News

I recently passed a residency milestone: my 100th cataract surgery.It turned out to be a tough case with a very dense cataract and theneed for iris hooks. But it went well, and it felt good.

Exton, PA-Othera Pharmaceuticals Inc. has announced theinitiation of a phase II clinical trial by the National EyeInstitute (NEI) of Othera's topical eye drop OT-551 in patientswith geographic atrophy (GA). The NEI will investigate OT-551'spotential to slow enlargement of the atrophic area in the maculaand prevent progression to the vision-threatening advanced stagesof age-related macular degeneration (AMD).

Rochester, NY-The FDA has approved Bausch & Lomb's 100 Hzexcimer laser, the 217z100, for use as part of the Zyoptixpersonalized laser vision-correction system for refractive surgery.

Washington, DC-The FDA and Ligand Pharmaceuticals Inc. arewarning of the risk for visual loss associated with the use ofdenileukin diftitox injection (Ontak), a drug used in patients withpersistent or recurrent cutaneous T-cell lymphoma whose malignantcells express the CD25 component of the interleukin-2 receptor.

Irvine, CA-The Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use(CHMP) has recommended that the European Commission approveGanfort, Allergan's bimatoprost (Lumigan)/timolol ophthalmicsolution combination product for glaucoma. The CHMP opinion servesas the basis for a European Commission approval, which is expectedto be finalized in the second quarter of 2006.

Atlanta-Alimera Sciences Inc. and pSivida Limited haveannounced that following a planned interim review, an independentData Safety Monitoring Board (DSMB) has recommended thecontinuation of their phase III clinical trial of Medidur.

Palo Alto, CA-A prospective comparison study of the IntraLasefemtosecond laser (IntraLase Corp.) and the Hansatome keratome(Bausch & Lomb) in myopic LASIK with VISX CustomVue (AdvancedMedical Optics) showed that both devices produced excellent visualoutcomes. The eyes treated with the femtosecond laser showed moreimprovement in several outcome measures at early intervals in thestudy, but most of these differences had disappeared by 6 months,said Edward E. Manche, MD.

S?o Paulo, Brazil-A target IOP should be set for each patientas soon as the diagnosis of ocular hypertension or glaucoma ismade, and it should be continually re-evaluated to assess whetherexisting treatment is achieving its goal for stopping visual fieldprogression and protecting the optic nerve, said Curt Hartleben,MD, at the World Congress of Ophthalmology.

The late Charles L. Schepens, MD, was well-known byophthalmologists worldwide as the father of modern retinal surgeryafter having discovered a way to re-attach retinas and restorevision to nearly 90% of patients, and having invented the binocularindirect ophthalmoscope.

A March survey showed that 62% of menopausal and perimenopausal women reported dry eye symptoms, yet 16% of women experiencing dry eye symptoms realized dry eye was a symptom of menopause. Of the women experiencing dry eye symptoms, less than 59% spoke to a doctor about it and about 58% used over-the-counter eye drops to treat the symptoms.

WaveFront Sciences presents the COAS-HD Model 2800 high-definitionprecision aberrometer. The Model 2800 (2800 is the number ofsamples in a 9.5-mm pupil) extends the capability ofwavefront-based ophthalmic metrology and provides the physicianwith an ultra-detailed map of the eye.

Pharmaceuticals Inc. announced management changes to itsOSI/Eyetech Pharmaceuticals business team. Paul G. Chaney, chiefoperating officer of OSI/Eyetech, has been promoted to the role ofexecutive vice president, OSI Pharmaceuticals, and president ofOSI/Eyetech.

Anecortave acetate (Retaane, Alcon Laboratories) is a potential newtherapy for glaucoma that seems to be highly effective, with a mean25% decrease in IOP 6 months after one juxtascleral injection.

Spatial frequency doubling (FD) stimuli have an excellent abilityto predict progression of visual field loss and optic discabnormalities in patients with glaucoma for about 3 years, but thepredictive power drops off over time, said Ted Maddess, PhD, seniorfellow (associate professor) in the visual sciences group, ResearchSchool of Biological Sciences, Australian National University,Canberra.

An assessment of the cumulative incidence of changes in visualacuity for a 15-year period showed that, overall, 8% ofparticipants in the Beaver Dam Eye Study of age-related eyeconditions developed visual impairment, 1% developed severeimpairment, and 7% developed doubling of the visual angle.

A newly designed IOL corrects corneal coma and is tolerant of largedegrees of ocular misalignment.

Serum analysis indicated that high levels of omega fatty acids,linoleic acid (LA), and alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) are inverselyassociated with age-related macular degeneration (AMD).

The study of proteomics could identify candidate proteins thatmight be targets for pharmaceutical therapies for age-relatedmacular degeneration (AMD), said Deborah A. Ferrington, PhD,assistant professor in the departments of ophthalmology andbiochemistry, molecular biology and biophysics at the University ofMinnesota, Minneapolis.

Early experience with peptidomic profiling of plasma forage-related macular degeneration (AMD) biomarkers is encouraging insuggesting this technique may some day have a role in theidentification of individuals susceptible to developing thisvision-threatening disorder, said John W. Crabb, PhD.

Contrary to early expectations, researchers have discovered anamazing amount of heterogeneity for inherited retinal diseases,including genetic, allelic, phenotypic, and clinical heterogeneity.This complexity means that it is possible to identify the cause ofone particular, common retinal disease?autosomal dominant retinitispigmentosa (ADRP)?in only about half of the patients.

The dog model is an appropriate choice for developing and testingnovel therapies applicable to human patients because theapproximately 300 dog breeds are genetically isolated populations.Furthermore, it is believed their phenotype is similar to that ofhumans, according to Gustavo Aguirre, VMD, PhD, professor ofophthalmology and medical genetics, School of Veterinary Medicine,University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia.

Increases in choroidal thickening are integral to ocular growth andvision, as demonstrated in bird models, and are not merely afocusing mechanism, according to one physician.

Joan W. Miller, MD, and Joel S. Schuman, MD, are the winners of the2006 ARVO/Pfizer Ophthalmics Translational Research Awards.

The recipients of the inaugural ARVO/Alcon Early CareerClinician-Scientist Research Awards were announced during thekeynote session Sunday evening.

In keeping with the theme, "Building International Collaborations,"as the focus of the 2006 Association for Research in Vision andOphthalmology (ARVO) meeting, two keynote speakers are doing theirpart to promote global partnerships in vision research.

While early data show that vascular endothelial growth factor(VEGF) may prevent vision loss and even produce gains in patientswith wet age-related macular degeneration (AMD), much remains to belearned about the class of VEGF inhibitors. Only one drug in thisclass, pegaptanib sodium (Macugen, OSI/Eyetech Pharmaceuticals) hasbeen approved, while others are in the clinical trials pipeline.

For thousands of ophthalmologists and vision researchers, a springtrip to Fort Lauderdale, FL, is an annual tradition that mixes alittle bit of sunshine with a whole lot of academics. Thattradition continues this year, with the 2006 Association forResearch in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) annual meeting fromSunday, April 30 to Thursday, May 4.

For thousands of ophthalmologists and vision researchers, a springtrip to Fort Lauderdale, FL, is an annual tradition that mixes alittle bit of sunshine with a whole lot of academics. Thattradition continues this year, with the 2006 Association forResearch in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) annual meeting fromSunday, April 30 to Thursday, May 4.