News

As the early adopters of the older keratorefractive procedure radial keratotomy (RK) are aging and developing progressive hyperopia and cataracts, it is increasingly important to master safe and effective ways to treat these patients.

Chicago—Insertion of the Perfect Pupil Injectable (PPI, Milvella Pty. Ltd.) is an effective method for protecting the iris and maintaining a large pupil during cataract surgery in eyes predisposed to intraoperative floppy iris syndrome (IFIS), according to the results of an interventional case series reported at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Ophthalmology.

Chicago—All ophthalmologists performing cataract surgery will experience complications at some point. Risk management involves preventing complications, recognizing them when they occur, managing them appropriately, and referring patients in a timely fashion when necessary, said Richard L. Abbott, MD, at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Ophthalmology.

Cincinnati, OH—The viscous dispersive ophthalmic viscosurgical device (OVD) DisCoVisc (Alcon Laboratories Inc.) offers surgeons the opportunity to perform safe and efficient phacoemulsification with a single OVD in routine procedures and in many complex cases as well, said Michael E. Snyder, MD.

Cincinnati—Tamsulosin HCl (Flomax, Boehringer Ingelheim), an alpha-1 blocker used to treat benign prostatic hyperplasia, has been implicated in the development of floppy iris syndrome during cataract surgery, according to Robert H. Osher, MD. Healon 5 (AMO) is his viscoadaptive agent (OVD) of choice to manage this challenging iris behavior during cataract surgery.

Chicago—Management of the subluxated crystalline lens in eyes with profound zonular deficiency has been significantly advanced by developments in anterior segment techniques and new technology, explained Ike Ahmed, MD, at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Ophthalmology.

Barrie, Ontario—The CASE (chamber stabilization environment) component of WhiteStar ICE technology (Advanced Medical Optics) is based on the patented occlusion recognition feature and essentially works to resolve a longstanding issue with phacoemulsification systems—anterior chamber instability and damage associated with postocclusion surge, according to Donald Nixon, MD, of Barrie, Ontario, who was a clinical investigator for this new technology.

Lisbon, Portugal—The use of ultrasonic phaco energy to emulsify cataracts has made surgeries safer and more efficient and has led to smaller incisions and better outcomes. Phaco energy, however, is also detrimental to the corneal endothelium, and the heat that it generates can lead to incision burns. In addition, the amount of phaco energy delivered directly influences the immediate postoperative vision.

New York—The American Association of Dispensing Ophthalmologists (AADO) has endorsed eight continuing education courses, March 31 to April 1, during the International Vision Expo East conference at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center, New York. The courses presented by AADO, of which Ophthalmology Times is a sponsor, include:

For the 12-month ending (ME) period closing Sept. 30, 2005, the vision-care industry in the United States generated nearly $26.2 billion in revenue, an increase of 3.8% compared with the previous 12-month period.

Chronic trachoma was treated with oily or fatty ointments, which contained myrrh, resin, malachite, yellow ocher, and red natron.

Monrovia, CA—STAAR Surgical Co. expects to begin U.S. shipments this month of the Visian implantable collamer lens (ICL), a foldable, minimally invasive lens approved for the correction of adult myopia.

San Francisco—The American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) has developed an ophthalmology curriculum of more than 800 topics that it believes represent the material that is most relevant to clinical practice.

New Orleans—Two weeks after the city of New Orleans was ravaged by the effects of Hurricane Katrina, Marguerite B. McDonald, MD, phoned New Orleans Academy of Ophthalmology (NOAO) President Scott D. Lanoux, MD, to say speakers were assuming the NOAO's annual symposium, scheduled for March 10 to 12, 2006, would be canceled.

Lisbon, Portugal—Significant financial "disincentives" on the part of governments worldwide may be a major contributing factor to why cataract surgeons are reluctant to perform simultaneous bilateral cataract surgery (SBCS), reported Steve A. Arshinoff, MD, FRCSC, at the annual meeting of the European Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgeons.

Baltimore—Some patients with preoperative risk factors for developing post-LASIK ectasia never develop the complication, while other individuals without evidence of topographic abnormalities or pachymetry values associated with surgical risk do.

New York—Ophthalmologists who choose to use bevacizumab (Avastin, Genentech) for off-label treatment of wet age-related macular degeneration (AMD) should not expect Medicare to reimburse those expenses, according to George A. Williams, MD.

Welcome to Ophthalmology Times E-News, which will provide daily coverage of the 2006 World Ophthalmology Congress (WOC) in S?o Paulo, Brazil, Feb. 19 to 24.Over the next several days, you will receive meeting coverage of the top clinical presentations, breaking industry news, latest new products, and other ophthalmic information.On sight at WOC . . . The editors of Ophthalmology Times will roam the WOC meeting, gather the latest news and information, and deliver it daily to your inbox.

Chicago—Refractive surgeons should be confident about treating patients of all ages with hyperopia and hyperopic astigmatism because there are many treatment options that can produce satisfying results, according to Carmen J. Barraquer, MD, who received the Barraquer Award at the American Academy of Ophthalmo-logy annual meeting.

Indianapolis—A process called accommodative arching is what Kevin Waltz, MD, OD, uses to describe how the crystalens IOL (eyeonics Inc.) and the natural crystalline lens work in the eye.

Chicago—Early results from a multicenter, prospective study provide evidence to support the conclusion that EpiLASIK is a safe and effective procedure that may fulfill its promise to offer the advantages of PRK and LASIK with the disadvantages of neither, said Marguerite B. McDonald, MD, at Refractive Surgery 2005: Simply the Best.

Miami—Results from an international clinical trial including nearly 1,600 eyes indicate laser presbyopia reversal (LAPR) increases accommodation and improves near and intermediate vision with a benefit that is maintained for up to 5 years, said Richard S. Kalski, MD.

Charlotte, NC—The iris claw phakic IOL (Verisyse, AMO) is a welcome addition to the refractive surgeon's armamentarium for enabling treatment of patients who are not good candidates for custom wavefront-guided LASIK or IntraLASIK either because of level of myopia or corneal thickness, said Jonathan Christenbury, MD.

Munich, Germany—Ongoing follow-up in recipients of the STAAR toric implantable collamer lens (TICL) shows that this phakic IOL continues to provide safe, stable, and accurate correction for moderate to high myopia and astigmatism, said Tobias H. Neuhann, MD.

Most patients had clear corneas after surgery and achieved a more rapid visual recovery.

Chicago—Wavefront-guided CustomCornea LASIK using the LADARVision 4000 Excimer Laser System (Alcon Laboratories) safely and effectively treats mixed astigmatism and with some advantages compared with conventional LASIK, said James J. Salz, MD, at the refractive surgery subspecialty day meeting sponsored by the International Society of Refractive Surgery of the American Academy of Ophthalmology.

Chicago—Topography-guided LASIK performed with a platform consisting of the Atlas 995 topographer, the CRS-Master software program for ablation planning, and the MEL-80 excimer laser (Carl Zeiss Meditec) offers a safe and highly successful method for improving outcomes in eyes with debilitating vision complaints after previous refractive excimer laser surgery, said Frank J. Goes, MD, at the refractive surgery subspecialty day meeting sponsored by the International Society of Refractive Surgery of the American Academy of Ophthalmology.

One third of patients reported being spectacle-free for all reading and about half said they wore glasses some of the time to work at the computer.

Chicago—Higher amounts of preoperative coma and a greater difference between the preoperative manifest and wavefront-measured cylinder are risk factors for postoperative astigmatism after wavefront-guided LASIK using the Zyoptix platform (Bausch & Lomb), reported Scott M. MacRae, MD. He spoke at the refractive surgery subspecialty day meeting sponsored by the International Society of Refractive Surgery of the American Academy of Ophthalmology.

Chicago—An early report of custom topography-guided LASIK indicates that it is quite effective in treating irregular astigmatism and enlarging optical zones, according to David T.C. Lin, MD, FRCSC.