Contrary to what many doctors have been taught, we found that the number and location of hemorrhages of the eyes retina arent always proof of child abuse, forensic pathologist Patrick Lantz, M.D., reported at the recent American Academy of Forensic Sciences meeting. In autopsy studies, Dr. Lantz detected retinal hemorrhages in 30 children under age 14, but only six of those cases were associated with child abuse.

Glaucoma patients using prostaglandins had a mean adherence rate of 76% on average, says a study in Januarys American Journal of Ophthalmology. In other words, patients skip their drops about one-quarter of the time, on average. Opportunities remain for improvement of adherence to therapeutic regimens for glaucoma, the authors conclude.

Intraocular pressures hit a peak during sleep for most patients who have primary open-angle glaucoma, according to a study by Japanese researchers in Februarys Archives of Ophthalmology. Among 148 patients with untreated primary open-angle glaucoma, 29 patients (20%) with an IOP less than 21mm Hg during clinic hours had a reproduced IOP of 21mm Hg or greater while asleep, compared with only five patients (3%) in the control group.

Vol. No: 143:03Issue: 3/15/2006