The Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) of the European Medicines Agency (EMA) has issued a positive opinion for brinzolamide 10 mg/mL and brimonidine tartrate 2 mg/mL eye drops suspension (Simbrinza, Alcon) to decrease elevated intraocular pressure (IOP) in adult patients with open-angle glaucoma or ocular hypertension, for whom monotherapy provides insufficient IOP reduction.
Implantation of two trabecular micro-bypass devices (iStent inject, Glaukos) reduced intraocular pressure (IOP) at least as effectively as a fixed combination of latanoprost/timolol in patients who had open-angle glaucoma that was not controlled by one medication, according to a recent study.
The "Glaucoma 360 Annual Gala" raises money for GRF research and education. The gala includes a reception, silent and lives auctions, dinner, entertainment, and awards. For a glimpse of the evening's festivities, view the slide show.
The advent of 24-hour IOP monitoring will transform the care of patients with glaucoma and usher in a new era of personalizing IOP.24-hour IOP monitoring set to revolutionize glaucoma research and clinical care.
Increased patients and patient access, new payment models, and the rise of comparative effectiveness research top the list of challenges that ophthalmologists will face in the future, according to William L. Rich, III, MD, FACS.
The search for glaucoma biomarkers is in high gear. Funded by Catalyst for a Cure, the research program has already produced new biomarker candidates and novel techniques that promise to advance research in glaucoma. Research is focusing on ways to diagnose glaucoma early and detect the specific, minute changes that could allow researchers to reduce vision loss.
The availability of technologies for ambulatory IOP measurement will usher in a new era in glaucoma patient management. L. Jay Katz, MD, said the technologies will provide better understanding of IOP and patient adherence to topical medications and to make more timely adjustments in therapy while reducing the number of office visits.
New generation of surgical procedures for glaucoma are being performed with good facility and encouraging safety and efficacy results. Only time will tell whether these techniques will maintain their initial promise and how they impact the treatment for glaucoma.
Intraocular pressure (IOP) is only the starting point for glaucoma treatment. Successful treatment begins with establishing an IOP goal, but there are multiple considerations that affect treatment choices. Robert Stamper, MD, explored the considerations that go into drug selection. None of the factors that should influence drug selection are new, he said, but it is easy to forget that the patient with glaucoma likely has other medical problems and is taking other medications.
Future healthcare reform is not a luxury. Rather, it is a necessity, especially when the performance and costs of healthcare in the United States are considered.
For many years, researchers have suspected and tried to prove a link between glaucoma and dementia, said Yvonne Ou, MD. Definitive answers, however, have been hard to come by. Glaucoma and dementia have several factors in common: both are neurodegenerative, chronic, and progressive diseases that are age-related and cause irreversible neuronal cell loss. They are both becoming a major public health concern as the U.S. population ages.
Prof. Iester describes his recent study investigating whether the addition of a tear substitute would protect exposed corneal epithelial cells from damage.
Value-based medicine analyses have indicated that glaucoma therapy has great patient benefits because it preserves their vision-which positively impacts their quality-of-life (QOL)-and it is cost effective with a high return on investment, according to Gary Brown, MD.
A Phase II dose-ranging study has been initiated for Amakem Therapeutics? glaucoma drug candidate AMA0076, a highly potent, locally acting Rho Kinase (ROCK) inhibitor designed to reduce intraocular pressure (IOP) while minimizing common ROCK inhibitor side effects such as hyperaemia.
A supracilliary micro-stent, when implanted in conjunction with cataract surgery, substantially reduces intraocular pressure (IOP) with minimal complications in patients with open-angle glaucoma, according to researchers in Germany and the US.
Patients with refractory glaucoma in whom a proprietary glaucoma implant was placed needed significantly less adjunctive medication to experience success in treatment compared with those who received a proprietary glaucoma valve. However, fewer of those in the latter group had serious postoperative complications, according to recently published 3-year outcomes.
In this article, the authors describe their novel technique for penetrative trabeculectomy in primary open-angle glaucoma patients, called sutureless trabeculectomy.
Preservatives are an important component of topical multidose glaucoma medications. However, many glaucoma patients have symptoms of ocular surface disease (OSD), which can affect quality of life, treatment adherence and surgical outcomes. In this article, Prof. Baudouin offers straightforward steps to assess OSD and identify the patients most at risk.
The authors have sought to expand the concept of automated alternation flicker to improve detection of glaucomatous optic neuropathy and highlight their findings in this article.
Carbon dioxide laser assisted sclerectomy surgery (CLASS) is being used as an effective and safe, minimally invasive treatment for glaucoma. In this article, two surgeons at the forefront of research, development and implementation of this approach discuss this surgical option and its benefits for the ophthalmic market.
The combination of microinvasive glaucoma surgeries with cataract surgery may address a patient's cataract and glaucoma in one procedure.
Glaucoma specialists can be advocates for their patients on a number of levels. On a daily basis, ophthalmologists help overcome barriers to treatment and offer solutions to patients for instilling medications, involving family members in their care, organizing services for patients, and providing educational materials, said Cynthia Mattox, MD, New England Eye Center, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston.
Glaucoma is now in a post-Renaissance period with far superior medications, better lasers, and the potential for individualized treatments for patients, according to Thomas W. Samuelson, MD.
Ultrasound circular cyclocoagulation is a non-invasive treatment for refractory glaucoma that is approved in Europe.
Primary congenital glaucoma is usually controlled with surgery, however, in a recent paper it has been demonstrated that long-term treatment with latanoprost 0.005% eyedrops is effective in about 30% of affected eyes.
