PURPOSE: To evaluate changes in clinical practice in the field of refractive surgery in Korea over the past 10 years. METHODS: A survey consisting of 59 multiple-choice questions regarding the preferred types of refractive surgery, excimer laser machine, and presbyopia surgery was mailed to 742 members of the Korean Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery in January 2016, and 50 members responded to the survey. These data were compared with the 2005 or 2007 survey results.
Cataract ; Keratectomy, Subepithelial, Laser-Assisted ; Keratomileusis, Laser In Situ ; Korea ; Lasers, Excimer ; Myopia ; Phakic Intraocular Lenses ; Postal Service ; Presbyopia ; Refractive Surgical Procedures ; Surveys and Questionnaires

PURPOSE: This study investigated the current trends and changes in the field of cataract surgery in Korea. METHODS: The members of the Korean Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery (KSCRS) and the members of the Korean Ophthalmological Society (KOS) participated in a survey on cataract surgery in 2012, the 16th survey, consisting of 108 multiple-choice questions, mailed in July 2013 to 301 KSCRS and KOS members. Sixty two (20.6%) members answered the questions. Current data were compared with previous surveys performed in 2006 and 2009. RESULTS: Most of the respondents (46%) were in the fourth decade, 43% in the fifth decade and 10% in the sixth decade of life. The duration of hospital stay had decreased annually and the use of topical anesthesia (69%) was the most preferred. Self-sealing wound construction was the main wound closure technique in phacoemulsification (72%). The most preferred intraocular lens (IOL) for cataract surgery was hydrophobic acrylic (76%) which showed an increasing trend. The implantation of phakic IOL was performed by 41% of the respondents and interest in the value added IOLs such as presbyopia IOL and toric IOL had increased annually. In addition, to minimize astigmatism following cataract surgery, several methods were performed according to the degree of astigmatism. However, there was little interest in new cataract surgery techniques such as femtosecond laser and many respondents were skeptical whether to adopt the femtosecond laser cataract surgery system. CONCLUSIONS: This survey summarized current trends and changes in the field of cataract surgery in Korea.
Anesthesia ; Astigmatism ; Cataract* ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Korea* ; Length of Stay ; Lenses, Intraocular ; Phacoemulsification ; Postal Service ; Presbyopia ; Refractive Surgical Procedures ; Wound Closure Techniques ; Wounds and Injuries

PURPOSE: The present study aims to determine the common pathogens involved in the etiology of bacterial keratitis and to analyze not only the antibiotic susceptibility of bacterial isolates from patients with bacterial keratitis but also the propriety of initial treatment. METHODS: A retrospective study of 161 eyes in 161 patients with bacterial keratitis, who were diagnosed by cultures from 2000 to 2011, was performed. Causative bacteria and antibiotic susceptibility were evaluated in consecutive 6-year periods. RESULTS: The most common bacteria was the pseudomonas species in the 2 time periods tested and cefazolin with tobramycin was the most commonly used antibiotic (125 cases, 77.6%) for initial treatment of bacterial keratitis. In vitro testing showed gram-negative susceptibility to tobramycin and ciprofloxacin was over 70%, gram-positive susceptibility to cephalothin and vancomycin was 100% and there was no significant difference between the 2 time periods tested. Eight cases had resistance to the initial treatment, but only 1 case showed treatment failure. CONCLUSIONS: Antibiotics used for initial treatment of bacterial keratitis were able to obtain a proper effect but several cases showed bacterial resistance to antibiotics. Thus, continued testing is essential to monitor for antibiotic resistance.
Anti-Bacterial Agents* ; Bacteria ; Cefazolin ; Cephalothin ; Ciprofloxacin ; Drug Resistance, Microbial ; Humans ; Keratitis* ; Pseudomonas ; Retrospective Studies ; Tobramycin ; Treatment Failure ; Vancomycin

PURPOSE: To investigate the prevalence, clinical manifestations, and risk factors of dry eye syndrome (DES) among people over 50 years old in the Incheon area. METHODS: A cross-sectional prevalence study was performed on 462 people over 50 years old in Dong-gu, Incheon. DES was defined as the constant or frequent presence of symptoms of both dryness and irritation. Symptoms and past medical history were assessed by a survey. Eye examination included slit lamp examination, Schirmer test, and tear break-up time (T-BUT). Age, sex, living habits, systemic and eye diseases were also analyzed to determine the risk factors of DES. RESULTS: The prevalence of DES was 26.2%. The major symptoms were as follows in descending order: dryness (77.9%), tearing (75.2%), and sandiness (72.7%). An average of 12.1 +/- 6.0 mm in the Schirmer test and 6.7 +/- 2.4 seconds in the T-BUT were significantly different in the DES group from the normal group (p < 0.001). Variables such as age, sex, living habits, and eye diseases were not related to the diagnosis of DES, whereas diabetes was the only risk factor of DES with statistical significance (p = 0.03). CONCLUSIONS: In the present study, the prevalence of DES among people over 50 years old in the Incheon area was 26.2%. Schirmer test and T-BUT were considered to be helpful tools for the diagnosis of DES, and diabetes was a significant risk factor of DES.
Cross-Sectional Studies ; Diabetes Mellitus ; Dry Eye Syndromes ; Eye ; Eye Diseases ; Prevalence ; Risk Factors ; Tears

PURPOSE: To investigate the current situation and future trends in the field of cataract surgery in Korea. METHODS: Since 1995, the members of the Korean Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery (KSCRS) have conducted annual surveys on cataract and refractive surgery. The 2006 annual survey, consisting of 89 multiple-choice questions, was mailed in February 2007 to 289 KSCRS members. Sixty (20.7%) members answered the questions. Current data were compared with data of previous annual surveys and with data of surveys in the United States and Europe. RESULTS: Fifty-one percent of the respondents were in their fifties. The duration of hospital stays has decreased annually, and the use of topical anesthesia (53%) has not changed. Self-sealing wound construction was the main wound closure technique in phacoemulsification (52%). The implantation of phakic intraocular lenses (IOL) was performed on 50% of the respondents, and the preferred IOLs for small incision cataract surgery were acrylic (87%). Interest in the added value of IOL has increased annually. CONCLUSIONS: This survey summarized current trends and changes in cataract surgery in Korea.
Anesthesia ; Cataract ; Axis, Cervical Vertebra ; Korea ; Length of Stay ; Phacoemulsification ; Phakic Intraocular Lenses ; Postal Service ; Refractive Surgical Procedures ; United States ; Wound Closure Techniques

PURPOSE: This purpose of this report was to study trends in cataract and refractive surgeries conducted during the past twelve years and to compare results to previous reports from the ASCRS and New Zealand (NZ) in order to forecast future medical services. METHODS: We surveyed members of the Korean Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery (KSCRS) every year from 1995 to 2006, and studied changes in cataract and refractive surgeries (RS). RESULTS: The duration of hospitalization has been gradually decreasing to the point that a one day hospitalization following surgery has become common. The rate of topical anesthesia use has significantly increased since 1998. Sutureless incision methods are now commonly practiced. The use of acryl IOL as an optic material has been gradually increasing for cataract surgeries. KSCRS members showed an interest in the special intraocular lenses as multifocal IOL. While Excimer laser PRK was the most popular refractive surgery during the first stage, KSCRS members increasingly prefer LASIK to the Excimer laser PRK. Regression of the corrected visual acuity, dry eye, night halo, and flashes were the most common complications following refractive surgeries. Medical disputes related to PRK and LASIK have been gradually increasing throughout the study period. CONCLUSIONS: We confirm that the KSCRS practice styles for cataract and RS are similar to those of the ASCRS and NZ. We infer a world-wide trend from the comparison of these three societies.
Adult ; Cataract Extraction/statistics & numerical data/*trends ; Humans ; Keratomileusis, Laser In Situ/statistics & numerical data/trends ; Laser Therapy/statistics & numerical data/trends ; Lasers, Excimer ; Lenses, Intraocular/statistics & numerical data/trends ; Middle Aged ; Ophthalmology/statistics & numerical data/*trends ; Photorefractive Keratectomy/statistics & numerical data/trends ; Professional Practice/statistics & numerical data/*trends ; Questionnaires ; Refractive Surgical Procedures/statistics & numerical data/*trends ; Republic of Korea ; Societies, Medical

PURPOSE: This study investigated the current situation and future trends in the field of cataract surgery in Korea. METHODS: Since 1995, the members of the Korean Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery (KSCRS) have conducted annual surveys regarding cataract and refractive surgery. The 2007 annual survey, consisting of 85 multiple-choice questions, was mailed in February 2008 to 301 KSCRS members. Sixty-two (20.6%) members answered the questions. Current data were compared with data from previous annual surveys and with surveys in the United States and Europe. RESULTS: Fifty-four percent of the respondents were over 50 years of age. The duration of hospital stay has decreased annually and the use of topical anesthesia (57%) has slightly increased. Self-sealing wound construction was the main wound closure technique in phacoemulsification (60%). The implantation of phakic intraocular lenses (IOL) was performed in 56% of the respondents and the most preferred IOL for small incision cataract surgery were acrylic (88%). Interest in the additional value of IOL has increased annually. CONCLUSIONS: This survey summarized current trends and changes in cataract surgery in Korea.
Anesthesia ; Cataract ; Axis, Cervical Vertebra ; Korea ; Length of Stay ; Phacoemulsification ; Phakic Intraocular Lenses ; Postal Service ; Refractive Surgical Procedures ; United States ; Wound Closure Techniques

PURPOSE: To investigate the current situation and future trends in the field of refractive surgery in Korea. METHODS: Since 1995, the members of the Korean Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery (KSCRS) have been annually surveyed on cataract and refractive surgery. The 2007 annual survey, consisting of 66 multiple-choice questions, was mailed in August 2008 to 336 KSCRS members. Fifty (14.9%) members answered. Current data were compared with those of previous annual survey and with those of the USA. RESULTS: The respondents in their forties accounted for the highest percentage (38%) of the subjects, and VISX S4 was the most popularly used (32%). The use of IntraLase femtosecond laser (AMO, USA) had increased. LASIK still accounted for the highest percentage (48%) of refractive surgeries. LASIK was preferred for myopia less than -8D, and phakic IOL was preferred for myopia more than -8D. Almost all the respondents answered that most promising refractive surgery is phakic IOL and the respondents who preferred LASIK decreased. CONCLUSIONS: This survey summarized current trends and changes in cataract and refractive surgery in Korea.
Cataract ; Axis, Cervical Vertebra ; Keratomileusis, Laser In Situ ; Korea ; Myopia ; Postal Service ; Refractive Surgical Procedures

PURPOSE: To investigate the current situation and future trends in the field of refractive surgery in Korea. METHODS: Since 1995, the members of the Korean Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery (KSCRS) have been annually surveyed on cataract and refractive surgery. The 2006 annual survey, consisting of 63 multiple-choice questions, was mailed in July 2007 to 298 KSCRS members. Forty-eight (16.1%) of the members responded to the survey. The current data were compared with those of previous annual surveys and with those of the USA. RESULTS: The society members in their forties accounted for the highest percentage (39%) of the respondents, and LASIK was the most common (50%) of the refractive surgeries. Among the possible complications that arise after refractive surgeries, the regression of corrected vision after PRK, and dry eye syndrome after LASIK accounted for the highest proportion. LASIK was preferred for patients with myopia less than -12 diopter, and phakic IOL was preferred for patients with myopia more than -12 diopter. Almost all of the respondents answered that the most promising refractive surgery is LASIK or phakic IOL. CONCLUSIONS: This survey summarized current trends and changes in cataract and refractive surgery in Korea.
Cataract ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Dry Eye Syndromes ; Humans ; Keratomileusis, Laser In Situ ; Korea ; Myopia ; Postal Service ; Refractive Surgical Procedures ; Vision, Ocular

PURPOSE: This study investigates the current situation and future trends in the field of refractive surgery in Korea. METHODS: Since 1995, members of the Korean Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery (KSCRS) have been surveyed annually on cataract and refractive surgery. The 2005 annual survey, consisting of 63 multiple-choice questions, was mailed in June 2005 to 300 KSCRS members. Fifty-four (18.0%) members responded. Current data were compared with those of previous annual surveys and with data from the USA. RESULTS: The highest percentage of patients were in their forties (37%), and LASIK accounted for the highest percentage of refractive surgeries (81%). Of complications arising after refractive surgery, the degeneration of corrected vision after PRK and dry eye syndrome after LASIK accounted for the high proportions. LASIK was preferred for myopia less than -12 diopter, and phakic IOL was preferred for myopia greater than -12 diopter. Almost all respondents answered that the most promising refractive surgery is LASIK or phakic IOL. CONCLUSIONS: This survey summarized the current trends and changes in cataract and refractive surgery in Korea.
Cataract ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Dry Eye Syndromes ; Humans ; Keratomileusis, Laser In Situ ; Korea ; Myopia ; Postal Service ; Refractive Surgical Procedures ; Vision, Ocular