It is widely recognised that ophthalmology is often underrepresented in undergraduate medical education, a major blind spot of the curriculum. Students usually receive only a two-week rotation in the specialty. This is arguably insufficient to gain even a rudimentary understanding...
Toxic optic neuropathy are a group of conditions manifested by reduction of visual functions secondary to damage to the anterior visual pathways from exposure to a toxin. The implicated toxin could be work-based, food or drink related, or iatrogenic medication....
1 April 2015
| Keith Barton, Winifred Nolan, Nick Strouthidis
|
EYE - Glaucoma
Management options and outcomes in glaucoma practice were reviewed at the 7th Moorfields International Glaucoma Symposium, held in London on 24 January 2015. This article summarises perspectives from international glaucoma specialists on debated issues in topical therapy, glaucoma surgery, diagnostic...
Central retinal artery occlusion (CRAO) is a rare but devastating vascular episode that can have severe impact on vision. Treatment is very time-limited and needs to be initiated very quickly to salvage any vision. The majority of patients present to...
History A one-year-old girl originally presented with a red eye, initially bilaterally and later in the left only. On examination a membrane was found on the tarsal conjunctiva of the upper eyelid (Figure 1). Figure 1: Anterior segment. Serum plasminogen...
The business world tells us, “Know your why.” But increasingly, we live in a society where people think, “Why bother?” In this interview, David wants to know what makes Carrie MacEwen tick, and why she bothered to get involved locally,...
In the UK, ophthalmology is a highly competitive speciality, attracting many medical graduates keen to pursue a career in this area. However, in recent years, the competition ratios for ophthalmology ST1 training posts have increased significantly, creating a challenging environment...
A 44-year-old patient presents with binocular, mostly horizontal diplopia when fixating on moving objects. This has been ongoing for approximately five years. He is known to have multiple sclerosis and had an episode of optic neuritis six years prior in...
In the second of this series I describe a case of Acanthaemoeba keratitis (AK) that was misdiagnosed for a prolonged period which resulted in a devastating outcome. This is one of half a dozen similar medico-legal cases I have dealt...
Cataract removal with intraocular lens (IOL) implantation is one of the most frequently performed surgeries in current clinical practice [1,2]. New microsurgical techniques and refined IOL power calculations allow excellent refractive outcomes. Refractive surprise following cataract surgery is uncommon [1-3]...
A 72-year-old man with ocular hypertension presented three months after routine right phacoemulsification and toric intraocular lens (IOL) implantation with a two-week history of an irritated right eye and a sudden deterioration in right vision. His preoperative spherical equivalence was...
The Duke Elder examination is an undergraduate ophthalmology exam, conducted by the Royal College of Ophthalmologists (RCOphth) and undertaken by students with an interest in ophthalmology. It is a two-hour, 90-question, multiple choice exam with a broader curriculum than that...