Purpose:To evaluate the characteristics of astigmatism in a cross-sectional study of schoolchildren in Tunisia.Materials and Methods:A random cluster design was used to recruit children from primary schools across urban and rural settings in Tunisia, from 2008 to 2010. A total of 6192 students aged 6–14-years old were enrolled. All students whose uncorrected visual acuity was worse than 20/20 underwent a complete ophthalmic examination. Astigmatism was defined as the cylinder power of 0.75 diopter (D) or greater.Results:The prevalence of astigmatism was 6.67%. Mean cylinder power was - 1.89 ± 0.79D. The prevalence of astigmatism increased statistically significantly with age (P = 0.032). The prevalence of astigmatism was not significantly related to gender (P = 0.051). Of those with cylinder, 63.6%, 17.8%, and 18.6% schoolchildren had with with-the-rule, against-the-rule, and oblique astigmatism, respectively. ATR astigmatism was significantly higher in males (P = 0.033). There was no significant association between the student's area of residence and astigmatism (P = 0.059).Conclusion:Comparisons with other studies show that the prevalence of astigmatism in Tunisia is higher than in some countries. The prevalence of astigmatism increased with age but not gender. The majority of schoolchildren had with-the-rule astigmatism.

No abstract

Purpose To evaluate efficacy of intravitreal injection of bevacizumab at the time of cataract surgery in patients with diabetic clinically significant macular edema. Methods Eighteen diabetic patients, with clinically significant macular edema and cataract who have undergone phacoemulsification with intravitreal injection of 1.25 mg bevacizumab at the time surgery, were retrospectively evaluated. All patients were evaluated by spectral OCT before, 1 month, and 3 months after the surgery. The main parameters were the best‐corrected visual acuity (BCVA) and central macular thickness (CMT). Paired samples t‐test was used for statistical analysis. Results The mean best‐corrected visual acuity was 0.16 ± 0.07 at baseline, 0.63 ± 0.44 at 1 month and 0.68 ± 0.12 at 3 months after the surgery. The BCVA levels recorded at 1 month and 3 months after the surgery were significantly higher than the initial BCVA (P = 0.001). The mean CMT was 384.4 ± 102.4 μm at baseline, 288 ± 44.1 μm at 1 month and 254.9 ± 11.9 μm at 3 months after the surgery. The CMT values recorded at 1 month and 3 months after the surgery were significantly lower than the initial CMT (P < 0.001, P < 0.001). Conclusion Phacoemulsification with intravitreal injection of bevacizumab at the time of cataract surgery provides a decrease in CMT with a gain in BCVA in diabetic patients with clinically significant macular edema and cataract.