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Introduction: Changes in eating and sleeping habits during fasting influence various physiological parameters, thereby leading to impact on the ocular system. The present study aimed to assess the correlation between variations of glucose and lipid biomarkers with the biometric properties and intraocular pressure changes associated with Ramadan fasting. Methods: This study was conducted on100 healthy fasting volunteers. In total, 89 participants completed the course of the study based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria. Right-eye ocular axial length and anterior chamber depth were measured using the IOL Master (Carl Zeiss Meditec, Jena, Germany). Afterwards, the intraocular pressure of the right eye was measured using a noncontact tonometer (Topcon, Computerized Tonometer CT-1/CT-1P, Tokyo, Japan).Blood samples were obtained from the participants, and the concentrations of the biomarkers, including fasting blood sugar, triglyceride, cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein, and low-density lipoprotein were measured using the Hitachi 717 analyzer (Hitachi, Tokyo, Japan). All the assessments were performed one week before and after Ramadan. Results: Among 89 healthy Muslims who completed the study, 51 were male (mean age: 35.51±8.94 years), and 38 were female (mean age: 34.26±9.41 years). No significant correlations were observed between changes in axial length with variations of glucose, and lipid biomarkers in the fasting individuals. Furthermore, only an insignificant correlation was denoted between the anterior chamber depth and high-density lipoprotein changes during Ramadan. The findings also revealed only an insignificant association between intraocular pressure and cholesterol changes in healthy fasting individuals. Conclusion: According to the results, changes in the ocular parameters in Ramadan fasting are probably independent of the variation levels of glucose and lipid biomarkers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The aim of this study was to determine the agreement between Pentacam HR (Scheimpflug imaging, Oculus) and Orbscan II (scanning slit topography, Bausch and Lomb) in measuring corneal parameters after photorefractive keratectomy (PRK) for hyperopia. Methods: In this prospective cross-sectional study, 38 hyperopic eyes undergoing PRK were examined before refractive surgery and 8 to 10 months postoperatively using Pentacam HR and Orbscan II. Ultrasound (US) pachymetry was also used to measure central corneal thickness (CCT). The radius of anterior (A-) and posterior (P-) best-fit sphere size (BFS), central elevation (CE), and anterior maximum tangential power in 3 mm (TG3) and 3-5 mm (TG5) zones, anterior chamber depth (ACD), and central corneal thickness (CCT) were collected and used in the analyses. To study the agreement between the measurements made by the two devices, the method described by Bland and Altman was used and the 95% limits of agreement were calculated. Results: The 95% limits of agreement show reasonable agreement between the measurements by Pentacam HR and Orbscan II for A-BFS, P-BFS, A-TG3, and CCT, but not for A-CE, P-CE, A-TG5, or ACD. CCT values obtained by both Pentacam HR and Orbscan II correlated well with the values determined by US pachymetry. Conclusion: Pentacam HR and Orbscan II after PRK for hyperopia show reasonable agreement for determining A-BFS, P-BFS, A-TG3, and CCT, but not for A-CE, P-CE, A-TG5, or ACD. CCT measurements with Pentacam HR have reasonable agreement with US pachymetry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: The present study aimed to assess the effects of Ramadan fasting on micronutrients and their correlations with ocular biometry. Methods: This prospective study was conducted on 89 healthy volunteers (51 males and 38 females) with the mean of 34.98±9.10 years in Mashhad, Iran. Participants received complete ophthalmic and systemic examinations one week before and one week after the holy month of Ramadan in 2015. Subjects with no history of systemic and ophthalmic diseases were enrolled in the study. Blood samples were obtained from all the participants in the morning in both phases of the study. Levels of micronutrients were measured in the blood samples using the Hitachi 717 analyzer (Hitachi, Japan). In addition, IOLMaster (Carl Zeiss Meditec AG, Germany) was applied to determine the ocular axial length (AL) and anterior chamber depth (ACD). Results: No significant differences were observed in the AL and ACD of the subjects before and after Ramadan fasting (P>0.05). Fasting was found to decrease the levels of uric acid, selenium, sodium, and potassium (P<0.05). However, serum phosphor was observed to increase after the fasting period (P=0.032). No changes were reported in the concentrations of the other micronutrients, including urea, calcium, iron, zinc, creatinine, and albumin (P>0.05). Moreover, no significant association was observed between the AL and ACD with the concentrations of the micronutrients during Ramadan (P>0.05). Conclusion: According to the results, fasting had no significant effects on the overall health and ocular biometry of the fasting individuals during Ramadan. Therefore, it seems that Ramadan fasting is a safe for healthy adults. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Fasting during the month of Ramadan is obligatory for healthy Muslims after the age of puberty. This paper was aimed to compare the changes in hematological and biochemical parameters before and after Ramadan. Methods: This prospective study was performed one week before and one week after the month of Ramadan in 2015. Eighty-nine subjects (51males and 38 females) with a mean age of 34.52±9.05 were enrolled in this study. Patients with systemic disorder, special drug using, and/or a history of previous surgery were excluded. Blood samples were taken from all participants before and after Ramadan to evaluate the effects of fasting on hematological-biochemical factors. Hematological and biochemical measurements were performed on the blood samples using a KX-21N cell counter (Kobe, Japan) and Hitachi 717 analyzer (Roche, Japan), respectively. Results: Hematocrit, red blood cell (RBC) and Mean Red Cell Volume (MCV) decreased after Ramadan fasting (P= 0.002, P= 0.030 and P= 0.005, respectively), however mean corpuscular hemoglobin (MCH) and mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration (MCHC) increased (P=0.004, P=0.002, respectively). On the other hand, no changes were seen in hemoglobin, platelets and white blood cell (WBC) after Ramadan (P=0.900, P=0.923, P=0.282, P=0.300, respectively). In this study, fasting led to decrease in uric acid, creatinine, selenium, sodium and potassium (P=0.00, P=0.015, P=0.021, 0.007 and 0.028, respectively), however, phosphor serum increased after fasting period (P=0.032). Moreover, no changes were seen in other biochemical parameters including fast blood sugar (FBS), urea, calcium, iron, zinc, and albumin (P= 0.54, P=0.300, P=0.054, P=0.372, P=0.170, and P=0.400, respectively). Conclusion: This study on healthy subjects suggests that fasting could affect some hematologicalbiochemical parameters but not all of them. Also, these changes in hematological-biochemical parameters were within the normal range and Ramadan fasting seems to be safe for healthy subjects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Annually, millions of Muslims all over the world observe the fasting rules based on its measures; this highlights the importance of studies in this field as a worthwhile model for intermittent fasting. It is obvious that changes in lifestyle over fasting have outstanding effects on physiological parameters. The current study was carried out to investigate the IOP and serum electrolytes as two important factors that are influenced by human lifestyle. Methods: Eighty-nine fasting and healthy participants including men and women with mean age of 34.97 were included in our study based on the inclusion and exclusion parameters. During this project, Ramadan coincided with the summer (between June and July 2015). All participants were monitored by an expert examiner and blood samples were collected and IOP was measured by tonometer (Topcon, 1-75, Hasunuma-cho, Itabashi-KU, Tokyo, Japan 2014). The participants were examined one week before and one week after Ramadan. Results: There was a significant reduction in physiological IOP in healthy people after Ramadan. In line with this, the serum electrolytes were altered by fasting so that Na, K, Se experienced a significant decrease while serum phosphorous increased (P<0.05). Conclusion: Prolonged intermittent fasting in Ramadan changed IOP and serum electrolytes in healthy people within a normal range. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Ramadan is a holy Islamic month during which Muslims abstain from eating, drinking, and sexual intercourse for 13-17 hours a day. The aim of this study was to assess the effects of Islamic fasting during Ramadan on lipid profile and blood pressure. Methods: This study was carried out in two phases, i.e., a week before and a week after Ramadan. Overall, 89 healthy subjects, aged 20-50 years, were enrolled in this study. Blood samples were drawn for the evaluation of lipid profile in the morning, and subjects' blood pressure was measured in the afternoon, using a digital sphygmomanometer. Statistical analysis was performed, using SPSS version 16.0. Results: A week after Ramadan, body weight and body mass index decreased in both genders, compared to a week before Ramadan (P<0.001). Diastolic blood pressure in male subjects and systolic blood pressure in both genders remained unchanged (P=0.634 and P=0.412, respectively), whereas in females, diastolic blood pressure significantly decreased (P=0.002). During Ramadan, no significant changes were observed in subjects' lipid profile, triglyceride level, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), or LDL/high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) ratio; however, a substantial decline was reported in total cholesterol and HDL-C levels. Conclusion: The decline in total cholesterol may reduce the risk of cardiovascular diseases, induced by decreased HDL-C concentration. However, further research is required to reach a more definitive conclusion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest.

Purpose: To evaluate and compare corneal hysteresis (CH) and corneal resistance factor (CRF) in pellucid marginal degeneration (PMD), keratoconus (KCN), and normal eyes using the Ocular Response Analyzer (ORA)., Methods: In this retrospective study, corneal biomechanical parameters were measured in patients with PMD ( n  = 102) and KCN ( n  = 202) and normal subjects ( n  = 208) using the ORA. Data, including full patient history as well as the results of refraction, slit-lamp biomicroscopy, Pentacam HR (Oculus), and ORA (Reichert; Buffalo, New York, USA), were collected from medical records. Also, the data of only one eye per individual were selected for the analysis. The inclusion criteria for PMD and KCN groups were a reliable diagnosis of these ectatic disorders based on the clinical and corneal tomographic findings. CH, CRF, CH-CRF, intraocular pressure (IOP) measurements were assessed for each subject. Data were analyzed with SPSS and MedCalc using the ANOVA, Pearson Correlation, and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis., Results: The mean CH was 8.91 mmHg ± 1.05 [standard deviation (SD)], 8.43 ± 0.78, and 10.89 ± 1.08 in the PMD, KCN, and normal group, respectively. Also, the mean CRF was 8.21 ± 1.35, 7.19 ± 1.11, and 10.69 ± 1.41 in the PMD, KCN, and normal group, respectively. ANOVA showed differences in the mean CH, CRF, and CH-CRF between three groups ( P  < 0.001). Also, ROC curve analysis showed the cut-off points ≤9.5, ≤9.5, and >1.3 mmHg for CH, CRF, and CH-CRF in the PMD group, respectively. For biomechanical parameters in PMD eyes, CRF had the highest sensitivity (75.49%) while the greatest area under the ROC curve (AUC) was seen for CH (0.903). Moreover, central corneal thickness (CCT) showed no correlation with CH ( P  = 0.30, r  = -0.104) or CRF ( P  = 0.75, r  = 0.033) in the PMD group., Conclusions: This study presented the values of corneal biomechanics for PMD using the ORA. The results of the ORA were markedly different between PMD, KCN, and normal eyes.

The aim of this study was to compare the visual field (VF) categorizations (based on the severity of VF defects) between adolescent boys with hearing impairments and those with normal hearing. This cross-sectional study involved the evaluation of the VF of 64 adolescent boys with hearing impairments and 68 age-matched boys with normal hearing at high schools in Tehran, Iran, in 2013. All subjects had an intelligence quotient (IQ) > 70. The hearing impairments were classified based on severity and time of onset. Participants underwent a complete eye examination, and the VFs were investigated using automated perimetry with a Humphrey Visual Field Analyzer. This device was used to determine their foveal threshold (FT), mean deviation (MD), and Glaucoma Hemifield Test (GHT) results. Most (50%) of the boys with hearing impairments had profound hearing impairments. There was no significant between-group difference in age (P = 0.49) or IQ (P = 0.13). There was no between-group difference in the corrected distance visual acuity (P = 0.183). According to the FT, MD, and GHT results, the percentage of boys with abnormal VFs in the hearing impairment group was significantly greater than that in the normal hearing group: 40.6% vs. 22.1%, 59.4% vs. 19.1%, and 31.2% vs. 8.8%, respectively (P < 0.0001). The mean MD in the hearing impairment group was significantly worse than that in the normal hearing group (-0.79 ± 2.04 and -4.61 ± 6.52 dB, respectively, P < 0.0001), and the mean FT was also significantly worse (38.97 ± 1.66 vs. 35.30 ± 1.43 dB, respectively, P <0.0001). Moreover, there was a significant between-group difference in the GHT results (P < 0.0001). Thus, there were higher percentages of boys with VF abnormalities and higher mean MD, FT, and GHT results among those with hearing impairments compared to those with normal hearing. These findings emphasize the need for detailed VF assessments for patients with hearing impairments., Competing Interests: None declared. No funding or sponsorship was received for this study. All the aforementioned authors met the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) criteria for authorship for this manuscript, take responsibility for the integrity of the work as a whole, and have provided approval for the revised manuscript to be published.