Purpose. To evaluate and compare corneal backscatter from anterior stroma between small incision lenticule extraction (SMILE) and femtosecond laser-assisted LASIK (femto-LASIK).Methods. A cohort of 60 eyes of 30 patients was randomized to receive SMILE in one eye and femto-LASIK in the fellow eye. In vivo confocal microscopy was performed at 1 week and 1, 3, and 6 months after surgery. The main outcome measurements were maximum backscattered intensity and the depth from which it was measured, the backscattered light intensity 30 μm below Bowman’s membrane at the flap interface and 150 μm below the superficial epithelium, and the number of refractive particles at the flap interface.Results. The mean backscattered light intensity (LI) at all measured depths and the maximum backscattered LI were higher in the SMILE group than the femto-LASIK group at all postoperative visits. LI differences at 1 week and 1- and 3-month visits were statistically significant (P<0,05). LI differences at 6 months were not statistically significant. There was no difference in the number of refractive particles at the flap interface between the groups at any visit.Conclusions. SMILE results in increased backscattered LI in the anterior stroma when compared with femto-LASIK were evaluated.

Purpose: To compare the efficacy of low-fluence photodynamic therapy (PDT) and PDT with half-dose verteporfin in chronic central serous chorioretinopathy (CSC). Patients and methods: The medical records of 64 eyes from 60 patients with chronic CSC were retrospectively reviewed; 36 eyes received low-fluence PDT (25 J/cm²) and 28 eyes received half-dose verteporfin PDT (3 mg/m²). The primary outcome measure was the proportion of eyes with complete resolution of subretinal fluid. Secondary outcome measures were the changes in best corrected visual acuity (BCVA) and central foveal thickness, and the proportion of eyes that showed an increase of ≥5 letters in BCVA at the last visit. Results: The mean follow-up period was12.5±4.3 months and 13.1±4 months in the low-fluence group and half-dose group, respectively (P=0.568). Thirty-three eyes (91.6%) in the low-fluence group and 26 eyes (92.8%) in the half-dose verteporfin group showed complete resolution of subretinal fluid (P=0.703). BCVA increased by a mean of 7.4 letters and 4.8 letters in the low-fluence group and half-dose group, respectively (P=0.336). Seventeen eyes (52.8%) in the low-fluence group and 14 eyes (50%) in the half-dose group experienced a gain of ≥5 letters in BCVA (P=0.825). In the low-fluence and half-dose verteporfin group, the mean baseline central foveal thickness was 351±90 µm and 341±96 µm, and significantly decreased to 188±61 µm and 181±47 µm, respectively (P<0.01). Conclusion: Both treatments resulted in complete subretinal fluid resolution in most of the eyes, with significantly better visual acuity outcomes compared to baseline at the last visit.

The purpose of this study was to investigate whether the severity of diabetic disease in the retina is paralleled by changes in the photoreceptor layer. This cross-sectional study included healthy volunteers (30 volunteers, 60 eyes) and patients with diabetes (48 patients, 96 eyes). Each patient underwent a single session of spectral domain optical coherence tomography (OCT) in which each retina was imaged twice. On each OCT image, the thickness of the PROS layer was measured at the foveal center and at points 750 μm temporal to and nasal to the center. For statistical analyses, OCT images were assigned to one of the following groups: healthy, diabetes without retinopathy (DM), diabetic retinopathy (DR), or diabetic retinopathy with macular edema (DME). The mean PROS thickness at the foveal center in the first and second-obtained OCT images was as follows: healthy, 38.5 μm and 38.6 μm; DM, 38.2 μm and 38.2 μm; DR, 35.6 μm and 36.1 μm; DME, 32.6 μm and 32.6 μm. In the first and second-obtained images, significant differences were found between the healthy group and DR and DME (p < 0.05 for all), between the DM group and the DME (p < 0.05 for all), and between the DR group and the DME group (p < 0.05 for all). No significant differences between groups were found at the nasal and temporal locations. The PROS layer at the foveal center was thinner in patients who had diabetic retinopathy or diabetic macular edema than both the healthy volunteers and diabetic patients without retinopathy.