Author: Healio ophthalmology

PUBLICATION EXCLUSIVE: Cost Containment: Getting the Lead Out

“Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.”– Antoine de Saint-ExuperyIt is hard to get and stay lean. In any year, roughly one out of every seven Americans goes on a diet. And the number of people who desire to lose weight is even greater than the number of people who actually undertake a weight loss program.

Higher axial length, spherical equivalent associated with uncorrectable visual impairment

Subjects with higher axial length and spherical equivalent were more likely to develop uncorrectable visual impairments, according to a study. The cross-sectional study included 15,693 subjects of European descent culled from large population studies conducted in the Netherlands. Subjects had axial lengths ranging from 15.3 mm to 37.8 mm and spherical equivalent ranging from –25 D to +14 D. Axial length was greater than 26 mm in 819 individuals, and spherical equivalent was –6 D or worse in 796 individuals.

VIDEO: Signs, symptoms of dry eye disease improve with use of cryopreserved amniotic membrane

NEW YORK ― At the OSN New York meeting here, Thomas “TJ” John, MD, reports results of a randomized controlled study testing the use of cryopreserved amniotic membrane in cases of dry eye disease. The study was undertaken to test the hypothesis that cryopreserved amniotic membrane, which is rich in nerve growth factors, would promote corneal nerve regeneration and, through its anti-inflammatory properties, would also improve overall ocular surface health.

LASIK flap complications infrequent but can lead to aborted procedures

NEW YORK — Abandoned LASIK flap procedures due to complications are uncommon, but a second surgery can still result in positive outcomes for patients if surgeons optimize timing and their surgical technique, a speaker said here. “The good news is even when we experience these significant complications at the time of LASIK elective procedures, we can tell our patients that we can still get them good outcomes. While we have to wait a little bit longer for microkeratome flaps to maybe stabilize, the nice thing that we looked at with (Read more...)

Valeant to divest Paragon

Valeant Pharmaceuticals has agreed to divest Paragon Holdings I Inc. to restore competition in the gas-permeable button market, according to the Federal Trade Commission.It was alleged that Valeant’s acquisition of Paragon Holdings, which included the wholly owned subsidiaries Paragon Vision Sciences Inc. and CRT Technology Inc., violated Section 7 of the Clayton Act and Section 5 of the FTC Act by lessening competition in the markets for polymer discs, or buttons, used to make orthokeratology, large-diameter scleral and general vision correction contact lenses.

Preoperative dry eye, ectasia risk factors can determine if PRK or LASIK is optimal

NEW YORK — Both PRK and LASIK are effective refractive surgery procedures, but patients with preoperative dry eye and those who are at high risk for ectasia may be better candidates for PRK, according to a speaker here. “LASIK and PRK are both excellent options for refractive surgery, and they provide excellent results. However, whatever criteria you use, the [residual stromal bed] or the [percent tissue altered], whatever that minimum number is, it’s important to not exceed that with a planned LASIK procedure, and if so, you should perform a (Read more...)

STAAR Surgical reports net loss in third quarter

STAAR Surgical reported a net loss of $1.8 million, or $0.04 per share, in the third quarter, which is equal to its net loss in the third quarter of 2015, according to a company press release. STAAR’s net sales were up 7% to $20.1 million, which was attributed to ICL revenue and unit growth, as well as IOL revenue growth. This was offset by lower sales of injector parts and a delay in orders from Canada for the EVO toric lens.

SVOne comparable to traditional refractive error measures

The SVOne provides measurements of spherical equivalent refractive error in both children and adults that are not significantly different from those of other standard clinical procedures, according to researchers in Optometry & Vision Science. Researchers compared the findings of the SVOne (Smart Vision Labs) with retinoscopy, subjective refraction and two commercially available autorefractors in a pediatric population.

pSivida brings on Deb Jorn as executive vice president of corporate and commercial development

Deb Jorn has joined pSivida as its executive vice president of corporate and commercial development, according to a company press release.Jorn, who began her career at Merck and previously worked at Valeant Pharmaceuticals, Bausch + Lomb, Schering-Plough and Johnson & Johnson, will report directly to the company’s President and CEO Nancy Lurker in the newly created position.