Purpose:
To determine the prevalence of pigment dispersion syndrome (PDS) in patients presenting for vision correcting refractive surgery.
Setting:
Discover Vision Centers, Kansas City, MO.
Design:
This is a prospective case series.
Materials and Methods:
A total of 637 eyes of 319 serial patients who presented seeking refractive surgery were included in this prospective, observational study. Patients underwent routine ophthalmologic examination before refractive surgery. PDS was diagnosed by the presence of a deep anterior chamber, posterior bowing of the irides, Krukenberg spindles, and/or presence of mid-peripheral iris transillumination defects by the same experienced ophthalmologist. The prevalence of PDS and its associated ophthalmic and demographic characteristics were evaluated in those diagnosed.
Results:
Of the 637 eyes, 165 (25.9%) eyes were diagnosed with PDS. Krukenberg spindles were present in 53 (8.3%) of the total eyes and in 47 (28.5%) eyes that were diagnosed with PDS. Transillumination defects were present in 153 (95%) eyes diagnosed with PDS and 161 (25.2%) total eyes. There was equal distribution between sex in those diagnosed with PDS (male vs. female: 26 vs. 25.8%; P=0.942). Blue colored eyes were most likely to have PDS (35.8% of patients).
Conclusions:
The prevalence of PDS within the population of patients seeking refractive surgery is likely greater than the general population as a whole. This is most likely the result of self-selection and high association between myopia and PDS. Given that not infrequent sequela can occur from untreated PDS, it is prudent that refractive surgeons be aware of this increased prevalence and perform thorough examinations to properly identify the condition.
rate of melanoma per 100,000 people and incidence of melanoma in the US increased by an average annual rate of 3.2% and 5.8%, respectively (51.1% and 92.2% overall increase) (Fig. 1).A Spearman-Rank coefficient test showed a strong correlation between the number of days in extreme UV index levels and the rate of melanoma during this period (R = 0.71, P < 0.05).This study is subject to several limitations. We used average UV indices and melanoma rates for the entire US in the analysis, based on available data, and we acknowledge that there are geographical differences. In addition, the development of melanoma usually lags 10-20 years following UV exposure, so while there is an association between extreme UV levels and melanoma rate and incidences, we did not prove causation. We were unable to account for confounding factors, including increased availability of dermatological services, and skin-tanning trends in different regions.Previous studies have established a positive correlation between higher UV indices with higher melanoma incidences. 4 This study adds to existing literature with a positive association between extreme UV indices with rate and incidence of melanoma. Therefore, it is crucial to find ways to inhibit this trend of increasing UV indexes and to educate our patients about the importance of sun protection and sunscreen to decrease melanoma rates.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.