News

Controlling staff members’ attitudes may not seem important, but it is to patients who attend your practice. Make sure the overall atmosphere and experience for them is highly important or they will go elsewhere.

Patients with elevated tear osmolarity who underwent punctal occlusion showed rapid improvement in tear osmolarity and other features of dry eye disease.

Further distancing itself from Valeant Pharmaceuticals International’s unsolicited acquisition proposal, Allergan has filed an investor presentation with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and has posted the presentation to its website detailing its initial concerns about the sustainability of Valeant’s business model.

Allergan has received a strong outpour of support from its physician customers, their nurses, and office staff members, as well as from patient advocacy groups and medical associations following the company’s rejection of Valeant Pharmaceuticals International’s unsolicited acquisition proposal.

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.

The FDA has granted AbbVie’s adalimumab (Humira) orphan drug designation for the treatment of non-infectious intermediate, posterior, or pan-uveitis, or chronic non-infectious anterior uveitis.

Ophthotech Corp. has entered into an ex-U.S. licensing and commercialization agreement with Novartis Pharmaceuticals that will focus on the treatment of wet age-related macular degeneration (AMD).

Analyses of data from a large, prospective, comparative case series show that laser cataract surgery (LCS) significantly reduces use of ultrasound energy. Furthermore, outcomes from the most recent group of LCS cases shows that after laser lens fragmentation, cataract removal can be achieved in almost all eyes using aspiration only, said Burkhard Dick, MD, PhD.

Ohr Pharmaceutical has entered into a definitive agreement with SKS Ocular and its affiliate SKS Ocular 1 (SKS Ocular) to acquire SKS Ocular's ophthalmology assets.

Amakem Therapeutics announced that first patients have commenced treatment in a phase II dose-ranging study of its lead drug candidate-AMA0076-for the treatment of glaucoma.

BioLight Israeli Life Sciences Investments’ ViSci, its wholly owned subsidiary, has been informed that the FDA has granted a patent number covering the proprietary formulation of its glaucoma treatment, latanoprost, by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

Advances in endoscopy, a decades-old technology, offers major advantages to patients with pituitary tumors by improved visualization, rehabilitation, and shorter hospitalization.

Small Incision Lenticule Extraction (SMILE) performed using a femtosecond laser (VisuMax 500 kHz, Carl Zeiss Meditec) is being investigated as a treatment for spherical myopia in a U.S. clinical trial. Positive results were achieved in preliminary analyses of data from 315 eyes.

A new patient interface improved the usability and performance of a femtosecond laser system in a multicenter study.

Two-year follow-up data is positive for eyes enrolled in the first study of the Schlemm canal scaffold (Hydrus, Ivantis).

After watching a muddy high school soccer game, Dr. Rob Kitei and his two daughters were inspired to create a product that could be applied to players’ cleats to prevent mud accumulation. Following acquisition by global brand Mission Athletecare in September 2012, it will be nationally sold this summer.

To prepare for the transition to femtosecond laser-assisted cataract surgery, surgeons must be prepared for the learning curve and other practical considerations this implementation requires.

On the heels of the unanimous rejection by Allergan’s Board of Directors of an unsolicited buyout proposal by Valeant Pharmaceuticals International, Valeant’s top executive intends to issue a financial increase counteroffer in an attempt to salvage the deal.

Examining the gender pay gap and what anonymous web users really think of it

Results of a commercially available, genetic profiling test for uveal melanoma can be used to determine patients at high risk for metastasis. Understanding of the genetics of the tumor is also being applied to develop targeted therapies that may improve patient survival.

Laser refractive cataract surgery improves the predictability of refractive outcomes, and this benefit holds value for surgeons and patients.

An optical dispensary designed for maximum shopability is a powerful marketing tool.

The American Academy of Ophthalmology has developed the Intelligent Research in Sight Registry, the first compressive eye disease outpatient clinical registry in the United States.

The iridociliary sulcus is a hidden region of the eye that provides options for optimizing patient outcomes, particularly in patients with glaucoma.

Controversy continues over whether the femtosecond laser provides advantages in cataract surgery that justify its added cost.

The VICTUS femtosecond laser platform (Bausch + Lomb) creates centered, round capsulotomies and should contribute greatly to the accuracy and predictability of cataract surgeries.

Pathology in eyes with Marfans syndrome makes cataract surgery challenging and can limit implantation of a toric IOL. Jonathan D. Solomon, MD, describes a Marfans syndrome patient who underwent bilateral surgery with a very successful outcome thanks to the use of a femtosecond laser.

Findings from the HARBOR study on ranibizumab for wet macular degeneration prompted new labeling for a potentially less frequent than monthly dosing, depending on individual responses to treatments.