News

Prevent Blindness America (PBA) announced four recipients of the 2006 Investigator Awards. The winners will receive grants for research projects dedicated to eye health.

ISTA Pharmaceuticals gained exclusive North American rights to Senju Pharmaceuticals' iganidipine, a calcium-channel blocker, and a new formulation of latanoprost, a prostaglandin analogue.

Compared with placebo, ruboxistaurin mesylate ( proposed brand name , Arxxant, Eli Lilly and Co.) reduces the risk of sustained moderate vision loss by 41% in patients with moderate-to-severe nonproliferative diabetic retinopathy, according to pooled data from two 3-year phase III trials. Eli Lilly and Co. presented the findings at the American Diabetes Association's annual scientific sessions recently.

The FDA has approved bimatoprost ophthalmic solution 0.03% (Lumigan, Allergan) as a first-line treatment for elevated IOP associated with open-angle glaucoma or ocular hypertension.

The FDA Ophthalmic Devices advisory panel will meet this month to make recommendations and vote on the pre-market approval filed by VisionCare Ophthalmic Technologies Inc. for its implantable miniature telescope (IMT).

(OSI) Eyetech Pharmaceuticals Inc. and Pfizer Inc. have initiated a phase IV trial that will study whether use of pegaptanib sodium injection (Macugen) following neovascular age-related macular degeneration (AMD) therapy provides a balance in long-term safety and efficacy. Called LEVEL (EvaLuation of Efficacy and safety in maintaining Visual acuity with sEquential treatment of neovascuLar AMD), the 54-week trial will comprise up to 1,000 patients at 100 sites across the country.

This year, the world's top ophthalmic meeting will be held at one of the world's top tourist destinations-Las Vegas.

The femtosecond pulses offer real, precise subsurface effects, with the least amount of energy required.

Fort Bragg, NC-U.S. Army Lt. Col. Scott D. Barnes, MD, is on a mission to protect and preserve the sight of troops serving on the front line.

The right thing to do is rarely the easiest option.

The surgeon does not have to keep refocusing because the system has a large depth of focus (about 25 mm).

The femtosecond pulses offer real, precise subsurface effects, with the least amount of energy required.

San Francisco-Correction of high myopia with a phakic IOL or by clear lens exchange does pose some risk for patients because these methods are intraocular procedures. To avoid the associated risks of IOL surgery-such as infection, cataract formation in the case of phakic lenses, possible endothelial damage, pupil ovalization, zonular problems, and retinal problems, surgeons might want to consider myopic keratophakia and excimer laser ablation instead, explained Luis Antonio Ruiz, MD.

The FIT device requires a 4.5-mm incision for implantation, making it easier to implant than IMT, which needs a 10-to 12-mm incision.

The use of hormonal therapies may represent the next generation of medication for the tear film deficiencies of dry eye.

Washington-Advancements in eye research might be in jeopardy unless Congress works to boost the president's recommended National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding levels for fiscal year 2007.

Recently it was that time of the year for my medical school's graduation ceremony. Three hours and forty-five minutes of speeches and handing out diplomas, wearing warm academic regalia in an auditorium that could have used more air conditioning-I think you all have been there and know the drill. Deans, vice deans, assistant deans, and department chairmen are accorded the honor of sitting up on the stage, so we get a close-up view of the proceedings.

Bethesda, MD-Of the 14 million Americans that are visually impaired, more than 11 million have uncorrected visual impairment, such as nearsightedness, according to a study designed and supported by the National Eye Institute (NEI) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) (JAMA 2006;295:2158-2163).

Irvine, CA-The philanthropic arm of Allergan Inc., The Allergan Foundation, donated $2 million to the University of California-Irvine's (UC-Irvine) department of ophthalmology. The donation will further strengthen the department's research agenda and clinical care. The gift was "the largest donation ever to ophthalmology," according to a joint press release from the university and Allergan.

Des Plaines, IL-The Internal Revenue Service has authorized the Foundation for Keratoconus Care to commence operations.

The company appar-ently did not anticipate fully how patients might misuse the product and fail to comply with recommendations.

Labeling accuracy applies to lenses with powers less than 20 D, but clinical impact is unknown, researcher says.

For weeks, he was known publicly only as the "New Jersey ophthalmologist" who was anonymously credited with alerting the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) about an apparent rise in the number of Fusarium keratitis cases he had seen.

South San Francisco, CA - Genentech Inc. announced on Friday, June 30, 2006 that the FDA has approved its ranibizumab 0.5 mg injection (Lucentis, Genentech Inc.) for the treatment of neovascular (wet) age-related macular degeneration (AMD). The FDA approved Lucentis after a 6-month priority review, the company said. Genentech will begin shipping product immediately. Ninety-five percent of patients treated with Lucentis maintained their vision in phase III clinical trials, according to the company. Vision improved by at least three lines (or 15 letters) on the study eye chart in up to 40% of these patients at 1 year. Lucentis was developed for intraocular use to treat the underlying cause of wet AMD by targeting the molecular pathway that controls angiogenesis. Lucentis is designed to bind and inhibit VEGF-A, a protein that is believed to play a critical role in angiogenesis.

South San Francisco, CA - Genentech Inc. announced on Friday, June 30, 2006 that the FDA has approved its ranibizumab 0.5 mg injection (Lucentis, Genentech Inc.) for the treatment of neovascular (wet) age-related macular degeneration (AMD). The FDA approved Lucentis after a 6-month priority review, the company said. Genentech will begin shipping product immediately. Ninety-five percent of patients treated with Lucentis maintained their vision in phase III clinical trials, according to the company. Vision improved by at least three lines (or 15 letters) on the study eye chart in up to 40% of these patients at 1 year. Lucentis was developed for intraocular use to treat the underlying cause of wet AMD by targeting the molecular pathway that controls angiogenesis. Lucentis is designed to bind and inhibit VEGF-A, a protein that is believed to play a critical role in angiogenesis.

Ophthalmology Resources launches enhanced Web site

La Jolla, CA-When diagnosing a cranial third-nerve palsy, there are a number of factors to consider that let the ophthalmologist decide whether a patient's third-nerve palsy is microvascular, or whether the cause is a more serious one. Leah Levi, MBBS, described the checklist that she uses to arrive at the diagnosis of microvascular third-nerve palsy.

S?o Paulo, Brazil-Establishing the correct diagnosis and modifying therapy appropriately based on response are fundamental elements in the successful management of bacterial keratitis, said Richard L. Abbott, MD, at the World Congress of Ophthalmology.