Objectives: To analyze outcomes of resident-performed phacoemulsifications and to assess the resident phacoemulsification learning curve. Methods: Retrospective chart review of residentperformed phacoemulsification cases at the Atlanta Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Decatur, Georgia, from July 1, 1999, through June 30, 2002. Outcomes measured included postoperative uncorrected visual acuity (UCVA), best spectacle-corrected visual acuity (BSCVA), intraoperative complications, and adjusted phacoemulsification times (total phacoemulsification time multiplied by phacoemulsification power used). Results: We analyzed 680 cases. Postoperative mean UCVA was 20/39, and mean BSCVA was 20/25 (Ն 20/20 in 44.0% of cases and Ն20/40 in 97.8%). There were no differences in visual acuity outcomes over the course of residency training. Intraoperative complications occurred in 34 cases (5.0%), with a significant reduction in vitreous loss rates after the first 80 resident cases (5.1% vs 1.9%; P=.03). Mean adjusted phacoemulsification time was 0.68 minutes, with a significant reduction in adjusted phacoemulsification time after the first 80 cases (0.87 vs 0.52 minutes; P Ͻ.001). Conclusions: Quality visual outcomes after phacoemulsification can be attained throughout residency training; however, surgical competency, when measured by complication rates and phacoemulsification efficiency, continues to improve significantly with increasing surgical experience well beyond the first 80 resident phacoemulsification cases.

Clearly.

Alterations in endogenous levels of the angiogenic proteins basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) were assessed in rabbit hindlimb muscles subjected to 1, 5, or 21 days of ischemia. In the glycolytic [tibialis anterior (TA)] and the oxidative [soleus (SOL)] muscles from the ischemic and contralateral (control) hindlimb, bFGF and VEGF protein expression was determined by ELISA and immunoblot analysis. Total VEGF protein expression was greater in oxidative than in glycolytic muscles after 5 days of hindlimb ischemia. In SOL muscle, total VEGF detected by ELISA in ischemic limbs was increased to 137, 300, and 220% of control at 1, 5, and 21 days, respectively. However, in TA, total VEGF expression by ELISA was increased only at 1 and 5 days of ischemia to 140 and 134% of control, respectively. By immunoblotting, the expression of the 165-amino acid isoform (VEGF(165)) was initially decreased to 55% of control in ischemic SOL at 1 day but was increased to 250% of control at day 5 and remained at 155% at day 21. In TA, VEGF(165) was increased to 260% of control at 1 day of ischemia but only to 150% of control by day 5. The only significant change in bFGF expression in either the oxidative or glycolytic muscles was a small increase (129% of control) at 21 days in SOL. This study demonstrates that the magnitude and direction of change in VEGF protein expression depend on VEGF subtype, muscle fiber type, and duration of ischemia. These findings suggest that strategies in therapeutic angiogenesis may need to differ depending on muscle fiber type.

When it can be used, interferometry is equivalent to immersion ultrasonography regarding biometric accuracy and precision. However, it cannot replace ultrasonography, especially for eyes with dense media opacity.

This study was undertaken to measure the effect of telemedicine consultation for diagnosis and treatment planning in cases of strabismus. Telemedicine consultation records of all patients on ORBIS Telemedicine Cyber-Sight that resulted in a final diagnosis of superior oblique palsy (SOP), Duane syndrome (DS), and Brown syndrome (BS) were collected. The following were then determined: (1) the clinical characteristics of patients in each category, (2) the diagnosis submitted by the doctor requesting consultation compared to the diagnosis determined by the mentor, and (3) the treatment plan submitted with the consultation request compared to the mentor's suggested plan. The clinical characteristics of patients with SOP, DS, and BS were similar to those reported in the literature. There were 89 with SOP, 131 with DS, and 50 with BS. Partners and mentors agreed on the diagnosis of SOP in 81% of cases, DS in 79% of cases, and BS in 72% of cases. Mentors agreed with the partners' proposed treatment plan in SOP 35%, DS 55%, and BS 52%. Mentors are likely to change the diagnosis proposed by doctors seeking consultation for strabismus in 25% of cases and provide a new treatment plan in more than 50% of cases. The clinical characteristics of those strabismus entities selected matched those found in the literature, making it likely that the cases as viewed on telemedicine presented a true clinical picture.