular AMD with SRF is an important clinical entity to recognise to avoid unnecessary anti-vascular endothelial growth factor therapy. Clinicians should be aware that SRF can be associated with drusen or drusenoid PED in the absence of MNV and may be the result of retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) decompensation and RPE pump failure.

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PurposeTo compare a novel spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) technique with traditional lid transillumination for evaluation of meibomian glands (MGs) and to assess the relation of MG morphologic changes to the glandular atrophy.DesignEvaluation of diagnostic technology.ParticipantsSixty-one patients with obstructive MGD (30 men, 31 women; age [mean ± standard deviation] 45.1 ± 12.1 years), and 75 control subjects (32 men, 43 women; 44.1 ± 12.5 years) were recruited in order to have a balanced distribution of glandular features.MethodsAgreement between SD-OCT and lid transillumination examination for the detection of drop-out (partial or complete loss of MGs) and microscopic changes (i.e. shortening, distortion, segmentation and entanglement), as well as the relationship between morphological features and MG atrophy were evaluated.Main Outcome MeasuresAgreement between the two meibographic techniques, bias in symmetry of classification, and association analysis between microscopic changes and MG dropout.ResultsOverall agreement for all morphological features was substantial (Cohen kappa coefficient = 0.77; p<0.001), even if, the majority of disagreement occurred for cases with segmentation, where agreement was present in only 108 (81.82%) of 132 eyes with adequate images for interpretation, and where SD-OCT tended to diagnose more cases not detected by traditional lid transillumination (McNemar test, p<0.001). Moreover, segmentation and distortion pattern negatively correlated with the degree of drop-out, whereas shortening and entanglement pattern demonstrated only a weak correlation (Spearman’s ρ was -0.691, -0.491, -0.359, -0.385, respectively).ConclusionsEach method has its advantages but in general there was close agreement between these meibographic techniques, particularly for MG dropout, which supports the reliability of our novel, simple and patient-friendly SD-OCT approach.