Browsing by Author "Verticchio Vercellin, Alice C."

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    COVID-19 Pandemic: Are We Back to Normal?
    (Wolters Kluwer, 2021-01) Siesky, Brent; Harris, Alon; Verticchio Vercellin, Alice C.; Kalafatis, Nicholas; Tsai, James C.; Medicine, School of Medicine
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    Effects of Sex Hormones on Ocular Blood Flow and Intraocular Pressure in Primary Open Angle Glaucoma: A Review
    (Wolters Kluwer, 2018-10) Patel, Pooja; Harris, Alon; Toris, Carol; Lang, Matthew; Tobe, Leslie; Belamkar, Aditya; Ng, Adrienne; Verticchio Vercellin, Alice C.; Matthew, Sunu; Siesky, Brent; Ophthalmology, School of Medicine
    Primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) is a multifactorial optic neuropathy characterized by progressive retinal ganglion cell death and visual field loss. Some speculate that gender plays a role in the risk of developing POAG and that the physiologic differences between men and women may be attributed to the variable effects of sex hormones on intraocular pressure (IOP), ocular blood flow, and/or neuroprotection. Estrogen, in the form of premenopausal status, pregnancy, and post-menopausal hormone therapy is associated with increase in ocular blood flow, decrease in IOP and neuroprotective properties. The vasodilation caused by estrogen and its effects on aqueous humor outflow may contribute. On the other hand, although testosterone may have known effects in the cardiovascular and cerebrovascular systems, there is no consensus as to its effects in ocular health or POAG. With better understanding of sex hormones in POAG, sex hormone-derived preventative and therapeutic considerations in disease management may provide for improved gender-specific patient care.
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    Evaluation of Cerebrospinal Fluid Pressure by a Formula and Its Role in the Pathogenesis of Glaucoma
    (Hindawi, 2019-11) Landi, Laura; Casciaro, Federica; Telani, Serena; Traverso, Carlo E.; Harris, Alon; Verticchio Vercellin, Alice C.; Saint, Lauren; Iester, Michele; Ophthalmology, School of Medicine
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    Ocular blood flow as a clinical observation: Value, limitations and data analysis
    (Elsevier, 2020) Harris, Alon; Guidoboni, Giovanna; Siesky, Brent; Mathew, Sunu; Verticchio Vercellin, Alice C.; Rowe, Lucas; Arciero, Julia; Radiology and Imaging Sciences, School of Medicine
    Alterations in ocular blood flow have been identified as important risk factors for the onset and progression of numerous diseases of the eye. In particular, several population-based and longitudinal-based studies have provided compelling evidence of hemodynamic biomarkers as independent risk factors for ocular disease throughout several different geographic regions. Despite this evidence, the relative contribution of blood flow to ocular physiology and pathology in synergy with other risk factors and comorbidities (e.g., age, gender, race, diabetes and hypertension) remains uncertain. There is currently no gold standard for assessing all relevant vascular beds in the eye, and the heterogeneous vascular biomarkers derived from multiple ocular imaging technologies are non-interchangeable and difficult to interpret as a whole. As a result of these disease complexities and imaging limitations, standard statistical methods often yield inconsistent results across studies and are unable to quantify or explain a patient's overall risk for ocular disease. Combining mathematical modeling with artificial intelligence holds great promise for advancing data analysis in ophthalmology and enabling individualized risk assessment from diverse, multi-input clinical and demographic biomarkers. Mechanism-driven mathematical modeling makes virtual laboratories available to investigate pathogenic mechanisms, advance diagnostic ability and improve disease management. Artificial intelligence provides a novel method for utilizing a vast amount of data from a wide range of patient types to diagnose and monitor ocular disease. This article reviews the state of the art and major unanswered questions related to ocular vascular anatomy and physiology, ocular imaging techniques, clinical findings in glaucoma and other eye diseases, and mechanistic modeling predictions, while laying a path for integrating clinical observations with mathematical models and artificial intelligence. Viable alternatives for integrated data analysis are proposed that aim to overcome the limitations of standard statistical approaches and enable individually tailored precision medicine in ophthalmology.
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    Prevalence Rates and Risk Factors for Primary Open Angle Glaucoma in the Middle East
    (Knowledge E, 2021-10-25) Torabi, Rana; Harris, Alon; Siesky, Brent; Zukerman, Ryan; Oddone, Francesco; Mathew, Sunu; Januleviciene, Ingrida; Verticchio Vercellin, Alice C.; Ophthalmology, School of Medicine
    Glaucoma is a multifactorial disease and a leading cause of irreversible blindness worldwide. Current data has demonstrated the approximate distribution of primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) in patients of European, African, Hispanic, and Eastern Asian descent. However, a significant gap in the literature exists regarding the prevalence of POAG in Middle Eastern (ME) populations. Current studies estimate ME POAG prevalence based on a European model. Herein we screened 65 total publications on ME prevalence of POAG and specific risk factors using keywords: “glaucoma”, “prevalence”, “incidence”, “risk factor”, “Middle East”, “Mideast”, “Persian”, “Far East”, as well as searching by individual ME countries through PubMed, Embase, Ovid, Scopus, and Trip searches with additional reference list searches from relevant articles published up to and including March 1, 2021. Fifty qualifying records were included after 15 studies identified with low statistical power, confounding co-morbid ophthalmic diseases, and funding bias were excluded. Studies of ME glaucoma risk factors that identify chromosomes, familial trend, age/gender, socioeconomic status, lifestyle, intraocular pressure, vascular influences, optic disc hemorrhage, cup-to-disc ratio, blood pressure, obstructive sleep apnea, and diabetes mellitus were included in this systematic review. We conclude that the prevalence of POAG in the ME is likely higher than the prevalence rate that European models suggest, with ME specific risk factors likely playing a role. However, these findings are severely limited by the paucity of population-level data in the ME. Well-designed, longitudinal population-based studies with rigorous inclusion and exclusion criteria are ultimately needed to accurately assess the epidemiology and specific mechanistic risk factors of glaucoma in ME populations.