Alireza Lashay

BACKGROUND: To report the study protocol, methodology and latest enrollment data of a large epidemiological multi-central eye cohort named PERSIAN Eye Cohort Study (PECS), originating from the ongoing PERSIAN Cohort Study, to investigate the distribution of ophthalmic disorders in different regions and ethnicities of Iran, and determine their associations with various exposures of ophthalmic and non-ophthalmic nature. METHODS: A central committee designed the study and equipped six chosen centers (Khameneh, Some'e Sara, Hoveizeh, Yazd, Rafsanjan and Zahedan)...

PURPOSE: This research intended to fabricate the thiolated chitosan-dextran nanoparticles (NPs) containing topotecan (TPH-CMD-TCS-NPs) to assess the ability of NPs in improving the efficacy of intravitreal chemotherapy of retinoblastoma in a rabbit xenograft model. METHODS: The coacervation process was used to produce the NPs. The cellular uptake of Cyanine-3 (CY3)-labeled NPs were investigated in human retinoblastoma Y79 cells using confocal microscopy. Also, the prepared TPH-CMD-TCS-NPs were tested in vitro by the tetrazolium dyes II (XTT) and flow cytometry in order to assess their cytotoxicity...

Primary neuroendocrine tumor (NET) of bladder is rare. It has four subtypes, and large cell neuroendocrine carcinoma (LCNEC) is the rarest. LCNEC affects mostly men over 60. Most common symptom is gross hematuria. It has no specific treatment. Metastasis is common and once occurred, average survival would be less than three months. Herein we present diagnostic and therapeutic management of a 65-year-old female with LCNEC of bladder and concurrent high-grade urothelial carcinoma. Despite developing early liver metastasis, she achieved a one-year tumor-free survival...

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.18502/jovr.v17i1.10171.].

To present long-term visual and structural outcome of treatment in two forms of flat irregular pigment epithelial detachment (FIPED): avascular (aFIPED) and vascularized (vFIPED) in eyes within pachychoroid spectrum. Prospective interventional case series. FIPED were classified into two subgroups; aFIPED and vFIPED based on OCTA. aFIPED underwent PDT, and vFIPED underwent either PDT, IVB, or combination of PDT&IVB. Vision, subretinal or intraretinal fluid, and choroidal biomarkers such as choroidal thickness, area, choroidal vascular index (CVI), and PED area were measured at baseline and last follow-up...

In recent decades, the improvement of photoreceptor/ cell transplantation has been used as an effective therapeutic approach to treat retinal degenerative diseases. In this reviwe, the effect of different factors on the differentiation process and stem cells toward photoreceptors along with cell viability, morphology, migration, adhesion, proliferation, and differentiation efficiency was discussed. It is no wonder that scientists are researching to better recognize the reasons for retinal degeneration, as well as discovering novel therapeutic methods to restore lost vision...

This paper examines how haptic technology, virtual reality, and artificial intelligence help to reduce the physical contact in medical training during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Notably, any mistake made by the trainees during the education process might lead to undesired complications for the patient. Therefore, training of the medical skills to the trainees have always been a challenging issue for the expert surgeons, and this is even more challenging in pandemics. The current method of surgery training needs the novice surgeons to attend some courses, watch some procedure, and conduct their initial operations under the direct supervision of an expert surgeon...

OBJECTIVE: Excessive bleeding is an important complication of radical cystectomy. We aimed to assess whether preoperative administration of fibrinogen decreases perioperative bleeding and improves the outcome of radical cystectomy. DESIGN: Double-blinded randomized trial with two parallel arms. SETTING: The study was conducted in the department of surgery at a teaching hospital affiliated with a University of Medical Sciences. PATIENTS: In total, 70 men undergoing radical cystectomy were randomized to fibrinogen (n = 35) and placebo-control groups...

PURPOSE: To compare the efficacy and complication rate of monthly instillations of Bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG) as maintenance therapy in intermediate and high risk Non-Muscle Invasive Bladder Cancer (NMIBC) patients with the current standard Southwest Oncology Group (SWOG) protocol. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this observational retrospective study, 40 intermediate and high risk NMIBC patients, receiving standard BCG maintenance regimen, were compared with another 40 NMIBC patients, undergoing monthly intra-vesical instillations of BCG with regard to recurrence, progression and major and minor adverse effects...

AIM: To conduct a cost-utility analysis of the tele-retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) screening program against no screening. METHODS: A decision tree model was developed to identify and treat the infants with threshold ROP through the tele-screening system compared with no screening program from the societal perspective. We used the quality adjusted life years (QALY) index to measure the scenarios' effectiveness, which was discounted for the future years by 0.058...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

PURPOSE: To report the results of intravitreal injection of a bevacizumab biosimilar called StivantⓇ. METHODS: This prospective interventional case series was conducted on eyes with neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD), retinal vein occlusion (RVO), and diabetic macular edema (DME). StivantⓇ was injected in three consecutive months and changes in best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) and central macular thickness (CMT) were measured at baseline and monthly up to one month after the third injection...

Retinoblastoma (Rb) is the most common intraocular malignancy in children that accounts for approximately 4% of all pediatric malignancies. Since chemotherapy is a widely practiced treatment for Rb, there is a growing interest in developing new and effective drugs to overcome systemic and local side effects of chemotherapy to improve the quality of life and increase the chances of survival. This study sought to fabricate thiolated chitosan nanoparticles containing topotecan (TPH-TCs-NPs) with a view of enhancing drug loading and release control...

PURPOSE: To evaluate the safety of intravitreal injection of Stivant, a biosimilar to bevacizumab, in rabbits using electrophysiological and histological analysis. METHODS: Both eyes of 41 New Zealand albino rabbits were injected with 0.1 mL (2.5 mg) of Stivant. The rabbits were scheduled to be sacrificed 1, 2, 7, 14, and 28 days after injection for histopathological evaluations. Clinical examinations and electroretinography (ERG) were performed at baseline and just before sacrificing the rabbits...

Purpose: To assess the safety of biosimilar intravitreal aflibercept (CinnaGen Co., Iran) compared to the reference product (Eylea®; Bayer Schweiz AG, Zurich, Switzerland) in rabbit eyes through functional and histologic studies. Methods: Forty New Zealand albino rabbits were recruited to the study and were divided into four groups to be sacrificed at 48 hours, one, two, and four weeks after injections. In each group, five rabbits received 0.05 mL (2 mg) biosimilar aflibercept in the right eye and 0...

Purpose : To evaluate the anti-angiogenic effect of topical administration of Pigment epithelium-derived factor (PEDF) on the reduction of corneal neovascularization (NV) in comparison to topical Bevacizumab. Methods : 18 eyes of 18 New Zealand rabbits were enrolled. Corneal NV was induced by a 7-0 silk suture. After suture removal, rabbits were randomly divided into three groups. In every group, one eye randomly treated with topical bevacizumab or topical PEDF or saline for 14 days. The area and length of neovascularization were measured by Image J...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the efficacy of intravitreal ziv-aflibercept (IVZ) in patients with diabetic macular edema (DME) resistant to intravitreal bevacizumab (IVB). PATIENTS AND METHODS: This prospective study was conducted in patients with persistent DME. Patients were switched to IVZ no longer than 6 weeks after the last three consecutive monthly IVB treatments and monitored over a course of 12 weeks. Changes in best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), central macular thickness (CMT), and macular volume on optical coherence tomography were compared...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the safety and bioavailability of complete and half-dose of intravitreal ziv-aflibercept (IVZ) in an experimental model. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Thirty-two eyes of 16 male rabbits received one IVZ injection under anesthesia and the operating microscope. All right and left eyes received 1,250 μg/0.05 mL and 625 μg/0.05 mL of ziv-aflibercept, respectively. Then, rabbits were randomly allocated to four groups (four rabbits in each group)...

Purpose: To report best vitelliform macular dystrophy (BVMD) with an intriguing pattern of vascular flow on optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA). Methods: Four eyes of two patients with BVMD were evaluated. Complete ophthalmic examination including best corrected visual acuity (BCVA), spectral domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT), and OCTA were performed. Diagnosis was confirmed by electroretinography (ERG) and electrooculography (EOG) testing...

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of subretinal injection of Schwann cells on preservation of retina by decreasing oxidative stress in Dystrophic Royal College of Surgeons (RCS) rats. Schwann cells were harvested from the sciatic nerve of postnatal day 5, RCS rats. Twenty-five RCS rats randomly assigned to cell and sham groups. Schwann cells injected in the sub-retinal space in one eye of the cell group and carrier medium was injected in one eye of the sham group. The proof for the appropriate site of injection of Schwann cells confirmed by the green fluorescent protein (GFP) positive cells...