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Patients today have high expectations for cataract and refractive surgery, and experts at a breakfast CME symposium shared some of the techniques, agents, and strategies used to meet these expectations. The program was held at the Hyatt Regency McCormick Place.

Femtosecond laser technology (IntraLase Corp.) for LASIK flap creation certainly offers some distinct advantages over mechanical microkeratomes, according to its proponent, Perry S. Binder, MD, University of California-San Diego School of Medicine. However, surgeons still have to weigh the advantages versus the ?significant disadvantages? of the femtosecond laser technology, which is the cost of the device and increased time per procedure, noted Helen Wu, MD, New England Eye Center, Boston.

A birthweight of 1,250 g may be a dependable criterion for screening for retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) and also might reduce the number of examinations, suggested Shailesh K. Gupta, MD, University of Florida College of Medicine, Jacksonville. Current guidelines recommend screening of infants under 1,500 g or a gestational age of less than 28 weeks.

Conductive keratoplasty (CK) may afford a useful tool to correct optical complications of LASIK and PRK when further laser surgery is contraindicated, said Peter S. Hersh, MD, professor of ophthalmology, University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey-New Jersey Medical School.

While considered by many to be a technique ahead of its time, the benefits of bimanual microincision phacoemulsification make it a better method of lens removal and an especially advantageous technique to use in complicated and challenging cases, said I. Howard Fine, MD, Eugene, OR, in his delivery of the inaugural Charles D. Kelman Lecture to conclude the ?Spotlight on Cataract Surgery 2005? session during the annual meeting of the American Academy of Ophthalmology.

Awareness of the etiology and treatment of toxic anterior segment syndrome (TASS) is essential. While rare, TASS is a potentially devastating complication of cataract surgery, said Liliana Werner, MD, PhD, at ?Spotlight on Cataract Surgery 2005? during the annual meeting of the American Academy of Ophthalmology.

Intracameral triamcinolone acetonide (Kenalog, Bristol?Myers Squibb) used judiciously offers simple and safe anti-inflammatory treatment in cataract surgery patients, said James P. Gills, MD, at "Spotlight on Cataract Surgery in 2005" during the annual meeting of the American Academy of Ophthalmology.

When diplopia arises within the context of Graves? ophthalmopathy, the diagnosis is usually straightforward. However, the diagnosis becomes more complicated in the absence of previous thyroid dysfunction, when the patient has a remote history of hyperthyroidism, and when ocular symptoms present first, James Garrity, MD, explained Monday at the American Academy of Ophthalmology annual meeting.

A number of pathologies can be confused with giant cell arteritis, Anthony Arnold, MD, explained Monday at the American Academy of Ophthalmology annual meeting. Patients with a painful ophthalmoplegia might have an isolated cranial neuropathy, a skull-based or cavernous sinus process such as a tumor, or an inflammatory or infiltrative process, an orbital process, a brainstem process, or a vasculitic process.

Corneal refractive therapy (orthokeratology) and contact lens fitting can have a complementary rather than a competitive role in a refractive surgery practice, said David Hardten, MD, at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Ophthalmology

Uncomplicated vitrectomy has been implicated in the development of primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG), according to Stanley Chang, MD, who presented the Jackson Memorial Lecture Sunday at the American Academy of Ophthalmology annual meeting.

Adapting an idea from other medical specialties, ophthalmologists are beginning to apply the concept of global risk assessment to their glaucoma patients.

Ophthalmologists at Wills Eye Hospital, Philadelphia, have seen a recent dramatic increase in cases of Acanthamoeba keratitis.

A number of compounds are either available or under investigation to treat wet age-related macular degeneration (AMD), offering some hope to patients and clinicians, said Michael J. Tolentino, MD, of Winter Haven, FL.

Cataract surgeons experienced with the AquaLase platform of the Infiniti Vision system (Alcon Laboratories) agree that it offers multiple advantages that make it leading technology for small incision lens removal in properly selected patients.

Mass vision screening for amblyopia in school-age children should be standardized, and Pamela Hutt Berg, CO, COMT, recommended how that might be accomplished Sunday at the American Academy of Ophthalmology annual meeting.

Corneal refractive therapy (orthokeratology) and contact lens fitting can have a complementary rather than a competitive role in a refractive surgery practice, said David Hardten, MD, at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Ophthalmology

While treatment for amblyopia is effective, there is no consensus as to what treatment works best. There are a number of factors that have an impact on treatment efficacy, according to Bruce Furr, CO. He discussed these factors Sunday at the American Academy of Ophthalmology annual meeting.

While results of epidemiologic studies indicate that only one-third of glaucoma damage is attributable to excess IOP over the normal distribution, much more of glaucoma damage appears to be pressure-dependent and therefore preventable, especially in patients whose IOP is higher than average, said Paul F. Palmberg, MD, PhD.

Recognizing significant achievements and contributions to ophthalmology, several awards were presented to physicians and organizations during opening ceremonies of the 2005 annual meeting of the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO).

New tools are available in the ongoing effort to prevent infection and inflammation during eye surgery, suggested speakers at a Sunday breakfast symposium at the Hilton Chicago.

Ziemer Ophthalmic Systems AG announces the debut of its Da Vinci femtosecond surgical laser. The laser incorporates a design concept that seamlessly integrates with LASIK and corneal surgery procedures.

The patterns of childhood blindness and visual impairment are changing over time, according to Clare Gilbert, MD, MSc. Dr. Gilbert described the shifts in pediatric blindness patterns resulting from the ?nurture? factors Sunday at the American Academy of Ophthalmology annual meeting.

Uncomplicated vitrectomy has been implicated in the development of primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG), according to Stanley Chang, MD, who presented the Jackson Memorial Lecture Sunday at the American Academy of Ophthalmology annual meeting.

Sometimes physicians, nurses, pharmacists, and other health-care providers make mistakes. A few statistics generated by the Institute of Medicine, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and others highlight the problem.

Where can one preview the latest products from the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO), get answers to specific coding questions, talk to Washington insiders about reimbursement, personalize patient-education DVDs, get a first look at the academy's new Maintenance of Certification (MOC) products, and learn the ins and outs of acquiring and installing an electronic medical records system? There's only one place and it happens only once a year—the annual meeting, where all these resources and much more can be found at the academy resource center and technology pavilion.

Presbyopic LASIK using a multifocal ablation profile where the central zone is steepened for near and the peripheral zone targeted for distance (central PresbyLASIK) appears to be able to enhance near vision while maintaining good distance vision to offer spectacle independence to many patients and without loss of contrast sensitivity, said W. Bruce Jackson, MD, at the refractive surgery subspecialty day meeting sponsored by the International Society of Refractive Surgery of the American Academy of Ophthalmology.

The eye isn't the only organ that consumes the time of one New York City ophthalmologist. For Hampson A. Sisler, MD, FACS, FAGO (Fellow, American Guild of Organists), his craft as a musician leads him to an organ of another sort. In fact, the 73-year-old physician has been a professional church organist much longer than he has been an ophthalmologist.

Washington, DC—Maintaining an index of suspicion for Acanthamoeba infection in patients with keratitis is important, irrespective of a history of contact lens wear, because timely diagnosis and prompt treatment initiation are critical for a good prognosis, said John K. Dart, DM, FRCS, FRCOphth, at World Cornea Congress V.

I do not travel much, but recently was excited to represent my department at a special once-in-a-lifetime meeting in Asia. First, I flew to Chicago. A few hundred of us then piled into a 747 at 11 a.m., and the jet taxied out onto the runway. About to take off, we suddenly veered off to the side of the runway, the engines went dead, and fire trucks were visible heading our way.