Neutrophil extracellular traps(NETs)are net-like complexes released by neutrophils and play a crucial role in antimicrobial defense. In addition, NETs can exacerbate inflammatory responses associated with various diseases, including diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, and autoimmune diseases. Currently, the role of NETs in ocular diseases has received extensive attention. This article systematically summarizes the formation mechanism of NETs and their role in maintaining intraocular homeostasis under physiological conditions. At the same time, it focuses on elaborating the pathogenic role of NETs in the field of ophthalmic diseases, such as dry eye, keratitis, uveitis, diabetic retinopathy, retinal vein occlusion, and age-related macular degeneration, emphasizing the importance of NETs as therapeutic targets for ocular diseases and the potential application value as new markers for ocular diseases. Future in-depth research on the mechanism of NETs in ocular diseases will provide a stronger theoretical basis for the treatment of related eye diseases.

Retinitis pigmentosa(RP)is an inherited retinal degenerative disease characterized by progressive photoreceptor cell degeneration, in which cataract—a common complication—significantly affects visual prognosis. Currently, phacoemulsification with intraocular lens implantation has become the main treatment for RP complicated with cataract. However, postoperative complications such as posterior capsular opacification, capsular contraction syndrome, intraocular lens dislocation, and macular edema occur at considerably higher rates in these patients, severely compromising the long-term outcomes of cataract surgery. Based on the latest clinical evidence, this review systematically elaborates on the clinical characteristics of RP with cataract, key perioperative surgical considerations, and recent advances in the prevention and management of complications, aiming to optimize the surgical approach, improve postoperative visual quality, and enhance long-term efficacy for RP patients, thereby providing an evidence-based medical reference.

AIM: To evaluate the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio(NLR)in patients with retinitis pigmentosa(RP)complicated with cataract, and to explore its correlation with the clinical characteristics of RP patients complicated with cataract.METHODS: The retrospective study included 79 RP patients(125 eyes)complicated with cataract who received cataract surgery at our hospital from January 2008 to December 2018, among which 63 cases(63 eyes)were finally enrolled in the RP complicated with cataract group after the exclusion of patients with early age of onset. Another 63 age- and sex-matched patients(63 eyes)with age-related cataract(ARC)who had cataract surgery during the same period in our hospital were enrolled in the ARC group. The clinical data and NLR were collected, and the correlation of clinical manifestations with NLR in RP patients complicated with cataract was analyzed.RESULTS: The NLR in RP patients complicated with cataract was significantly higher than that in the ARC group [1.79(1.32, 2.27)vs 1.58(1.32, 1.98), P=0.032]. NLR was associated with the severity of posterior subcapsular cataract(PSC), zonular deficiency, and preoperative best-corrected visual acuity(>1 LogMAR). Receiver operating curve showed that NLR ≥1.36 could predict higher degrees(>P1)of RP complicated PSC(AUC=0.803, 95%CI 0.672-0.934, P=0.002), NLR ≥2.12 could predict zonular weakness in RP patients complicated with cataract(AUC=0.796, 95%CI 0.665-0.928, P=0.002), while NLR ≥1.51 could predict RP patients with worse preoperative BCVA(AUC=0.667, 95%CI 0.540-0.793, P=0.015).CONCLUSION: NLR in RP patients complicated with cataract is significantly higher than that in ARC patients, and it is correlated with the clinical manifestations of RP patients with cataract. NLR can be used as a potential predictor to evaluate the severity of clinical manifestations of RP complicated with cataract.