ObjectiveTo explore the necessity, construction plans, and implementation methods for the establishment of a fundus disease-specific biobank are discussed. MethodsAn evidence-based medicine study. “Biobank”, “Disease-specific biobank”, “Eye diseases”, “Fundus disease” were hereby used as search terms. Literatures were retrieved related to biobank construction from PubMed, Embase, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, and Wanfang databases since their establishment until October 2023. Two researchers independently selected and analyzed literature, extracting data for further analysis. ResultsAfter screening, 23 articles were included, comprising 11 articles in Chinese and 12 articles in English, involving 23 institutions. The disease-specific biobank has been built earlier abroad than domestically. Both domestic and foreign biobank have a scale of less than 1, 1 to 10, and more than 10 thousand samples, with the eye disease-specific biobank having less than 10 thousand samples. The majority of these disease-specific biobank focued on tumor-related diseases and consist of both physical and information components. Ethical committees were required to declare and record the construction of biobank, and dedicated personnel and information management systems are established. Quality control systems have been developed with standard operating procedures from sample collection to storage. These disease-specific biobank effectively supported research projects, but there was a lack of resource sharing domestically compared to abroad. Based on practical experience, the construction of fundus disease-specific biobank at West China Hospital of Sichuan University has been improved. Separate sample collection processes have been formulated for outpatient clinics and operating rooms. Standard operating procedures have been established for unique eye samples, including vitreous fluid, proliferative membranes of the retina, aqueous humor, tears, etc., to ensure sample quality. ConclusionEstablishing a fundus disease-specific biobank can promote basic and clinical research, advance the development of translational medicine, achieve resource sharing, and foster discipline development.
Based on the current situation of patients with retinal diseases in China and the clear requirements of the "14th Five-Year Plan for Eye Health (2021-2025)" to strengthen the construction of the prevention and control system for retinal diseases, experts in the field of retinal diseases in China have conducted in-depth and comprehensive thematic discussions, and used the modified Delphi method for collective decision-making and opinion solicitation, ultimately forming consensus and consistent guidance suggestions for the management of chronic diseases of retinal diseases that are in line with China's national conditions. This consensus includes key content such as definitions, treatment plans, and follow-up frequency for the management of chronic diseases of the fundus. It clearly proposes relevant measures to improve the management process of chronic diseases of the fundus, and elaborates on the advantages and feasibility of establishing an online remote platform for the management of chronic diseases of the fundus, in order to assist doctors in formulating personalized treatment plans and ensure that patients receive standardized treatment and follow-up. This consensus will provide guidance and reference for the management of chronic diseases and long-term standardized diagnosis and treatment of major fundus diseases in China.
The population of various fundus diseases in China is vast, and the number of patients is continuously increasing due to the aging population. In contrast, fundus disease awareness among the general public in China is low, and grassroots screening needs urgent improvement. At the same time, the diagnosis and treatment rate are quite low, and the treatment methods for late-stage diseases are limited, resulting in poor prognosis of visual function and high blindness rate. Chronic fundus diseases require long-term, standardized treatment and long-term follow-up, which can be burdensome for patients, leading to high missed visit rates and reduced therapeutic effects. The "14th Five-Year Plan for Eye Health (2021-2025)" clearly put forward the requirements of strengthening the construction of the fundus disease prevention and control system. We urgently need to develop a management model for chronic diseases of fundus diseases tailored to China's national conditions. This will require establishing corresponding management platforms, improving personnel allocation, and enhancing compliance in the treatment of fundus diseases, to improve treatment effectiveness and fundamentally reduce blindness rates. After China's authoritative experts in the field of fundus diseases through the organization of in-depth and comprehensive thematic discussion, and the use of the improved version of Delphi method for collective decision-making and opinion consultation, a series of consensus guidance and suggestions were finally formed. These valuable professional insights will strongly promote the establishment of an appropriate chronic fundus disease management system in China, ensure that patients with fundus disease get long-term, standardized medical services, and lay a solid foundation for improving the overall prevention and treatment of fundus diseases.
Chronic disease is a major threat to human health. Fundus disease has become a major ophthalmic disease affecting daily life. Although great breakthroughs have been made in the treatment, compared with other chronic disease management, the management of patients with fundus disease is still in its infancy. To strengthen the management exploration of patients with fundus diseases, establish a management model of fundus diseases and strive to improve patients' awareness of fundus diseases and adherence to treatment and follow-up are the great challenges at present. All ophthalmic centers should strengthen patient education, establish a regional cooperation network, support the construction of grassroots medical capacity, cultivate talents, enhance training, promote the standardized treatment of fundus diseases, standardize fundus imaging inspection and diagnosis, and promote the homogeneous construction of diagnosis and treatment of chronic fundus diseases. We will accelerate the construction of a hierarchical diagnosis and treatment system and the ability to link consultation and referral. Through systematic management and intervention of fundus diseases, a large number of patients with fundus diseases will receive early screening, diagnosis, standardized continuous treatment and systematic management, and improve the quality of life of patients with fundus diseases.
ObjectiveTo understand the research status, academic hotspots, and development trends in the interdisciplinary field of fundus diseases and artificial intelligence (AI). MethodsThe SCI-Expanded database from the Web of Science core collection, provided by the Institute for Scientific Information in the United States, was used as the data source to retrieve literature related to the intersection of retinal diseases and AI from January 1, 2014, to December 31, 2024. Bibliometric analysis tools, Origin Pro 2024 and CiteSpace 6.4.R1, were employed to analyze data on countries/regions, institutions, journals, authors, and keywords. ResultsA total of 2 103 papers related to the intersection of retinal diseases and AI were identified. The number of publications increased significantly starting in 2018, with an average annual increase of approximately 56.8 papers. Among the countries/regions that published papers, China had the highest number of publications (587), while the United Kingdom exhibited the highest intermediary centrality, with a value of 0.28. The core journal in this field was Ophthalmology, with an impact factor of 13.2. With respect to authors, the Ophthalmic Hospital of the University of Vienna in Austria had the highest number of publications (50). Keyword clustering revealed that research efforts focused on three main areas: AI-assisted diagnosis of retinal diseases (#1, #3-#5, #7), analysis of retinal images (#0, #6, #8, #9), and practical applications of retinal disease research (#2). The most frequently occurring keywords were "diabetic retinopathy", "deep learning”, and "AI", with 984, 749, and 471 occurrences, respectively. The analysis of emergent words shows that "retinal image" and "risk factor" are the persistent hotspots, while the field of mathematics is the key technical support. ConclusionsFrom 2014 to 2024, there was a growing trend in literature related to the intersection of retinal diseases and AI. China had the highest number of publications, but its intermediary centrality was relatively low. Research activities focused primarily on AI-assisted diagnosis, image analysis, and practical applications of retinal disease knowledge.
Tear fluid, as an important ocular surface fluid, can effectively reflect both ocular and systemic metabolic states through its compositional changes, making it an ideal source for discovering disease biomarkers. Current tear collection methods mainly include the Schirmer strip test and microcapillary collection, while detection technologies encompass enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, protein chip technology, mass spectrometry, Olink targeted proteomics, and bead-based multiplex assays. Studies have shown that various biomarkers in tear fluid—such as proteins, cytokines, and chemokines that are closely associated with the pathophysiological processes of fundus diseases including diabetic retinopathy, retinal vein occlusion, age-related macular degeneration, retinopathy of prematurity, and uveitis, demonstrating potential as indicators for early diagnosis, disease assessment, and therapeutic monitoring. As a non-invasive and convenient detection tool, tear analysis shows broad application prospects in the diagnosis and treatment of fundus diseases. However, further optimization of collection and detection techniques, along with large-scale clinical studies to validate the clinical utility of tear biomarkers, is still needed to promote their standardization and widespread adoption in clinical practice.
ObjectivesTo evaluate and preliminarily analyze the application value and efficacy of artificial intelligence optical coherence tomography (AI-OCT) technology in the early screening of retinal diseases among the elderly, hypertension, hyperglycemia, high myopia and hyperlipidemia (referred to as "Five-High") population. Methods A diagnostic trial was conducted. A total of 3 834 patients (7 668 eyes) with "Five-High" risk factors who visited the outpatient clinics of Shenyang Fourth People’s Hospital from July to December 2024 were included. Optical coherence tomography imaging of the macular and peripheral retina was performed using the Bigway AI-OCT image analysis system (wide-field three-dimensional scanning mode). The deep learning-based system automatically identified and labeled eight types of high-risk retinal lesions: subretinal fluid (SRF), intraretinal fluid (IRF), epiretinal membrane (ERM), choroidal neovascularization (CNV), hyper-reflective foci (HRF), retinal pigment epithelium detachment, retinal hemorrhage, and macular hole (MH). The positive rate of AI-OCT screening and the distribution of high-risk lesions were analyzed. Consistency between AI-OCT screening results and ophthalmologist review was assessed using Cohen’s Kappa test. Logistic regression was used to identify independent predictors of positive AI-OCT screening. Referral and treatment rates were also analyzed. ResultsAmong 3 834 cases involving 7 668 eyes, 803 cases (1 606 eyes) were positive in AI-OCT screening, with a positive rate of 20.9% (803/3 834), including 266 high-risk and 537 non-high-risk patients, respectively. The positive screening rates of patients with "Five Highs" were as follows: hyperlipidemia 25.2% (185/735), advanced age 24.9% (746/1 998), hyperglycemia 24.8% (345/1 392), hypertension 23.8% (228/956), and high myopia 19.0% (40/210). Among 1 606 positive eyes, 1 355 high-risk lesions were identified by consensus. Among them, ERM had the largest number of identifications (780, 57.6%), followed by HRF (255, 18.8%), and MH had the smallest number of identifications (7, 0.5%). Physicians randomly reexamined 1 352 cases and 2 704 eyes. The number of positive and negative eyes diagnosed was 753 and 1 952 respectively. The number of positive and negative eyes screened by AI-OCT was 828 and 1 876 respectively. There was an excellent consistency between AI-OCT screening and physician diagnosis (Kappa=0.866, P=0.011). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that age [odds ratio (OR) =1.071, P＜0.001], high myopia (OR=1.921, P=0.001), and hyperglycemia (OR=1.287, P=0.005) were independent predictors of positive AI-OCT screening. Among 1 355 high-risk lesions, a total of 703 were referred (referral rate 51.9%). The three lesions with the highest referral rates were SRF (71.1%, 27/38), IRF (69.2%, 54/78), and CNV (61.5%, 24/39), respectively. Among the 803 cases with positive AI-OCT screening, 385 cases (47.9%) actually received referral suggestions, 259 cases (32.3%) were eventually diagnosed, and 109 cases (13.6%) received treatment. Compared with low-risk patients, the referral rate and diagnosis rate of high-risk patients were significantly higher (χ2=6.87, 4.48; P＜0.05), but there was no statistically significant difference in the final treatment acceptance rate between groups (χ2=1.15, P=0.280). ConclusionsThe established AI-OCT based screening model for fundus diseases in the “Five-High” population effectively improves the detection rate of early-stage lesions and promotes a shift from universal to precision screening. Patients with positive screening results have obvious referral and treatment obstacles, which requires clinical attention.
Mast cell (MC) play a crucial role in non-allergic fundus diseases, including uveitis, diabetic retinopathy, and age-related macular degeneration. MCs can profoundly influence the pathological processes of these diseases by regulating inflammatory responses, promoting angiogenesis, and facilitating tissue remodeling through the degranulation and release of mediators such as histamine, cytokines, and enzymes. The application of MC-associated inhibitors has been shown to effectively mitigate or inhibit the progression of these pathologies, offering a promising strategy for treating ocular diseases. Understanding the current state of MC research in fundus diseases will enhance our insight into their role in the pathophysiological mechanisms of these conditions and encourage further research aimed at providing more effective treatment options for patients.