Glaucoma is the leading cause of blindness in the developed and developing world. Not only is the clinical impact of this disease considerable, but associated economic and humanistic burdens – affecting patients, caregivers, and society – are substantial. Since glaucoma is an age-related disorder and populations in many developing countries are aging at a faster pace than in the developed world, increasing attention is being focused on ways to ameliorate the burdens of illness. In this paper, we examine the burdens of glaucoma with particular focus on developing countries, discuss some of the challenges that exist in delivering optimal glaucoma management within budget constraints, and bring into perspective how we could improve current healthcare systems, leverage technology, and strike an appropriate balance between cost and quality of care, thereby offering considerations to payors and policymakers in these countries that may result in longer-term cost savings, while concurrently striving to achieve the WHO Vision on the prevention of blindness and visual impairment.
Purpose: To incorporate advanced corneal imaging into a new keratoconus classification system that utilizes posterior curvature, thinnest pachymetry, and best-corrected distance vision (CDVA) in addition to standard anterior parameters. Materials and methods:A total of 672 eyes of 336 normal patients were imaged with the Oculus Pentacam HR. Anterior and posterior radius of curvature measurements were taken using a 3.0 mm zone centered on the thinnest area and corneal thickness was measured at the thinnest point. Mean and standard deviations were recorded and anterior data were compared to the existing Amsler-Krumeich (AK) classification. Results:A total of 672 eyes of 336 patients were analyzed. Anterior and posterior values were 7.65 ± 0.236 mm / 6.26 ± 0.214 mm respectively and thinnest pachymetry values were 534.2 ± 30.36 um. Comparing anterior curvature values to AK staging yielded 2.63, 5.47, 6.44 standard deviations for stages 1, 2, and 3 respectively. Posterior staging uses the same standard deviation gates. Comparative pachymetric values yielded 4.42, and 7.72 standard deviations for stages 2 and 3 respectively. Conclusion:A new keratoconus staging system incorporates posterior curvature, thinnest pachymetric values, and distance visual acuity in addition to the standard anterior curvature and consists of stages 0 to 4 (5 stages), closely matches the existing AK classification stages 1 to 4 on anterior curvature. The new classification system by incorporating curvature and thickness measurements based on the thinnest point, as opposed to apical, better reflects the anatomic changes in keratoconus.
Keratoconus is an ectatic corneal disease that affects both men and women, usually at a young age. Risk factors such as eye rubbing, environmental and genetic factors contribute to its pathogenesis. Keratoconus presents a variable prevalence, being as high as 5% of the population in the Middle East. In this review, an English-language search for keratoconus epidemiology was undertaken using the PubMed database. We present and discuss the findings of the most relevant epidemiological studies on keratoconus and describe its characteristics and risk factors, correlating them with its pathogenesis.
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