Discovery, distribution, and abundance of the newly introduced mosquito Ochlerotatus japonicus (Diptera: Culicidae) in Connecticut, USA

The earliest documented specimen of an exotic east Asian mosquito Ochlerotatus (Finlaya) japonicis japonicus (Theobald) in the Western Hemisphere is reported along with the results of a state wide survey to determine the distribution and abundance of this mosquito in Connecticut. Ochlerotatus japonicus was collected from 87 locations in eight counties. It is established throughout the state and occurs in a variety of natural and artificial container habitats including discarded tire casings, bird baths, wooden barrels, porcelain bath tubs (used for watering animals), plastic milk cartons, toys, vinyl tarpaulins (covering wood piles and swimming pools), exposed rock holes in stream beds, tree holes, subterranean catch basins, surface water rain pools, and spring-fed depressions. Larvae were particularly common in containers with water, decaying leaves, and algae, in shaded and sunlit areas and, in rock-pool habitats along streambeds, in association with Ochlerotatus atropalpus (Coquillett). Adult females were collected in sod grass-infused gravid and CO2- baited light traps, from early June through October, with peak collections in September. Biting females were collected by human bait method augmented with CO2, verifying its capacity to feed on humans. The ovitraps used in this study were not effective for recovering this species. Our results suggest that Oc. japonicus was introduced into Connecticut between 1992 and 1998. Because of the ability of Oc. japonicus to transmit West Nile virus, and because of the recent detection of this virus in field-collected specimens, the introduction of Oc. japonicus is considered a significant public health development.

Effects of open marsh water management on selected tidal marsh resources: a review

Open Marsh Water Management (OMWM) is a method of salt-marsh mosquito control that advocates source reduction and biological control through selective pond creation and ditching in mosquito breeding areas. This method has been used as an alternative to chemical insecticides in coastal wetlands for 30 years. This paper reviews the effects of OMWM on hydrology, topography, vegetation, mosquitoes, invertebrates, fishes, birds, mammals, and water quality. Other source reduction techniques and the economics of OMWM are also discussed.

Relation of hormone and menopausal status to outcomes following excimer laser photorefractive keratectomy in women. Melbourne Excimer Laser Group

PURPOSE

To examine the effect of hormone use, pregnancy and menopausal status on clinical outcomes following excimer laser surgery for myopia and myopic astigmatism.

METHODS

Participants comprised all female patients of the Melbourne Excimer Laser Group (MELG). A standardised surgical protocol was followed by the 27 MELG members, using the VisX 20/20 excimer laser and included the prospective collection of the following information preoperatively and one, three, six and 12 months after the procedure: uncorrected and best corrected visual acuity with a LogMAR chart; best manifest refraction; and subjective assessment of corneal clarity. A survey that elicited information about oral contraceptive (OC) use, pregnancy history, surgical and natural menopause, and use of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) was mailed to all the women.

RESULTS

A 77% response to the mailed survey was achieved. Two women were pregnant at the time of surgery, one became pregnant during the first month after surgery, and all three women were excluded from further analyses, although a review of two of the case histories revealed suboptimal clinical outcomes. Women taking OC were included in the control group after OC use was shown not to be associated with outcome. Women were grouped accordingly: control, n = 225, pre-menopausal on HRT, n = 7, post-menopausal not on HRT, n = 34; and post-menopausal on HRT, n = 21. The groups differed significantly with regard to age and preoperative spherical equivalent. After controlling for age and preoperative spherical equivalent, the mean number of uncorrected LogMAR letters read one year after surgery was significantly lower for the post-menopausal women on the HRT in comparison with the control group. Best corrected acuity and corneal clarity were not significantly different among the groups.

DISCUSSION

These preliminary results suggest that the interaction of menopausal and HRT status could decrease the effectiveness of PRK and PARK, but require confirmation with a further study in a prospective manner using objective measures of corneal epithelial healing and serum hormone levels.

Congenital fibrosis of the vertically acting extraocular muscles. A new group of dominantly inherited ocular fibrosis with radiologic findings

BACKGROUND

The authors studied a family with a form of congenital fibrosis of the extraocular muscles different from any group previously reported.

METHODS

A careful examination was done of all affected and all, except one, unaffected members of a family of 15 members extending over three generations. The authors performed computed tomography on five affected and four unaffected family members.

RESULTS

All affected family members showed complete loss of vertical ocular movement but largely free horizontal movement except for variable restriction of adduction in some members. A variable degree of ptosis was present, ranging from gross to nil, but with poor levator function and an absent Bell phenomenon in all affected members. All affected members showed superficial keratopathy, many with corneal scarring. Ocular alignment showed considerable variation. Refractive error and amblyopia also were variable. Computed tomographic scan indicated reduction in size of the extraocular muscles, particularly the superior recti with intracranial ventricular asymmetry in three of five patients examined, and abnormality in shape of the eye globes in two patients.

CONCLUSIONS

The findings indicate a new group best described as dominantly inherited congenital fibrosis of the vertical-acting extraocular muscles, which is part of the syndrome of congenital ocular fibrosis. Computed tomographic scanning suggested that the clinical picture was produced by changes present in the orbit, but intracranial ventricular asymmetry also was present in some patients and asymmetry of the eye globes in others.

Occupational science: academic innovation in the service of occupational therapy's future

Occupational science is a new scientific discipline that is defined as the systematic study of the human as an occupational being. A doctoral program in occupational science has been established at the University of Southern California, Los Angeles. With its emphasis on the provision of a multidimensional description of the substrates, form, function, meaning, and sociocultural and historical contexts of occupation, occupational science emphasizes the ability of humans throughout the life span to actively pursue and orchestrate occupations. In this paper, occupational science is described, defined, and distinguished from other social sciences. A general systems model is presented as a heuristic to explain occupation and organize knowledge in occupational science. The development of occupational science offers several key benefits to the profession of occupational therapy, including (a) fulfillment of the demand for doctoral-level faculty members in colleges and universities; (b) the generation of needed basic science research; and (c) the justification for and potential enhancement of practice.

Efficacy and safety of hypromellose in ocular implant surgery

In order to assess the efficacy of hypromellose as a viscoelastic substance in cataract surgery with posterior chamber intraocular lens implantation, we studied a series of 88 cases who underwent surgery with either alternate use of a viscoelastic substance (hypromellose, 39 patients, or sodium hyaluronate, 5 patients) or air (44 patients) in the anterior chamber. Endothelial cell loss was least in the group in which air was used (18 +/- 3% cell loss, mean +/- SEM), compared with hypromellose (26 +/- 3%) and sodium hyaluronate (28 +/- 6%), but the difference in percentage cell loss between the groups did not reach statistical significance. Some operative difficulties were encountered in both groups. In both the air and hypromellose groups there were two patients with an early postoperative rise in intraocular pressure, but this was easily controlled, and in both groups there were two patients with postoperative corneal oedema which soon cleared. Visco-elastic substances used in this study were not shown to be superior to air in protecting the corneal endothelium. For this reason use of hypromellose should be confined to situations where its use is likely to confer some special advantage, as in the presence of a bound-down pupil in patient's with chronic glaucoma or perhaps to facilitate "in the bag" implantation.