News

A bimatoprost-releasing ocular insert that rests in the conjunctival fornix (ForSight VISION5) lowered IOP in patients with ocular hypertension or glaucoma by an average of 4 to 6 mm Hg from baseline over 6 months.

The Ocular Hypertension Treatment Study (OHTS) provided evidence supporting early treatment of selected patients with OHT, especially in high-risk individuals identified by a glaucoma risk prediction model. A new phase designed to gather data to guide even more personalized care is about to begin.

While it is still unclear why some patients respond well to anti-VEGF therapy and others do not, a new post hoc analysis of the DRCR.net Protocol I data may help physician make more efficient use of therapy by more quickly identifying which category each patient is in.

An extended-release therapy that encapsulates travoprost in an intracameral implant showed a statistically significant and clinically meaningful reduction in IOP with results comparable to topical once-daily travoprost ophthalmic solution, said Tom R. Walters, MD, Texan Eye, Austin.

A reasonable goal for patients with low-tension glaucoma patients is an IOP that’s 30% below the untreated baseline. However, some patients will continue to progress and may require single-digit target IOP goals.

A 65-year-old male with a history of congenital cataracts, bilateral cataract extraction and secondary placement of anterior chamber intraocular lenses with subsequent development of glaucoma, cicatricial conjunctivitis, dry eye and limbal stem cell deficiency presented with left eye pain and decreased vision.

Ophthalmology Times spoke with its Editorial Advisory Board members to get their thoughts on how the field of ophthalmology is growing, what advances they are highly anticipating, and what major hurdles ophthalmologists will face in 2016. A special thanks to Peter J. McDonnell, MD, Randall Olson, MD, Andrew G. Lee, MD, Sharon Fekrat, MD, and Robert K. Maloney, MD, for giving us a sneak peak at what the new year will bring.

Reproducibility of keratometry is better for early keratoconus than for advanced keratoconus, a new study showed.The study could help clinicians decide when to use corneal cross-linking in their efforts to stop the progression of the disease, wrote Tom H. Flynn, PhD, and his colleagues from the Corneal Service, Moorfields Eye Hospital, St. George’s Hospital, London. They published their finding in the British Journal of Ophthalmology.

While no new drug shook up the world of glaucoma in 2015, a variety of promising agents made incremental advances toward the market with their true potential as yet unproven. Manufacturers have continued to refine approaches to existing drugs.

While 2015 may not have been the year for ground-breaking introductions or trials in the field of refractive surgery, plenty of improvements have kept the procedure an evolving process, Ophthalmology Times editorial advisory board members said.

Over the past few years, various diagnostics have been introduced to help clinicians identify inflammatory conditions on the ocular surface more readily and, therefore, provide treatment to patients earlier in their disease states.

As 2015 progressed, researchers reported better ways to detect glaucoma, measure the damage it is causing, and understand how that damage is affecting their patients’ lives. No single innovation revolutionized the profession, but a wide range of technologies became more available to clinicians.

A standard measurement and grading system for the field of binocular single vision (BSV) should be combined with a quality of life (QoL) questionnaire to assess the success of strabismus surgery in patients with diplopia from Graves’ orbitopathy researchers said.

Alimera Sciences features 10 physician case studies via webcast.

2015 may be noted as a year of emergence for sustained-release drug delivery therapies for dry eye and glaucoma, according to Jonathan H. Talamo, MD, Boston.Cornea specialists have always appreciated the need to treat dry eye, “but it’s now becoming more and more appreciated and the importance of underlying dry eye and drying is so ubiquitous,” said Ernest W. Kornmehl, MD, Brookline, MA.

New research into pattern-recognition receptors is yielding promising therapies that target the specific pathogens and inflammatory pathways in keratitis, researchers said.

Selective laser trabeculoplasty is safe and effective for reducing IOP in patients with glaucoma. However, not all patients respond to treatment and its effects are not permanent even in those who respond well.

The babies of women who use topical chloramphenicol during pregnancy do not appear to run an increased risk of congenital malformations, researchers say. An analysis of births to Danish mothers picking up topical prescriptions for the antibiotic during pregnancy found a major malformation rate of 3.50% compared to 3.49% for unexposed Danish mothers, according to Vilde Thomseth, MD, of the Ophthalmology Department at Golstrub Hospital in Glostrup, Denmark and colleagues at three other Danish centres.

Ophthalmology Times is pleased to announce Amy Patel, MD, of Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, UC Irvine Health, Irvine, CA, as the winner of its 2015 Resident Writer’s Award Program, sponsored by Allergan. Dr. Patel’s winning entry is featured here.

The trend for advances in intraoperative imaging systems and linking of diagnostic and surgical technology continued in 2015, bringing cataract surgeons more opportunity for increasing workflow efficiency and improving patient outcomes.

The year 2015 brought a trickle of innovation to the technique of glaucoma surgery, and a tidal wave of change to the business model in the United States.

Lines continue to blur as to what constitutes refractive surgery, and likely will continue to blur well into the future. Multiple compounds-phenylephrine and ketorolac 1%/0.3%, (Omidria, Omeros) and the “Dropless” line (Tri-Moxi/Tri-moxi-Vanc, Imprimis Pharmaceuticals)-are designed for use in cataract surgery, but their goal is to improve refractive outcomes. 2015 was the year they started to get some serious attention.

A new non-apodized diffractive trifocal IOL allows 88% energy utilization and sends energy to near (40 cm), a preferred intermediate distance (60 cm), and far (infinity). Early results for visual acuity, contrast sensitivity, and photopic symptoms are encouraging.

New alloplastic materials are being used as intracorneal inlays to offer predictable and safe refractive surgical correction of presbyopia and low hyperopia. The major problem with such inlays is the wound-healing response following their insertion; however, they can easily be removed.

The authors assess the quantitative and qualitative aspects of vision following various lens- and corneal-based therapies for presbyopia. In many cases the KAMRA corneal inlay offers a long-term solution. It can easily be removed if the patient is not satisfied with the outcome.

This article discusses the advantages and limitations for surgical compensation of presbyopia with the femtosecond laser using corneal inlays and the Intracor technique.