EyeWorld is the official news magazine of the American Society of Cataract & Refractive Surgery.
Issue link: https://digital.eyeworld.org/i/1123870
36 | EYEWORLD | JUNE 2019 ATARACT C Patients with PAU did not have worse visual acuity (VA) compared to those without PAU, and African Americans with PAU did not have worse VA or IOP compared to other races with PAU. Eighteen of the 61 eyes (29.5%) also devel- oped cystoid macular edema (CME). Akshay Thomas, MD, said the study was well powered to meet its goal of identifying risk factors for PAU following uncomplicated cataract surgery. "There are limitations to the study design inherent to any single-center retrospective anal- ysis and the authors have acknowledged this," Dr. Thomas said. "The authors clearly defined the SUN diagnostic criteria for PAU but did not elaborate on whether all patients with suspect- ed PAU underwent an evaluation for alternate causes of uveitis. If so, was the workup stan- dardized across patients? For example, did all patients get a chest x-ray?" Study needed Dr. Thomas agreed with the authors that there N ew research found African Amer- icans have a higher risk of devel- oping persistent anterior uveitis (PAU) following uncomplicated phacoemulsification cataract ex- traction. The retrospective cohort study examined risk factors for the development of PAU following uncomplicated cataract ex- traction in patients without histories of uveitis or autoimmune diseases. 1 The PAU patients were identified accord- ing to the Standardization of Uveitis Nomen- clature Working Group, which found 61 eyes (2.0%) from 48 patients developed PAU. It found African Americans were more likely than Caucasians to develop PAU (relative risk=11.3, p<0.0001). "The mechanism leading to this is unclear," the study authors wrote. "While requiring pro- longed treatment, PAU does not appear to lead to worse visual outcomes." Age, sex, surgery length, and cumulative dissipated energy were not found to be risk factors. RESEARCH HIGHLIGHT by Rich Daly EyeWorld Contributing Writer Contact information Thomas: akshaysthomas@gmail.com Higher risk of post-cataract persistent anterior uveitis for African Americans About the doctor Akshay Thomas, MD Tennessee Retina Nashville, Tennessee Mild peripheral vascular leakage indicative of retinal vasculitis in a patient with persistent anterior chamber inflammation following cataract surgery Source: Akshay Thomas, MD