News

Preop chair time is vital for multifocal patients to correctly evaluate motivation and manage expectations correctly, Dr Jorge Alio told delegates during a presentation on how to rescue an unhappy multifocal patient.

Monovision offers a safe and an effective option while multifocals are a high risk strategy, Dr Graham D. Barrett controversially told delegates during a session that discussed whether surgeons should introduce multifocal IOLs (MFIOLs) into their practice.

Good multifocal IOL (MFIOL) candidates are highly motivated to be spectacle independent and tend to have an easy going and adaptable personality. They have healthy eyes and a low degree of astigmatism. Hyperopic presbyopes tend to make the best candidates.

Mixing and matching multifocal IOLs can produce excellent visual acuity across near, intermediate and far distances and can generate a very high degree of patient satisfaction, Dr Scipione Rossi told delegates.

Dr Douglas D. Koch talks about indications and options related to accommodating lenses, Dr Thomas F. Neuhann discusses why he prefers the femtosecond laser to the mechanical microkeratome when making LASIK flaps and Dr Jack T. Holladaytalks about using a laser versus implanting an inlay to treat presbyopia to provide good distance vision and allow patients to read without glasses or contact lenses.

Schwind and Zeimer announced today that they will cooperate to supply an integrated all-laser LASIK solution.

The human eye is not geometrically round and biometry is required for proper sizing of phakic IOLs, Dr Liliana Werner told delegates in a presentation titled 'Phakic IOLs: a report from the pathology lab'.

David Bailey, president of international operations at Staar Surgical, makers of the Visian ICL & TICL, says ICL technology allows surgeons to differentiate themselves in the slowing LASIK marketplace.

Doctors need to carry out a standard preop assessment for dry eye risk before undertaking a LASIK procedure. The assessment should include a validated symptom questionnarire, such as the OSDI or DEQ.

Corneal crosslinking showed remarkable stability in a recent rabbit study, Dr Gregor Wollensak told delegates during the session on New Surgical Approaches to Keratoconus.

Phakic IOLs offer slightly better results than LASIK for high myopia Dr Pablo Artal, of the Optical Laboratory in the University of Murcia in Spain, told delegates.

Dr Chandrashekar Balachandran discusses what he and colleagues have learned about the causes of primary donor failure in Descemet membrane endothelial keratoplasty, Dr I. Howard Fine talks about three cases to illustrate the reasons he believes that all cases of small pupils should be treated as possible cases of intraoperative floppy iris syndrome, Dr Robert H. Osher, discusses the challenges of addressing dropped nuclei during surgery and the surprising results of a recent cadaver study he conducted, which he says overturned all of the tenets about dropped nuclei he previously held and Dr Fernando Trindade talks about the circumstances under which surgeons might consider amputating IOL haptics.

PhysIOL today announced the European launch of its aspheric aberration-correcting intraocular lenses - Slim AY 123 in a preloaded system and Micro AY for injection through a 1.8mm microincision.

Bausch & Lomb (B&L) is joining a German laser surgery equipment developer to create a new refractive surgery business.

Alcon Inc. said it intends to purchase up to one million common shares by Dec. 31 from the public to cover employee equity compensation plans.

Lexington, SC, and Colorado Springs, CO-Biosyntrx Corp. is partnering with Wellosophy Corp. to include a professional-strength version of a proprietary hydrogel gastric bulking technology (Swell) into Biosyntrx’s new mealtime portion-control product (Avantrx).

East Hanover, NJ-Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp. has launched the Patient Assistance Now Web site and telephone service to integrate company programs and other resources to help uninsured Americans pay for their Novartis medicines and find health-care information.

Menlo Park, CA-iScience Interventional has received expanded 510(k) clearance from the FDA to allow ophthalmic surgeons to use its microcatheters to enlarge outflow passages to reduce IOP in the treatment of primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG).

San Francisco-The American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) has announced the slate of candidates for board positions that have terms beginning Jan. 1.

Mountain View, CA-Iridex Corp. has received 510(k) clearance from the FDA for a family of laser systems (IQ 532, IQ 577, IQ 630-670, and IQ 810) and their associated delivery devices to deliver laser energy in three different modes (CW-Pulse, MicroPulse, and LongPulse).

South San Francisco, CA-A special committee of the Genentech Board of Directors has unanimously rejected a proposal by Roche under which Roche would have acquired the shares of Genentech it did not own for $89 per share.

Torsional ultrasound using the INFINITI? Vision System with the OZil? Torsional handpiece (Alcon Laboratories) is a unique modality that changes the dynamics of ultrasonic phacoemulsification. Compared with traditional longitudinal ultrasound, torsional ultrasound is a fundamentally different approach to phacoemulsification because the side-to-side ultrasonic oscillations shear lens material. Many cataract surgeons have quickly adopted this new modality based on the positive experiences reported by users, including significantly reduced repulsion, improved material followability, improved efficiency of lens removal, and an improved thermal profile; all contributing to improved clinical outcomes.

Optic atrophy secondary to sickle cell hyphema can lead to permanent loss of visual acuity. Sickling should be suspected in all cases of hyphema, particularly in individuals of African American or Mediterranean descent. Because a slit-lamp examination will not reveal sickled cells, however, a lab test for sickling should be ordered.

Severely traumatized eyes may be salvaged with use of either a permanent or temporary keratoprosthesis.

Electrodiagnostic testing remains a critical and important tool in determining visual function in patients with many types of retinal disease.

Use of fixed-combination dorzolamide 2.0% and timolol 0.5% (dorzolamide-timolol; Cosopt, Merck) as a replacement or add-on is a safe and effective option to achieve further IOP lowering in patients.

Laser trabeculoplasty is an effective way to lower IOP in patients with open-angle glaucoma. In an ongoing randomized study of 160 patients designed to compare outcomes using an argon laser and a titanium:sapphire laser, no clear-cut winner has emerged. Both lasers perform effective trabeculoplasties with a low incidence of complications.

Selective laser trabeculoplasty offers safe and effective treatment for patients with primary open-angle glaucoma and other, more difficult glaucomas, according to one ophthalmologist. It might be a reasonable first-line intervention in some situations.

Marketing at the practice level offers a less expensive and easier way to increase patient volume. Creating a memorable patient experience by showing the practice's superiority over others, starting at the consultation, as well as addressing concerns and fears at the beginning, will help retain patients and increase references.

Trabeculectomy remains the most commonly performed surgical glaucoma procedure. However, interest in identifying alternatives involving simpler postoperative follow-up and a better safety profile is fueling the development of newer surgical procedures.