Ophthalmology
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To identify the cost to the Medicare program for patients with either stable or progressive vision loss and to estimate the impact on eye-related and non-eye related care. ⋯ Medicare beneficiaries with coded diagnoses of vision loss incur significantly higher costs than those with normal vision, and approximately 90% of these costs are non-eye related medical costs. Extrapolating to the entire Medicare population, blindness and vision loss are associated with $2.14 billion in 2003 non-eye related medical costs. Preventing vision loss is not only a medical imperative but also an economic one.
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To study the prevalence of ocular manifestations in African American and Caucasian patients with biopsy-proven sarcoidosis at the initial ophthalmic examination and to determine the relationship between angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) levels, chest x-ray findings, and ocular signs of sarcoidosis. ⋯ The present study reveals that patients with sarcoidosis can present initially with clinical features of nongranulomatous uveitis. Relative to Caucasians, African American patients with sarcoidosis tend to be younger when they first present to the ophthalmologist and to present with uveitis and/or adnexal granuloma. Serum ACE levels and chest x-ray stages may not help predict the occurrence of ocular changes in sarcoidosis.
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To describe risk factors predisposing patients to orbital cellulitis and potential complications in patients treated at a tertiary eye care referral center in the Middle East. ⋯ Untreated sinusitis and prior history of orbital trauma were the 2 major causes of orbital cellulitis in patients referred to a tertiary care eye center in the Middle East. Although rare, severe visual loss still remains a serious complication of delayed detection and intervention in most cases of orbital cellulitis.