Introduction: Corneal damage is the common issue affecting 70% of diabetic patients. Diabetic cornea has functional abnormalities such as decreased corneal Endothelial Cell Density (ECD), thicker corneas with increased endothelial permeability, lesser corneal sensitivity, and elevated corneal auto-fluorescence. Aim: To study the corneal endothelial characteristics among diabetic patients and to identify the factors associated with endothelial damage and compare the corneal changes based on the duration of diabetes mellitus and glycaemic control. Materials and Methods: The hospital based cross-sectional study was conducted in 155 patients (100 diabetic and 55 control) from 24th September 2016 to 29th March 2018. The corneal endothelial morphological features were evaluated using a non-contact EM-3000 specular microscope. The morphological characteristics of endothelial cell like the ECD, Coefficient of Variation (CV), Central Corneal Thickness (CCT), and percentage of hexagonal cells were compared between diabetic patients and the control population. Age, gender, blood pressure, duration of diabetes, fasting and Postprandial Blood Sugar (PPBS) HbA1c value, blood urea, and serum creatinine, Intra Ocular Pressure (IOP) were also recorded, and the endothelial cell characteristics were compared between the diabetic groups according to the duration (< or ≥ 3 years) and HbA1c% (< or ≥ 7%). An independent t-test was performed to compare the means of endothelial characteristics between study subjects and the control group and also between duration of diabetes and HbA1C levels. A p-value of less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant. The data were analysed using a SPSS statistical program. Results: Baseline characteristics like Fasting Blood Sugar (FBS), PPBS, HbA1c, Systolic and Diastolic Blood Pressure (SBP and DBP) were significantly higher in diabetic group than control. A significant difference in corneal thickness (p=0.01) and hexagonality (p<0.001) were also observed between both the groups. The diabetic group showed a reduction in cell density and a higher coefficient variation of cell size however the differences were not statistically significant, There was no significant difference in the ECD, CCT, CV, and hexagonality irrespective to HbA1c level and duration of diabetes. Conclusion: Patients with diabetes had a significant increase in corneal thickness, and a higher frequency of pleomorphism compared to control subjects. In terms of ECD and co-efficient variation, no difference was observed between groups.
Trelegy Ellipta (GlaxoSmithKlineTM) is the first single inhaler triple combination therapy comprising of umeclidinium, vilanterol and fluticasone approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration (US FDA) for patients with severe COPD in 2019. Clinical trials comparing this triple combination with dual therapy including a Long Acting β2-Agonist/Long Acting Muscarinic Antagonist (LABA/LAMA) or Long Acting β2-Agonist/Inhaled Corticosteroids (LABA/ICS) were evaluated. Triple combination did show improvement through the mean Forced Expiratory Volume per second (FEV1), St. George questionnaire, and reduced hospitalisation due to acute exacerbation of COPD. This medication should be prescribed cautiously for certain populations. Although this triple combination is used only in patients with the most advanced forms of disease who have frequent exacerbations and remain uncontrolled, there are certain additional indications that may be explored in future trials. The convenience associated with using a single device for three different classes of drugs could be its biggest trump card and it will not be surprising to see its preference among patients avoiding the need for multiple dosing. Nevertheless, it remains to be seen if this improved adherence would translate into improved outcomes such as reduced mortality in real world practice among patients with severe COPD. The availability of a single inhaler device for delivering a triple combination of LABA/LAMA/ICS is a small success story in the quest to identify better therapies for patients with severe COPD, who are so prone to repeat acute exacerbations which could eventually turn fatal.
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