2024 Issue 5 at a Glance:
Esteemed colleagues,
In its fifth issue of 2024, the Turkish Journal of Ophthalmology brings you six original studies, one review, and three case reports.
A clinical study by Korkmaz et al. titled “Evaluation of Medically Reversible Limbal Stem Cell Deficiency” aimed to evaluate the clinical characteristics and treatment strategies of patients with limbal stem cell deficiency (LSCD) that regressed as a result of medical treatment. Among 29 eyes of 21 patients examined, the pre-treatment LSCD stage was determined to be stage 1A in 5 eyes (17.2%), stage 1B in 12 eyes (41.4%), stage 1C in 4 eyes (13.8%), stage 2A in 4 eyes (13.8%), and stage 2B in 4 eyes (13.8%). With etiology-targeted medical treatment, LSCD completely resolved in 6 eyes (20.7%) and in the remaining eyes decreased in severity to below stage 2B, which is the threshold for surgery. The authors emphasized that although limbal stem cell transplantation is generally accepted as the main treatment approach for LSCD, in the early stages it can be treated with the right medical treatment, without the need for surgical intervention (See pages 251-256).
In their study titled “Effects of Glaucoma Treatment on Ocular Surface and Tear Functions: Comparison of Trabeculectomy and Antiglaucoma Drops”, Mermer et al. investigated tear function and ocular surface disease (OSD) findings in glaucoma patients treated with antiglaucoma medication in one eye and trabeculectomy surgery in the other eye. The patient group included 38 eyes of 19 patients who underwent mitomycin C-augmented trabeculectomy at least 6 months earlier and were followed up without medication in the operated eye while continuing to use antiglaucoma drugs in the fellow eye. The control group comprised 20 eyes of 20 healthy individuals. While no difference in the incidence of OSD was observed between the eyes that underwent trabeculectomy and those receiving antiglaucoma medications, both eyes of the glaucoma patients differed significantly from controls in terms of tear break-up time, corneal and conjunctival fluorescein staining, Schirmer II test, and Nelson stages (p<0.05) (See pages 257-262).
A retrospective study by Akmaz and Talay titled “Does Laser Iridotomy Cause Secondary Epiretinal Membrane?” aimed to determine the frequency of epiretinal membrane (ERM) in the long term after neodymium yttrium-doped aluminum garnet laser iridotomy (LI). The study examined 94 eyes with at least 4 years of follow-up and a control group of 66 eyes followed up for suspected glaucoma. ERM developed in 36 (38.2%) of the 94 eyes in the LI group versus 13 (19.6%) of the 66 eyes in the control group. The authors emphasized that the LI procedure is a predisposing factor for the development of ERM (See pages 263-267).
Özdemir Zeydanlı et al. retrospectively evaluated the effectiveness of human amniotic membrane (hAM) transplantation in the surgical treatment of complicated retinal detachments (RD) due to various etiologies in their study titled “Human Amniotic Membrane: A Seal for Complex Retinal Detachments”. Surgical indications included RD associated with high myopic macular hole (MH) (n=5), RD associated with traumatic large macular tears (n=4), combined tractional RD and MH associated with cicatricial retinopathy of prematurity (n=2), combined RD associated with severe retinitis (n=1), and RD associated with morning glory syndrome (n=1). The authors emphasized that the use of the described technique, especially in pediatric cases, was a distinguishing feature of the study. During an average follow-up period of 15 months (range, 6-30 months), 75% of MHs closed with a single surgery, while 25% required a second surgery due to hAM contraction/dislocation. In 92% of the cases, silicone could be removed during follow-up and the retina remained attached (See pages 268-274).
In their study titled “Multilayered Inverted Internal Limiting Membrane Flap Technique in Optic Disc Pit Maculopathy”, Özdemir et al. applied the multilayer inverted internal limiting membrane (ML-ILM) flap technique previously used in MH surgery in eyes with optic disc pit maculopathy (ODPM) and evaluated the anatomical and visual outcomes. Anatomical and functional gains were observed in all eyes during follow-up, and the authors stated that the ML-ILM flap technique may be a preferable surgical option to achieve both high anatomical and functional success and flap stabilization (See pages 275-281).
In their study titled “Turkish Retinoblastoma Research: A Bibliometric Analysis (1966-2024)”, Aykut and Sarıgül Sezenöz aimed to conduct the first bibliometric analysis of retinoblastoma studies conducted in Türkiye and determine the leading institutions, authors, international collaborative studies, and areas open to development. Results obtained by searching international databases (Web of Science [WoS] and Scopus), a national database (TR Index), and gray literature sources (theses and Scientific and Technological Research Council of Türkiye projects) were cleaned and analyzed using bibliometric tools. A search from 1966 to 2024 yielded a total of 122 publications on the subject in WoS and Scopus, with articles being the most common document type (n=78, 63.9%). More than two-thirds of the publications were contributed by Istanbul University (48 publications, 23.8%), Hacettepe University (34 publications, 16.8%), Ankara University (33 publications, 16.3%), and Istanbul University-Cerrahpaşa (22 publications, 10.9%) (See pages 282-290).
The review in this issue was penned by Yan et al. and is titled “Caffeine and Vision: Effects on the Eye”. The article presents a comprehensive analysis of the ocular effects of caffeine, a psychoactive substance widely consumed in almost every social stratum in recent years, and is notable for its rich and current bibliography on the subject (See pages 291-300).
In the case reports section, Dudu Deniz Açar presents the first case under the title “Partial Lateral Rectus Avulsion Due to Cat Scratch” along with detailed visuals, emphasizing that traumatic isolated rectus muscle rupture without associated globe damage is extremely rare (See pages 301-303).
In an article titled “Pulsatile Proptosis and Sphenoid Wing Dysplasia with no Evidence of Neurofibromatosis Type 1: A Case Report and Review of the Literature”, Delibay Akgün et al. share detailed data from a 17-year-old male patient and present a comprehensive review of the related literature (See pages 304-308).
In a case report titled “Conjunctival Collagen Cross-Linking for the Treatment of Leaking Avascular Cystic Bleb”, Koçer and Turpçuoğlu comprehensively analyze the treatment process of a 70-year-old male patient who underwent trabeculectomy surgery 7 years earlier and was found to have a leaking avascular cystic bleb (See pages 309-312).
We hope that the articles selected for this issue will provide you interesting and enjoyable reading.
Respectfully on behalf of the Editorial Board,
Hakan Özdemir, MD
