undreds of individuals apply for ophthalmology residency positions each year using the Centralized Application Services (CAS), administered by San Francisco Residency and Fellowship Matching Services (SF Match). Although the match rate remains relatively stable at approximately 75%, the mean number of applications submitted has risen from 48 in 2008 to 75 in 2019. 1,2 In 2010, highly qualified applicants were advised to apply to between 10 and 20 residency programs, 3 but more recent studies suggested a target of 45 applications for these applicants and more than 80 for applicants with less competitive qualification. 2 The application process represents a considerable financial burden for applicants; in 2018-2019, the CAS application alone cost $685 to apply to 45 programs, which increased to $1910 for 80 pro-grams. These high costs are not unique to ophthalmology. In emergency medicine, the cost of securing a residency position was estimated at $8312 in 2016. 4 These trends also come with increasing administrative burden for residency programs tasked with reviewing rising numbers of applications. As a result, many programs have increasingly emphasized quantifiable cognitive measures, such as clinical grades and the US Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE) board scores. 3 The USMLE Step 1 scores and Alpha Omega Alpha Honors Medical Society membership are factors with statistically significant associations with matching into an ophthalmology residency. 5 Although USMLE Step 1 scores have been correlated with in-training examination scores and board-certification pass rates, they are not associated with IMPORTANCE The ophthalmology residency application process is critical for applicants and residency programs, and knowledge about the preferences of applicants would assist both groups in improving the process.OBJECTIVE To evaluate the experiences and preferences of ophthalmology residency applicants. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTSThis cross-sectional, nonvalidated survey was conducted online. All applicants to the Bascom Palmer Eye Institute ophthalmology residency program during the 2018-2019 application cycle were invited to complete the survey. Data collection occurred from April 1, 2019, to April 30, 2019.MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES Applicant demographics, application submissions, interview experiences, financial considerations, match results, and suggestions for improvement of the application process. RESULTSResponses were received from 185 applicants (36.4%), including 77 women (41.6%). A successful match into an ophthalmology residency was achieved by 172 respondents (93.0%). There was a mean (SD) US Medical Licensing Examination Step 1 score of 245.8 (13.3) points. Respondents applied to a mean (SD) of 76.4 (23.5) ophthalmology residency programs, received 14.0 (9.0) invitations to interview, and attended 10.3 (4.4) interviews. Choices regarding applications and interviews were based mostly on program reputation, location, and advisor recommendation. A usual lead time of at least 3 weeks between the invit...
Purpose: Perioperative pregabalin administration has been found to reduce the risk of persistent pain after a variety of surgical procedures. However, this approach has not been tested in relation to eye surgery. As such, the purpose of this study was to evaluate whether perioperative pregabalin can reduce the presence of dry eye (DE) symptoms, including eye pain, six months after laser-assisted in situ keratomileusis (LASIK). Methods: Prospective, masked, randomized single-center pilot study. Patients were treated with either pregabalin (oral solution of pregabalin 150 mg twice daily, first dose prior to surgery, continued for a total of 28 doses over 14 days) or placebo solution. The primary outcome was dry eye symptoms as measured by the Dry Eye Questionnaire 5 (DEQ-5). Secondary outcome measures included pain-related eye symptoms. Results: In total, 43 individuals were enrolled in the study and randomized to pregabalin (n = 21) or placebo (n = 22). Of those, 42 individuals completed the final visit after six months of follow-up. Some differences were noted between the two groups at baseline, including a higher frequency of females in the pregabalin group. At 6-months, there were no significant differences in the percentage of patients with DE symptoms (DEQ5 ≥ 6, 57% vs. 33%, p = 0.14), DE symptom severity (DEQ5, 6.6 ± 5.0 vs. 4.5 ± 4.2, p = 0.14), ocular pain intensity (numerical rating scale, 1.10 ± 1.48 vs. 0.38 ± 0.97, p = 0.08), or neuropathic pain complaints (Neuropathic Pain Symptom Inventory-Eye, 2.81 ± 4.07 vs. 3.14 ± 5.85, p = 0.83) between the pregabalin and control groups. Ocular signs were likewise similar between the groups, and of note, did not correlate with DE symptoms. The strongest predictor of DE symptoms six months post-surgery was the presence of DE symptoms prior to surgery. Conclusions: Perioperative pregabalin did not reduce the frequency or severity of DE symptoms at a six month follow-up after LASIK in this small pilot study.
Purpose: This article aims to determine preferences and demographics for listeners of an ophthalmology podcast, since podcasts are gaining favor for medical education. Methods: The present study used a cross-sectional, online survey as well as Podtrac, Inc and Squarespace, Inc platform analytics to examine perceived educational usefulness of podcasts for listeners. Results: Quarterly episode downloads increased from 684 in first-quarter 2017 to 16 016 in third-quarter 2018. A total of 102 participants completed the survey: 82 (80.4%) men and 68 (66.7%) retina attending physicians or fellows. Most respondents listened to “stay up to date” or “learn more about the field of retina” (67; 65.7% each). Most respondents agreed that podcasts are useful for medical education and result in changes in practice, but not that podcasts have surpassed traditional educational methods. For respondents, there was no difference in perceived usefulness between podcasts and peer-reviewed journals, textbooks, continuing medical education lectures, or national conferences; these did not differ with respondent listening histories. Conclusions: Podcasts are valuable adjuncts for distributing clinically relevant material.
Purpose. To examine the differences in tear film parameters more than 3 months postsurgery in eyes with cataract surgery (surgical eyes) versus eyes without cataract surgery (nonsurgical eyes). Methods. 29 patients were seen at the Miami Veterans Affairs Medical Center (VAMC) who had cataract surgery by phacoemulsification in one eye more than 3 months prior to the study date and had no history of surgical intervention in their fellow eye. Tear film parameters were measured in both eyes and compared using McNemar tests for dichotomous variables and paired and single sample t-tests for continuous variables. Results. Mean patient age was 73 (standard deviation (SD): 11); 26 patients (90%) identified themselves as White and 7 (24%) as Hispanic. The mean number of days between surgery and this study was 952 (SD: 1109). There were no statistical differences between the surgical eye and the nonsurgical eye with respect to any of the measured tear film parameters. Confidence intervals around these differences were narrow enough to exclude a substantial effect of cataract surgery. The elapsed time between cataract surgery and measurement of the tear parameters did not appear to affect the difference in parameters between the two eyes. Conclusion. We found that eyes that had cataract surgery more than 3 months prior to testing had no differences in their tear film parameters compared to eyes without a history of surgery.
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