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Nithya Boopathiraj,1 Isabella V Wagner,1 Paul Connor Lentz,2 Christian Draper,3 Chelsey Krambeer,1 Yazan S Abubaker,1 Bryan Chin Hou Ang,1,4,5 Darby D Miller,1 Syril Dorairaj1 1Department of Ophthalmology, Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, FL, USA; 2Department of Ophthalmology, Mayo Clinic Alix School of Medicine, Jacksonville, FL, USA; 3Department of Ophthalmology, Eye Consultants, Spokane, WA, USA; 4Department of Ophthalmology, Tan Tock Seng Hospital, National Healthcare Group Eye Institute, Singapore; 5Department of Ophthalmology, Woodlands Health, National Healthcare Group Eye Institute, SingaporeCorrespondence: Syril Dorairaj, Department of Ophthalmology, Mayo Clinic, 4500 San Pablo Road, Jacksonville, FL, 32224, USA, Tel +1-904-953-2377, Fax +1-904-953-7040, Email dorairaj.syril@mayo.eduPurpose: To compare the safety and effectiveness of standalone Kahook Dual Blade (KDB) excisional goniotomy to standalone ab-interno Xen gel stent implantation in eyes with moderate-to-severe open-angle glaucoma (OAG).Methods: A single-center, retrospective study including eyes with moderate-to-severe OAG undergoing standalone KDB goniotomy or Xen gel stent implantation was conducted. Intraocular pressure (IOP), the number of antiglaucoma medications taken daily, and best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) were recorded at baseline and for up to 36-months. Primary outcomes assessed included changes from baseline in IOP and the number of antiglaucoma medications taken. Intergroup comparisons were conducted using independent-samples Student’s t-tests. The incidence of intraoperative and postoperative adverse events and the need for glaucoma surgical re-interventions were also recorded.Results: Eyes receiving standalone KDB (n=26) or Xen gel stent (n=45) surgery were analyzed. The baseline mean IOP and number of antiglaucoma medications in both groups were as follows: KDB: 23.2 ± 6.0 mmHg, 2.2 ± 1.4 medications; Xen: 22.7 ± 8.8 mmHg, 3.0 ± 1.0 medications. At 36 months, IOP was reduced to 16.6 ± 5.4 mmHg in KDB eyes (n=23, − 23.5%; p=0.0004) and 15.3 ± 5.6 mmHg in Xen gel stent eyes (n=15, − 22.1%; p=0.006), while number of antiglaucoma medications was reduced to 1.1 ± 0.7 (− 30.8%; p=0.0005) and 2.2 ± 1.4 (− 25.6%; p=0.01), respectively. Three eyes (11.5%) in the KDB group and 19 eyes (42.2%) in the Xen gel stent group required additional surgery before month 36 due to refractory high IOP.Conclusion: Both KDB goniotomy and Xen gel stent implantation significantly lowered the IOP and antiglaucoma medication burden in patients with moderate-to-severe OAG. While the Xen gel stent is frequently used to treat moderate-to-severe OAG patients with uncontrolled IOP, standalone KDB goniotomy may be equally effective as a long-term intervention, reducing the need for subsequent glaucoma surgery.Keywords: kahook dual blade, micro-invasive glaucoma surgery, open angle glaucoma, xen gel stent

Wai Kitt Chee,1 Vivien Cherng Hui Yip,1 Ivan O’Neill Tecson,1 Chun Hau Chua,1 Bryan Chin Hou Ang,1 Ae Ra Kee,1 Jeremy Youwei Hu,1 Tsia-Chuen John Kan,1 Leonard Wei Leon Yip1,2 1Department of Ophthalmology, National Healthcare Group Eye Institute, Tan Tock Seng Hospital, Singapore, Singapore; 2Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, SingaporeCorrespondence: Vivien Cherng Hui Yip, Department of Ophthalmology, National Healthcare Group Eye Institute, Tan Tock Seng Hospital, 11 Jalan Tan Tock Seng, Singapore, 308433, Singapore, Tel +65 62566011, Email vyip82@yahoo.co.ukAim: This study aims to compare the efficacy and safety of combined phacoemulsification with iStent inject (Phaco-iStent) and Hydrus microstent (Phaco-Hydrus).Methods: This was a retrospective comparative study of patients who underwent Phaco-iStent from April 2019 to August 2020 and Phaco-Hydrus from August 2019 to December 2020 at a tertiary eye centre in Singapore. Sixty-nine Phaco-iStent eyes and 49 Phaco-Hydrus eyes were included in this study. Complete surgical success was defined as freedom from second glaucoma surgery, Intraocular pressure (IOP) of 18 mmHg or less, and discontinuation of all antiglaucoma medications.Results: At 12 months, both Phaco-iStent and Phaco-Hydrus groups had comparable surgical success rate (68.1% vs 51%, p=0.061), reduction in antiglaucoma medication use (− 1.3 ± 0.1 vs − 1.4 ± 0.10, p=0.880) and intraocular pressure reduction (− 1.1 ± 0.5 mmHg vs – 1.6 ± 0.9 mmHg, p=0.323). Overall intraoperative and postoperative complications rate were similar in both groups, though hyphema was more commonly seen in early postoperative period in the Phaco-Hydrus compared to the Phaco-iStent group (8% vs 0%, p=0.028), with majority of cases resolving without any need for surgical intervention. Device obstruction was also more common in the Phaco-Hydrus group compared to the Phaco-iStent group (14% vs 4.3%, p=0.04).Conclusion: Phaco-iStent and Phaco-Hydrus have similar surgical efficacy and safety profiles at 12 months.Keywords: glaucoma, phacoemulsification, cataract extraction, iStent inject, Hydrus microstent

This review explores core-shell scaffolds in bone tissue engineering, highlighting their osteoconductive and osteoinductive properties critical for bone growth and regeneration. Key design factors include material selection, porosity, mechanical strength, biodegradation kinetics, and bioactivity. Electrospun core-shell nanofibrous scaffolds demonstrate potential in delivering therapeutic agents and enhancing bone regeneration. Critical characterization techniques include structural, surface, chemical composition, mechanical, and degradation analyses. Scaling up production poses challenges, addressed by innovative electrospinning techniques. Future research focuses on regulatory and commercial considerations, while exploring advanced materials and fabrication methods to optimize scaffold performance for improved clinical outcomes., (© 2024 Wiley‐VCH GmbH.)

Purpose: To examine the associations between higher order aberrations (HOAs), visual performance, demographics, and ocular characteristics in a young Asian population with high myopia., Methods: This was a retrospective review of military pre-enlistees conducted between March 2014 to September 2018. Visual acuity and contrast sensitivity were tested under photopic, mesopic and simulated night conditions. Ocular, corneal and internal HOAs were measured with a Hartmann-Shack wavefront aberrometer (KR-1W, Topcon Co., Tokyo, Japan)., Results: 522 eyes of 263 consecutive subjects with severe high myopia (defined as spherical equivalent refraction [SER] ≤ -10.00D) in at least one eye, and high myopia (SER ≤ -6.00D) in the fellow eye, [mean (SD) SER -11.85 (2.03D)] were analysed. The mean (SD) age of subjects was 18.5 (1.6) years. Chinese eyes had significantly greater internal total HOA root-mean-square (RMS) compared to Malay eyes [mean difference (SD) 0.0246 (0.007) μm, p < 0.001). More negative SER was associated with greater ocular total HOA (p = 0.038), primary coma (p = 0.003) and tetrafoil (p = 0.025) RMS, as well as more positive ocular (p = 0.003) and internal primary spherical aberration (p = 0.009). Greater ocular total HOAs was associated with reduced visual acuity in simulated night conditions and low contrast, decreased contrast sensitivity under mesopic and simulated night conditions (all p < 0.05)., Conclusions: Greater HOAs were associated with Chinese ethnicity and more negative SER in a young Asian population with high myopia. Greater HOAs were associated with poorer visual performance in low luminance and reduced contrast conditions., Competing Interests: No conflicting relationship exists for any author., (© 2023 The Authors.)

Poly(glycolide-co-caprolactone) (PGCL) has become a novice to the bioresorbable suture owing to the synergistic properties taken from the homo-polyglycolide (PGA) and polycaprolactone (PCL) such as excellent bioresorption and flexibility. In addition to under conventional monotonic loading, the understanding of mechanical responses of PGCL copolymers under complex loading conditions such as cyclic and stress relaxation is crucial for its application as a surgical suture. Consequently, the present work focuses on evaluating the mechanical responses of PGCL sutures under monotonic, cyclic, and stress relaxation loading conditions. Under monotonic loading, the stress-strain behavior of the PGCL suture was found to be non-linear with noticeable strain-rate dependence. Under cyclic loading, inelastic responses including stress-softening, hysteresis and permanent set were observed. During cyclic loading, both stress-softening and hysteresis were found to increase with the maximum strain. In multi-step stress relaxation, the PGCL sutures were observed to exhibit a strong viscoelastic response. In an attempt to describe the relationship between the stress-relaxation and strain-induced crystallization (SIC) occurring during the loading and relaxation processes, a schematic illustration of the conformational change of polymer chains in PGCL sutures was proposed in this work. Results showed that SIC was dependent on the strain level as well as the loading and relaxation durations. The inelastic phenomena observed in PGCL sutures can be thus correlated to the combined effect of stress relaxation and SIC., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Graphene-based fillers possess exceptional properties that encourage researchers toward their incorporation in glass-epoxy (GE) polymer composites. Regarding the mechanical and wear properties of glass-epoxy composites, the effect of graphene oxide (GO) reinforced in glass-epoxy was examined. A decrease in tensile modulus and increase in tensile strength was reported for 1 wt. % of GO. A shift in glass transition temperature T g was observed with the addition of GO. The cross-link density and storage modulus of the composite decreased with the addition of GO. The decrease in dissipation energy and wear rate was reported with the increase in GO concentration. A simple one-dimensional damage model of nonlinear nature was developed to capture the stress-strain behavior of the unfilled and filled glass-epoxy composite. Tensile modulus E , Weibull scale parameter σ o , and Weibull shape parameter β were considered to develop the model. Finally, to understand the failure mechanisms in GO-filled composites, a scanning electron microscopic (SEM) examination was carried out for tensile fractured composites.

The energy scarcity is exacerbating and needs an urgent solution. The most plausible solution to address the forthcoming energy scarcity is to diversify the energy sources. Developing the water-splitting process (WSP) efficiency depends on solar energy representing "21st-century dream technology". We present a comprehensive review of related papers employing graphitic carbon nitride (g-C 3 N 4 ) as pure, doped, or composite nanostructure in the evolution of hydrogen from water dissociation under simulated sunlight irradiation, mainly in the last ten years. Herein, after a concise introduction to the main principle of the water-splitting process, the methods to synthesize, modify and upgrade the photocatalytic performance of g-C 3 N 4 were reviewed in detail. Moreover, the main challenges of using g-C 3 N 4 -based photocatalytic material in WSP have been mentioned. The report mainly targets the g-C 3 N 4 character, synthesis method, photocatalytic activity, and strategies toward enhancing photoreactivity under visible light, along with the reusability of the fabricated nanohybrid catalysts. Above and over, this review suggests the potential of g-C 3 N 4 to produce green H 2 from water at a competitive price, which can contribute to satisfying the global energy sector demand and suppressing global warming., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)