Karakurt, Y.; Karakeçili, F.

Purpose: To evaluate the ophthalmological findings in patients diagnosed with acute, subacute or chronic brucellosis and to determine the effects of this disease on ocular structures. Methods: Eighty-seven patients diagnosed with brucellosis and 71 healthy cases (as a control group) were enrolled in this prospective study. All participants underwent a complete ophthalmic evaluation, including slit lamp biomicroscopic examination, Goldman applanation tonometry, specular microscopy, optical coherence tomography and fundoscopy with pupil dilation. Results: Overall, ocular involvement was present in 47 eyes of 27 (31.03%) patients diagnosed with brucellosis and was most common in the chronic brucellosis group. In the acute brucellosis group, papillary conjunctivitis in 8 eyes of 4 patients and anterior uveitis in 10 eyes of 6 patients were noted. In the subacute brucellosis group, papillary conjunctivitis in 4 eyes of 2 patients and sequelae of anterior uveitis in 6 eyes of 3 patients were observed. In the chronic brucellosis group, panuveitis in 4 eyes of 2 patients, choroiditis in 4 eyes of 2 patients, and signs of previous anterior uveitis in 11 eyes of 6 patients were noted. Visual acuity was significantly worse in patients with acute anterior uveitis (AAU) or previous anterior uveitis (PAU) compared with the control cases. Conclusion: Ocular involvement should be kept in mind in patients with brucellosis, especially acute, and brucellosis should be included in the differential diagnosis of patients with anterior uveitis living in endemic areas, since the clinical presentation of the disease may not be overt.

Celik, F.; Coteli, E.; Gul, F.C.; Ozsoy, E.; Kobat, S. Gungor; Akkoc, R.F.; Yardim, M.; Sahin, I.; Yalcin, M.H.; Aydin, S.

Purpose: Central serous chorioretinopathy (CSCR) is an eye disease of unknown etiology that presents with reduced visual acuity, choroidal thickening (distance between Bruch's membrane and the chorioscleral border), and subretinal fluid leakage. In the present study, the goal was to investigate the role of the interrelated tenascin C, metalloprotein-1, BAX, BCL2, subfatin and asprosin molecules in the pathogenesis of CSCR. Method: Thirty CSCR patients and 30 controls were included. CSCR was diagnosed by optical coherence tomography imaging. A 5 mL blood sample was collected from all participants after overnight fasting. Compounds in the blood samples were studied with the Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) method. Results: Patients with CSCR were found to have macular thickening (P: 0.08) and statistically significantly reduced visual acuity (P: 0.034) compared to controls. With regard to serum parameters, there were statistically significant increases in tenascin C, metalloprotein-1, BAX, BCL2, subfatin and asprosin levels compared to controls. We found a positive correlation between macular thickness and tenascin C (r + 0.670, P < 0.001), metaloprotein-1 (r + 0.714, P < 0.001), BAX, BCL2 (r + 0.771, P < 0.001), subfatin and asprosin levels and a negative correlation between visual acuity and tenascin C (r + 0.605 P < 0.001), metaloprotein-1 (r + 0.704, P < 0.001), BAX, BCL2 (r + 0.738, P < 0.001), subfatin and asprosin levels. Conclusion: The molecules studied herein were negatively correlated with visual acuity and positively correlated with macular thickness, suggesting that these molecules might have a role in the pathogenesis of CSCR. Thus, we predict that these molecules could be new candidates for the diagnosis and follow-up of CSCR in the future.

Çakır, B.; Doğan, E.; Çelik, E.; Babashli, T.; Uçak, T.; Alagöz, G.

Purpose: To investigate the effects of artificial tear treatment on central corneal epithelial thickness, and central, mid-peripheral and peripheral corneal thicknesses in patients with dry eye disease (DED). Material-methods: Patients with DED underwent ocular examinations, including Schirmer-2 test, slit lamp examination for tear break-up time (BUT), corneal topography (CT) for measuring mean central, mid-peripheral and peripheral corneal thickness values and anterior segment optic coherence tomography (AS-OCT) for obtaining central corneal epithelial thickness. After artificial tear treatment (carboxymethylcellulose and sodium hyaluronate formulations) for one month, patients were examined again at a second visit and the results were compared. Results: Sixty-one eyes of 33 female dry eye patients (mean age: 38.3 ± 5.7 years) were enrolled. The mean follow-up time was 36.4 ± 3.3 days. The mean tear BUT and Schirmer-1 tests revealed significant improvement after treatment (P = 0.000, P = 0.000, respectively). Central corneal epithelium and mean mid-peripheral corneal thicknesses measured significantly higher after treatment (P = 0.001, P = 0.02). Changes in central and peripheral corneal thicknesses were not statistically significant. Conclusion: Artificial tear treatment in dry eye patients seems to increase central corneal epithelial and mid-peripheral corneal thicknesses. Measurement of corneal epithelial thickness can be a useful tool for evaluation of treatment response in dry eye patients. Further long-term prospective studies are needed to investigate this item.