News

Nutrition partners

Nutraceuticals provider ScienceBased Health (SBH) and optics manufacturer Hoya Surgical Optics (HSO) have formed a partnership.

Transitions at PGA

Transitions Optical Inc. and partners held the third annual Transitions Championship PGA Tour event March 17 to 20 at the Innisbrook Resort and Golf Club.

Prevent Blindness America has designated March as Workplace Vision Month by in an effort to educate corporations and their employees on the importance of vision health. Tell employers in your community that they can participate in the non-profit organization?s Healthy Eyes Vision Wellness Program at no charge.

Kemin has launched a national marketing campaign to promote its brand of lutein (FloraGLO) and educate consumers about the role lutein plays in maintaining healthy vision.

A new one-piece IOL (Tecnis Toric 1-Piece IOL, Abbott Medical Optics) has been introduced for use in Europe in patients with cataracts. Unlike conventional IOLs, the new implant can correct pre-existing corneal astigmatism.

Robert Ritch, MD, FACS, will receive the Jose Rizal International Medal from the Asia Pacific Academy of Ophthalmology during the March 20 opening ceremony of the organization?s annual meeting in Sydney, Australia.

FDA denies CLIA waiver

The FDA has notified TearLab Corp. that the agency cannot approve the company?s Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA) waiver categorization application for its osmolarity system (TearLab Osmolarity System) based on the data submitted, according to the company

STAAR, Ellex deal

STAAR Surgical Co. and Ellex Australia have entered into an agreement that makes Ellex the exclusive distributor of STAAR IOLs in Australia. Ellex will market a line of refractive lenses (Visian ICL), IOLs for cataract patients, and related products. As part of the distribution agreement, Ellex also will purchase the current inventory of product in Australia for about $400,000.

Pyott reappointed

The board of directors of Allergan has reappointed David E.I. Pyott as president, effective March 27. Pyott? who previously served as president from 1998 until 2006 ? also will continue to serve Allergan in his current roles as chairman of the board and chief executive officer. Pyott's role as president is not an interim position, and Allergan does not plan to name a new president.

Vision Expo gallery

Attendees at International Vision Expo East who are looking for ?the next big thing? in eyewear and technology ? and who also would like a chance to win $500 ? are invited to stop by the show?s New Product Gallery. The New Product Gallery is designed to give attendees a first-hand look at the frames, accessories, and technologies being introduced at the show.

Dramatic changes are coming to the way Medicare will pay physicians for their services, but savvy practices that voluntarily adopt the reporting procedures can financially benefit from incentives offered now.

Ophthalmologists are reacting with shock and anger after a bill giving optometrists authority to perform certain laser surgical procedures was through the Kentucky state legislature and signed into law in just 3 weeks.

Keratoprosthesis is a viable therapeutic option for many patients with end-stage corneal diseases who are poor candidates for traditional corneal transplantation.

Eyewear presentation should include planned communications that help your patients understand the value of their purchases.

Two events are changing the landscape of IOLs: the advancement and acceptance of toric IOLs and the aging of patients who have undergone previous LASIK so that they now need cataract surgery.

While practices pride themselves on the quality of care they deliver, many of those same practices get low marks for their quality of caring.

Femtosecond lasers are gaining attention in the ophthalmic arena because of their ability to bring the precision of refractive surgery to cataract removal and IOL implantation.

Corneal collagen crosslinking is an effective treatment for improving uncorrected distance visual acuity, corrected distance visual acuity, and average and maximum K values.

Throughout his career, Robert H. Osher, MD, has been drawing large numbers of attendees at the major ophthalmic conferences to his presentations.

Simultaneous topography-guided partial PRK with cornea collagen crosslinking offers a safe and effective approach for normalizing the cornea and enhancing visual function in eyes with ectatic conditions.

All phakic IOLs provide excellent predictability and efficacy along with the benefit of rapid visual recovery, but the posterior and anterior chamber models each have their own pros and cons.