Alzheimer's disease and vision: a proposed new diagnostic test

A potential non-invasive neurobiological test for Alzheimer's disease has been recently proposed and published. This test is likely to be of considerable interest to optometrists as it involves measurements of pupil dilation. This article decsribes some of the controversial issues surrounding the clinical diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease and discusses the advantages, limitations, and implications of the new test.

Neurological and ocular abnormalities in patients with Down's syndrome

Down's syndrome, first described by J. Langdon Down in 1866, is the most common chromosomal abnormality to occur in the human population. Its incidence is approximately 1/650 of all births although the risk of having a Down's child increases markedly with the age of the mother. It occurs with equal frequency in all racial groups. The risk to a mother 16-26 years old is 1 in 1,300 but the risk increases to 1 in 30 for a mother 45-47 years old. The life expectancy of people with Down's syndrome has risen since the 1920s and many individuals are now living to the 5th decade or beyond. Consequently optometrists are increasingly likley to see Down's patients of all ages in the practice.

Bacteria and the eye

Bacteria are minute unicellular organisms present in abundance in air, water, soil and food and in association with the human body. The majority of bacteria are harmless to humans while a few are useful and have been exploited in, for example, the manufacture of dairy products. However, bacteria are also pathogenic and those include some of the most important human infections such as typhoid, syphilis and tuberculosis. A few bacteria are especially important to optometrists because they are associated with ocular disease, either by causing a primary eye infection or because there are ocular complications of a systemic bacterial infection.

Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease and vision

This article describes the symptoms and pathology associated with Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease and prion disease, how prion protein may cause disease and the visual aspects of prion diseases.

Fungi and the eye

This article reviews those aspects of the biology of fungi which are most relevant to optometrists and considers in more detail, the fungi of particular ocular interest.

Viruses and the eye

About 60% of human infections diseases are caused by viruses,including such important diseases as AIDS, polio, rabies and certain forms of cancer. A few groups of viruses are important to optometrists because they either cause a primary eye infection or a systemic viral infection with ocular complications.

Free radicals, ocidative stress and cataract

In the more developed countries of the world, cataract accounts for approximately 20% of all registered cases of blindness. The development of cataract may be associated with many factors including ageing, trauma, burns, extreme heat or cold, certain systemic diseases such as diabetes, and inflammatory processes within the eye. However, recent evidence suggests that oxidative damage to the lens by free radicals may also be involved in the development of certain types of cataract. The objective of this article is to describe the formation and action of free radicals within the body and review the evidence that the development of cataract may be linked to oxidative processes.

The use of data analysis methods: basic concepts for optometrists

This article explains first, the reasons why a knowledge of statistics is necessary and describes the role that statistics plays in an experimental investigation. Second, the normal distribution is introduced which describes the natural variability shown by many measurements in optometry and vision sciences. Third, the application of the normal distribution to some common statistical problems including how to determine whether an individual observation is a typical member of a population and how to determine the confidence interval for a sample mean is described.

The genetics of cataract

This article reviews: 1) the clinical and pathological features of the different types of catarct, 2) the patterns of inheritance of cataract, 3) the genes that may be associated with the development of cataract, and 4) how the presence of abnormal genes may cause lens opacity.

Ulcerative keratitis caused by Acanthamoeba

This article describes first, aspects of the general biology of Acanthamoeba and second, the incidence, pathogenesis, symptoms, diagnosis and treatment of Acanthamoeba keratitis.

The genetics of glaucoma

The present article reviews the patterns of inheritance associated with glaucoma, how the genes linked to the disease have been located and identified, and considers how the effect of some of these genes could lead to glaucoma.

Dementia with Lewy bodies: a 'new' type of dementia with visual symptoms

Dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) (also known as Lewy body dementia or diffuse Lewy body disease) is now recognised as the second most common type of dementia after Alzheimer's disease and may account for up to a quarter of all cases in elderly perople. This article decsribes the general symptoms of DLB and the visual symptoms that have been reported in the disorder.

The Human Genome Project: its relevance to ocular disease

This article describes the history of the Human Genome Project, how the human genome was sequenced, and analyses the likely impact which the results will have on the diagnosis, scientific understanding and, ultimately, treatment of ocular disease in the future.

Is smoking a risk factor for AMD?

This article is concerned specifically with the possible links between smoking and age related macular degeneration (AMD). It reviews the epidemiological and physiological evidence that smoking may be a risk factor for AMD, and describes the possible mechanisms by which smoking might contribute to the development of AMD.

Genetics of optic atrophy: recent progress in understanding

This article considers the clinical symptoms associated with hereditary optic atrophy and reviews recent progress in our understanding the genetics of the disorder. The major genes linked to optic atrophy are identified and how defects in these genes could lead to the optic disc pathology is discussed.