Clinical Diagnosis

Fort Lauderdale, FL-Estrogen-whether endogenous or from hormone replacement therapy (HRT)-appears to help prevent cataract formation, according to Australian researcher Christine Younan, MD, who reported her findings at the annual meeting of the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology.

New York-Certain glaucoma cases present a major challenge to the clinician. Participants in a session at the Glaucoma 2002 meeting here discussed some of these unusual conditions.

New York-The official definition of glaucoma has changed over the years to downplay the role of IOP, although IOP does remain a central issue in the treatment and prevention of the condition. Such was the conclusion drawn from discussions at the Glaucoma 2002 meeting here.

San Antonio, TX-Before prescribing one of the newer medications for glaucoma, clinicians should ask what drugs the patient may be taking for aches and pains-especially non-steroidal anti-inflammatory agents (NSAIDs), including something as innocuous as aspirin, said William E. Sponsel, MD.

Boston-The incidence of overcorrection following PRK and LASIK is fortunately very small, generally less than 5%. Unfortunately, the incidence of consecutive hyperopia after RK is significantly greater and, over time, becomes higher with a hyperopic shift, said Helen K. Wu, MD.

A genetically engineered molecule designed to kill cancers by destroying their rapidly growing blood vessels offers a new line of attack against age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and other retinal conditions, said Alan Garen, PhD.

Many physicians wrinkle their noses at the idea of selling products in the office. But what about offering patients educational materials at the time of diagnosis?

New Orleans-A system incorporating a narrow-beam excimer laser with an active tracking system to detect minuscule eye motions is effective in the LASIK correction of myopia and astigmatism, according to Marguerite B. McDonald, MD, clinical professor of ophthalmology at Tulane University School of Medicine here.

A 32-year-old woman complained of decreased vision in both eyes upon awakening. She stated that her vision was blurred, with black spots centrally in both eyes. She denied photopsias or pain.

Angiogenesis is a hot topic in medicine these days. It should also be a hot topic in ophthalmology, particularly for retinal specialists.

Bethesda, MD-A newly discovered network of non-rod, non-cone cells in the retina may be the mechanism that controls the body's circadian clock, said Ignacio Provencio, PhD.

San Francisco-Levofloxacin (Quixin, Santen)-the new kid in the fluoroquinolone family-is less likely to encounter resistant strains of bacteria than the two older members of that antibiotic family, ofloxacin (Ocuflox, Allergan) and ciprofloxacin (Ciloxan, Alcon), according to David Hwang, MD.

Seattle-The dry eye that some patients experience after LASIK is a direct, not an indirect, result of damage to the corneal nerves, said Steven E. Wilson, MD.

New York-The short-term elevated IOP that takes place when a microkeratome suction ring is applied to the eye during LASIK does not damage the retinal nerve fiber layer (NFL), according to New York researchers.

Farmington, CT-A newly discovered gene provides at least a partial solution to the puzzle of normal-tension glaucoma, according to Mansoor Sarfarazi, PhD.

A test for the optineurin gene will be available to ophthalmologists soon - possibly this year and certainly by 2003, said S. Kumar Chandrasekaran, PhD, CEO of InSite Vision, Alameda, CA.

Portland, OR-Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) does not appear to alter the incidence of dry eye symptoms or physiologic dry eye in women prior to or during menopause, according to Oregon researchers.

Philadelphia-A case-control study-in which each patient served as his or her own control-found that a single-piece lens may be less likely to cause vision-troubling capsular striae than a multipiece lens, said Richard Tipperman, MD.

Galveston, TX-Three-times-a-day treatment with famciclovir (Famvir, Novartis) was as effective against ophthalmic herpes zoster as five-times-a-day acyclovir (Zovirax, Glaxo Wellcome) in a major international trial, said Stephen K. Tyring, MD, PhD.

Atlanta-The longest follow-up to date of a large number of LASIKpatients has given convincing evidence that the procedure does not damagethe corneal endothelium, said Henry F. Edelhauser, PhD.

Houston-An artificial retina could be the answer for an estimated 1 million Americans with retinal blindness by conditions such as retinitis pigmentosa and age-related macular degeneration, said Alex Ignatiev, PhD, professor of physics, chemistry, and electrical and computer engineering at the University of Houston.

Los Angeles-The Amadeus Microkeratome (Allergan Surgical) offers advantages in both speed and safety in performing LASIK, said Lee Nordan, MD.

Allowing patients to listen to the music of their choiceduring cataract or glaucoma surgery can help reduce the cardiovascular effectscaused by both pre- and peri-operative feelings of stress, according toKaren Allen, PhD.

Augusta, GA-Despite negative results in an early trial, effortsare continuing to determine whether external-beam irradiation can slow visionloss caused by subfoveal choroidal neovascularization (CNV) in age-relatedmacular degeneration (AMD), said Dennis M. Marcus, MD.