Month: January 2014

Study defines causes of astigmatic surprise after toric IOL implantation

Understanding the root causes of refractive cylinder surprises that manifest after toric IOL implantation can enable surgeons to choose appropriate surgical methods for each patient’s individual case, according to a study.The experimental study set out to define these causes by using vergence formulas to bring all lens powers to the corneal plane. The refractive cylinder effect of rotating a toric IOL and demonstrating how prevailing astigmatism and various planning and surgical steps contribute to postoperative refractive cylinder were determined by double-angle vector diagrams.

BLOG: If you only had 17 years, how would you choose to live your life?

A remarkable 17-year-old young man died in New England a few weeks ago. His name was Sam Berns, and he had a rare disorder called progeria, which results from an untreatable genetic mutation that causes aging of all the body’s cells. Sam was diagnosed shortly after birth with this affliction, which occurs in one in 8 million newborns. His parents, both physicians, formed a foundation to conduct research on the condition. Throughout his short life, they also wisely advised Sam to choose activities that would enrich his life most fully.

Speaker: Lasers essential in future of refractive cataract surgery

Laser-assisted refractive cataract surgery, although costly, provides better safety, visual outcomes and reproducibility and will be the driving innovative factor in the future, according to a speaker at Hawaiian Eye 2014. “The principal source of error that we face now is the effect of lens position,” James P. McCulley, MD, FACS, FRCOphth, said. “A half millimeter off in lens position will give us a diopter off in our IOL.” The literature supports that the main cause for this variability is the structure of the capsulorhexis, he said.

Separating cataract consult, surgical planning appointments yields best IOL match, speaker says

Successfully pairing IOLs with eyes calls for proper pacing of appointments, knowing and educating patients, and accurately analyzing data during the preoperative and surgical planning stages, a presenter said at Hawaiian Eye 2014. Moving too swiftly through the preoperative stage overwhelms patients and yields inaccurate data, Cynthia Matossian, MD, told colleagues. “Decouple the cataract consult appointment from your surgical testing appointment,” Matossian said. During the cataract consult, the cornea is barraged with anesthetic drops, mydriatic agents, dyes and applanation devices, she said, which makes it difficult to obtain accurate measurements. (Read more...)

Hydrogel corneal inlay improves near, intermediate, distance vision at 3 months

A hydrogel corneal inlay improved near, intermediate and distance vision, regardless of preoperative refractive error, according to a study presented at Hawaiian Eye 2014. Roger F. Steinert, MD, OSN Cornea/External Disease Board Member, spoke about the Raindrop near vision inlay (ReVision Optics). “This is really better than anybody expected,” Steinert said. “It’s providing uninterrupted functional vision and satisfaction across a very wide range of preop refractive errors. … We think the real sweet spot is going to be somewhere around the very low hyperopic side and not higher than +1.5 (Read more...)