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Biomedical subjects

K M Saari

Publications and source records attributed to K M Saari.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Plasma and aqueous humour concentrations and systemic effects of topical betaxolol and timolol in man.

Plasma and aqueous humour concentrations and systemic effects of timolol and betaxolol were studied after ocular administration in 45 patients scheduled for extracapsular cataract extraction and intraocular lens implantation. The patients were divided randomly into three groups and received 40 microliters of either 0.5% betaxolol, 0.25% timolol or placebo into the lower cul-de-sacs of both eyes. Blood samples were collected over a period of 4 h and blood pressure and heart rate were monitored during the study. Aqueous humour samples were aspirated at the beginning of the operation. Plasma and aqueous humour concentrations of timolol and betaxolol were analyzed using a sensitive radioreceptor assay. The mean plasma concentrations of betaxolol were lower than those of timolol. The concentration of betaxolol in the aqueous humour was twice as high as the concentration of timolol. Both drugs produced a significant decrease in heart rate. In the timolol group a decrease in heart rate was found 15 min after drug administration, and in the betaxolol group after one hour.

Absorption↗

Tear anti-Chlamydia antibodies in males with chlamydial urethritis.

Conjunctival Chlamydia trachomatis was studied in 50 males with chlamydial urethritis. Conjunctival samples from 49 patients were negative for chlamydial antigen by enzyme immunoassay. However, tear anti-Chlamydia IgA antibodies were found in high titers (> or = 400) in 20 out of the 50 patients. Secretory IgA against Chlamydia in corresponding titers was found in 8 patients. The titers differed significantly from those of the 22 negative control subjects. IgG antibodies were not detected. Tear anti-Chlamydia IgA antibodies are not diagnostic for chlamydial conjunctivitis, but occur concomitantly in patients with chlamydial urethritis.

Adolescent↗

Early post-operative pressure rise with ciliary body incarceration into Watson type trabeculectomy fistula.

We studied six patients with early failure after Watson's trabeculectomy done due to chronic simple, neovascular, or chronic angle-closure glaucoma. After operation the eyes showed a maximum intraocular pressure (IOP) between 50 mmHg and 66 mmHg and no filtering bleb. Reoperation on the 5th to 14th post-operative day showed incarceration of ciliary body into the trabeculectomy fistula in all cases. The uveal protrusion was replaced and a deep corneoscleral block was removed in front of the scleral spur in three cases, and electrocoagulation of the anterior edges of the trabeculectomy fistula was done in other three cases. After a 4 months to 1.5 years follow-up IOP was 12 mmHg to 18 mmHg and only two eyes needed medical therapy. The results suggest that trabeculectomy in front of the scleral spur is indicated to avoid incarceration of the ciliary body into the trabeculectomy fistula.

Aged↗

Need for near vision in daily work in different occupational groups.

To evaluate the need, characteristics and proportion of occupational accurate close work in different socio-economic groups we sent a questionnaire to all 26- and 46-year-old people in the Jyväskylä district. 1,503 (75%) of the 26-year-old subjects and 1,035 (78%) of the 46-year-old subjects returned the questionnaire. 71% of the 26-year-old subjects and 68% of the 46-year-old subjects reported that they need accurate near vision in their daily work. Accurate near vision was needed for reading and writing in 61% in the younger and 55% in the older age group, industrial quality control in 14% in the younger and in 26% in the older age group, Visual Display Unit work in 7% in both age groups, and other accurate close work in 19% in the younger and in 12% in the older age group. The results show that there is a need for accurate near vision in most occupations and indicate that the visual acuity and refraction of the employee requiring occupational accurate near vision should be examined when newly employed and when having problems with near work.

Adult↗

Wearing of spectacles and occurrence of ocular symptoms in close work in different occupations.

To study the wearing of spectacles in different occupations we sent a questionnaire to all 26- and 46-year-old people (altogether 3,337 subjects) in the Jyväskylä district. 69% in the older age group and 42% in the younger age group had spectacles. Women wore spectacles more often than men. There was a correlation between the use of spectacles and accurate occupational close work. The proportion of those wearing spectacles was highest in subjects working, at least partly, with Visual Display Units (VDU). Farmers, industrial workers and service personnel wore spectacles less often than those in other occupations. In the older age group 70% and in the younger age group 11% of the subjects considered that they do not have good near vision without spectacles. Of those who used spectacles, 90% in the older and 52% in the younger age group reported that their near vision is better with spectacles than without them. In both age groups there was a positive correlation between the use of spectacles and the duration of daily close work. Subjective ocular symptoms occurred equally in different close work categories in the younger age group. In the older age group, those doing VDU work and reading and writing work had less symptoms of eye problems than those in other job categories.

Adult↗

Acute anterior uveitis and conjunctivitis following Yersinia infection in children.

We studied characteristics of ocular inflammation associated with yersinia infection in six children, three boys and three girls, ranging in age between 4 and 14 years. Four patients developed acute anterior uveitis with aqueous flare and cells, small keratic precipitates, cells in the vitreous, and occasionally with fibrinous exudates, posterior synechiae and macular edema. The uveitis was unilateral in two patients and bilateral in two. In three 10- to 14-year-old patients the uveitis resolved during corticosteroid treatment in 3 to 8 (mean 6) weeks. In a 4-year-old girl with positive antinuclear antibody titers bilateral uveitis lasted for 17 weeks. Two uveitis patients had recurrent episodes. Two patients had mucopurulent bilateral mild conjunctivitis which resolved in 3 to 5 days. All patients had symptoms of reactive arthritis and one had sacroiliitis. All tested patients were HLA-B27 positive. Our results indicate that in HLA-B27 positive children, especially after the age of 10 years, yersinia infection may occasionally trigger reactive iritis or conjunctivitis which often occur together with other HLA-B27 associated rheumatic diseases.

Acute Disease↗

Autosomal dominant juvenile vitreoretinal degeneration and retinal detachment.

To study the inheritance and clinical picture of a new form of vitreoretinal dystrophy I examined 18 family members of a family with six generations. Seven patients, three male and four female, in three consecutive generations were observed to be affected indicating autosomal dominant inheritance. The disease was characterized by juvenile degeneration of the vitreous with detachment of the vitreous body and some floating vitreous opacities, cystoid degeneration of the peripheral retina with whitish glistening stippled areas of superficial retinal degeneration, spotty hyperpigmentation, patches of retinal atrophy with pigmentations, occasional atrophic retinal holes, and in four family members at the age of 4 to 12 years, unilateral or bilateral retinal detachment with breaks in the peripheral retina. Most patients had hyperopia with or without astigmatism. In eyes without detached retina, the disease did not show any marked progression, the lens was clear, the posterior fundus and the retinal and choroidal vessels were normal, and the visual acuity, visual fields, dark adaptation, colour vision, electroretinograms, and visually evoked response findings were normal.

Adult↗

Characteristics of corneal endothelial cells in Fuchs' heterochromic cyclitis.

We studied the corneal endothelial cells in 14 patients (6 men and 8 women, ranging in age from 15 to 70 years) with unilateral Fuchs' heterochromic cyclitis (FHC) by means of specular microscopy. The healthy fellow eyes of the patients served as control material. Two affected eyes had undergone an intracapsular cataract extraction before specular microscopy. In one patient, the cyclitic eye also had glaucoma. Changes of the endothelium characterized by intra- and intercellular dark bodies, larger dark defects spanning several endothelial cells and bright irregular patchy areas crossing cell borders on the specular reflex were found in all eyes with FHC. Individual cell analysis did not reveal any significant differences in the endothelial cell density, cell area, coefficient of variation for cell area, cell perimeter, cell shape and in the number of endothelial cell apices between unoperated cyclitic and healthy fellow eyes. The mean cell density was 4.9% lower in the unoperated eyes with FHC than in the control eyes. A significant negative correlation was observed between the patients' age and the cell density both in the healthy and the cyclitic eyes. On the other hand, the correlation between follow-up period and cell density was not statistically significant in the cyclitic eyes. Although FHC does not seem to accelerate significantly the age-related cell density reduction, the magnitude of the cell loss found in the two operated eyes (45.5% and 49.8%) and in the eye with glaucoma (45.2%) may indicate altered tolerance against endothelial traumas in this disease.

Adolescent↗

Alpha 1-antitrypsin in acute anterior uveitis and rheumatic diseases.

To test the pathogenetic role of the phenotype MZ of alpha 1-antitrypsin/alpha 1-protease inhibitor (PI) in acute anterior uveitis (AAU) and in different rheumatic diseases we examined 360 unrelated patients including 93 with AAU alone, 24 patients with AAU and ankylosing spondylitis (AS), 21 patients with AAU and Reiter's disease (RD), 26 patients with AAU, AS, and RD 54 patients with AS alone, 16 patients with RD alone, 115 patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) alone, and 11 patients with psoriatic arthritis (PA) alone. Of the 164 AAU patients, 80 had a single attack, and 84 had repeated episodes. There were neither significant differences between different groups of the patients and 120 healthy controls nor between patients with AAU alone and patients with AAU and AS or RD in the frequencies of the PI phenotypes tested. The results indicate that the PI MZ type is not closely associated with AAU, AS, RD, RA and PA and that it does not play any role in determining whether AAU shows a pattern of a single attack or repeated episodes, and whether AAU occurs alone or together with AS or RD.

Acute Disease↗

Juvenile vitreoretinal degeneration and retinal detachment.

The proband was a 10-year-old boy with bilateral retinal detachment. His mother had unilateral retinal detachment at age of 12. The eye disease occurred in eight family members, both men and women, in four consecutive generations suggesting autosomal dominant inheritance. The eye findings were seen at the age of 4 to 12 and included syneresis and posterior vitreous detachment; spotty areas of whitish, glistening degeneration, spotty hyperpigmentation, and greyish-white patches with pigmentations suggestive of healed retinochoroiditis in the peripheral retina. Retinal detachment with holes in the peripheral retina occurred in four family members, and three other family members had unilateral blindness since early childhood. In eyes without retinal detachment the visual acuity, visual fields, dark adaptation, and colour vision were normal.

Adult↗

Occupational eye injuries in Finland.

In Finland 11.9% of all industrial accidents in 1973 were eye injuries including superficial eye injuries (79.2%), ultraviolet burns of the cornea (3.9%), eye burns (3.6%), blunt ocular trauma (2,5%), wounds (2.4%), and post-traumatic infections (5.8%). Eye injuries constituted 34.3% of all industrial accidents which needed only ambulatory treatment and 17.5% of all industrial accidents causing an absence for 1-2 days. In 1981 2.1% of all compensated industrial accidents (incapacity for work 3 days or more) were eye injuries. Most compensated eye injuries occurred in manufacturing and in construction work (80.4%) and 8.5% occurred in agriculture. The annual incidence rates of compensated accidents to the eyes (accidents X 1 000/number of employees) were highest in several branches of metal industry (4.96-6.88), excavating and foundation work (6.88), and in logging (5.64). Compensated eye injuries were caused by machines (32.8%), hand tools (25.6%), other equipment and constructions (4.8%), work environment (23.6%), chemical substances (10.8%), and other accidents (2.3%).

Accidents, Occupational↗

Eye injuries in agriculture.

To study eye injuries in agriculture we reviewed the case records of 662 patients with eye injuries treated at the Department of Ophthalmology, Central Hospital of Tampere between the years 1972 and 1979. Of the whole material 96 (14.5%) were agricultural workers, 74 (77%) male and 22 (23%) female, with the mean age of 43 years. The mean annual incidence of eye injuries in agriculture was 3.46 per 10.000 people which was higher than in industry (1.9 per 10.000 people) but lower than in construction (5.28 per 10.000 people). The use of AIV solution was the most frequent cause of eye injury in farming (6/10) and was the most common cause of all chemical eye burns in agriculture (6/7). Cow butting with horn caused all eye injuries in dairying ; 50% of these were perforating eye injuries. In lumbering , forest work or a flying piece of wood at chopping caused eye injuries in 29 cases including 19 cases with blunt ocular trauma and 8 cases with perforating eye injuries. Hammering was the most frequent cause of injury in repair work (7/16). Unilateral blindness was seen in 17 cases (17.7%). It was caused mostly by cow butting with horn (6 cases) or lumbering (5 cases). The importance of employment of protective eye screen or glasses also in agriculture is pointed out.

Accidents, Occupational↗

Management of chemical eye injuries with prolonged irrigation.

To study the effect of prolonged irrigation in the treatment of chemical eye injuries we reviewed the case records of 172 patients. Most of the patients were men in working age. The injury was caused by acid in 57 patients (33%). Of the acid burns, 28 were due to AIV solution commonly used in agriculture in Finland, and 27 were due to inorganic acids. Alkaline burns occurred in 64 (37%) patients including 33 cases with natrium hydroxide and 20 cases with mortar and cement burns. Other chemicals including organic solvents and surfactants caused the eye burn in 51 (30%) cases. Fifty three patients mostly with alkaline and acid burns were treated with prolonged irrigation with one liter of physiological saline using intravenous delivery system during 1-2 hours. The extent of damage was smaller, the visual outcome better, and the duration of treatment at the hospital and absence from work were shorter in patients treated with prolonged irrigation than without such treatment.

Accidents, Occupational↗

Ophthalmological findings in nephropathia epidemica in Lapland.

We report ophthalmological findings in 15 cases of nephropathia epidemica. The patients, 13 men and 2 women, were 20 to 62 (mean 30) years of age. The onset of the disease was characterized by high fever, nausea, headache, abdominal pain, backache, somnolence, red throat, proteinuria, and oliguria. The symptoms subsided rapidly during the polyuria stage. Transitory myopia occurred in 8 patients (53%). Conjunctival injection and haemorrhages were seen in 3 patients (20%). One patient had acute glaucoma with oedema in the cornea and shallowing of the anterior chamber, with subsequent anterior uveitis and haemorrhages in the ocular fundus, and another patients had acute glaucoma. Three patients had photophobia which occurred in 2 patients without any glaucoma or anterior uveitis.

Adult↗