No abstract

Myopia is not a simple refractive error, but an eyesight-threatening disease. There is a high prevalence of myopia, 80% to 90%, in young adults in East Asia; myopia has become the leading cause of blindness in this area. As the myopic population increases globally, the severity of its impact is predicted. Approximately one fifth of the myopic population has high myopia (≥-6 diopters), which results in irreversible vision loss such as retinal detachment, choroidal neovascularization, cataracts, glaucoma, and macular atrophy. The increasing prevalence of school myopia in the past few decades may be a result of gene-environment interactions. However, earlier school myopia onset would accompany faster myopia progression and greater risk of high myopia later in life. Recently, there have been effective interventions to delay the onset of myopia, such as outdoor activity and decreasing the duration of near work. Hyperopia (≤0.5 diopters) is a predictor of myopia. Pharmacological agents and optic interventions such as low-concentration atropine and orthokeratology may slow progression in myopic children. Novel surgeries and anti-vascular endothelial growth factor drugs could deal with some myopic complications. From available evidence, the prevention, control, and treatment of myopia seem to be promising. However, to reduce the impact of myopia in future decades, more work and effort are still needed, including that by governments and intercountry eye health organizations.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate effects of stopping smoking on the outcome of nonmuscle‐invasive bladder cancer, as cigarette smoking is a risk factor for bladder cancer and little is known about whether stopping smoking reduces the risk of recurrence or progression. PATIENTS AND METHODS Between January 1997 and July 2005, 297 men with primary nonmuscle‐invasive bladder cancer were treated with transurethral resection (TUR); their smoking status before and after the diagnosis of bladder cancer was obtained by a post hoc questionnaire and interview. ‘Quitters’ were those who ceased smoking within a year before and 3 months after the diagnosis. Ex‐smokers were those who ceased smoking more than a year before diagnosis. Several pathological and clinical variables were compared, with all statistical comparisons being two‐sided. RESULTS In all, 265 patients completed the questionnaire, including 64 non‐smokers, 64 ex‐smokers, 59 quitters, and 78 continued smokers. The median follow‐up was 38 months. There were no significant differences in the strata of stage, grade, tumour multiplicity, intravesical therapy, or median follow‐up duration between the four patient groups. The respective 3‐year recurrence‐free survival of continued smokers, non‐smokers, ex‐smokers and quitters was 45%, 57%, 62% and 70%. By multivariate analysis, high‐grade, T1‐stage, multiple tumours and continued smoking were significant independent predictors for a shorter recurrence‐free survival. Quitters had a lower risk of recurrence than did either continued smokers or non‐smokers, but had a similar risk to ex‐smokers. CONCLUSION Stopping smoking might be associated with a lower recurrence rate for patients with nonmuscle‐invasive bladder cancer.

Regular topical administration of 0.025% atropine eye drops can prevent myopia onset and myopic shift in premyopic schoolchildren for a 1-year period.