Author: Healio ophthalmology

Managing excessive residual astigmatism after toric IOL implantation

Even though 90% of our toric IOL cases should be within 0.5 D of residual astigmatism, there will be cases in which the outcome is intolerable for the patient and something must be done. The following discussion explains the proper management.The first step is to reassure the patient that an adjustment can easily be made and to make sure that the refraction is stable. Toric IOLs rarely rotate after implantation, but the wound is not stable until at least 3 weeks after surgery with a 2.5-mm temporal incision and will (Read more...)

Chemotherapy can suppress inflammatory signs of periocular filariasis

Dirofilaria repens is an endemic parasite in Mediterranean countries that mostly affects animals. Dirofilaria is a genus of the family Onchocercidae of the super family Filarioidea, order Spirurida in the subphylum Nematoda. Rarely, it can infect humans, causing inflammatory subcutaneous swelling. Human ocular dirofilariasis is sporadically reported in different parts of the world. The species affecting humans are D. immitis, D. repens, D. striata, D. tenuis, D. ursi and D. spectans. The most common presentation is an inflammatory swelling of the ocular adnexa. We report a non-inflammatory presentation of dirofilariasis (Read more...)

Drops may offer another possible way to eliminate presbyopia

Presbyopia is a very common condition and can present a significant handicap for many in life’s daily activities. I am a slightly hyperopic presbyope and find the reduced function more than a nuisance.The incidence of presbyopia varies by country and is, of course, higher in the advanced countries with a large older baby boomer generation than in the emerging countries where the population is younger. In America, at least 100 million suffer from some level of presbyopia, and globally, the number is well more than 1 billion. Most are treated (Read more...)

Femtosecond laser, toric IOL used to treat high level of astigmatism

Quality of vision following surgery is the single most important factor that impacts patient satisfaction. Hence, the ophthalmic surgeon needs to deliver in order to meet patient expectations that have reached a new high compared with the past.Significant corneal astigmatism can degrade quality of vision and lead to patient dissatisfaction. It is important to identify and separate lenticular astigmatism from corneal astigmatism in the preoperative workup. Further, the surgeon has to consider both anterior and posterior corneal astigmatism when calculating toric IOL power. Because total corneal astigmatism is a combination (Read more...)

Sun Pharma to own Ocular Technologies plus rights to dry eye treatment

Sun Pharmaceutical Industries will acquire Ocular Technologies Sarta, or OTS, the owner of the rights to the dry eye disease treatment Seciera, according to a Sun Pharma press release.Auven Therapeutics, which currently owns OTS, will receive a $40 million upfront payment from Sun Pharma, as well as “contingent developmental milestones and sales milestones,” and tiered royalties based on Seciera sales, the release said.

Wireless visual cortical stimulator successfully activated in first human subject

The first successful implantation and activation of a wireless visual cortical stimulator in a human subject has occurred, Second Sight Medical Products announced in a press release.Orion I, a wireless multichannel neurostimulation system, was implanted on the visual cortex of a 30-year-old patient in a UCLA proof of concept study that was supported by the company. The system was able to “perceive and localize individual phosphenes or spots of light” without adverse side effects, the release said.

Ciliary muscle electrostimulation may delay early presbyopia

CHICAGO — Electrostimulation of the ciliary muscle is a noninvasive method to delay early presbyopia in patients between the ages of 40 and 50 years, according to a speaker here. Patients who underwent four 8-minute ciliary body electrostimulation treatments in 2 months, and then an additional 8-minute treatment once every 3 months, saw an improvement in their near vision and reading speed time.

Boo! PQRS, Value Modifier penalties for 2017 sure to scare you

From international law firm Arnold & Porter LLP comes a timely column that provides views on current regulatory and legislative topics that weigh on the minds of today’s physicians and health care executives.On Sept. 26, CMS posted 2017 payment adjustment notices for the Physician Quality Reporting System (PQRS) and Value-Based Payment Modifier (Value Modifier) programs on the CMS Enterprise Portal. For some providers, downward payment adjustments under both programs may be as high as –6% of all Medicare services paid under the Physician Fee Schedule (PFS) in 2017 (–2% for (Read more...)

Trend for methicillin resistance in ocular isolates remains high

CHICAGO — Methicillin resistance among both Staphylococcus aureus and coagulase-negative staphylococci remains high and the “issue is not going away,” a speaker here said in a report of a 10-year analysis of antimicrobial trends. “Methicillin resistance has not gone to zero, nor did we expect it to,” Penny A. Asbell, MD, FACS, MBA, said at the American Academy of Ophthalmology meeting.

VIDEO: Analysis shows earlier, more aggressive treatment may be needed in persistent DME

CHICAGO — At the American Academy of Ophthalmology meeting here, SriniVas R. Sadda, MD, discusses a post hoc DRCR.net Protocol I study analysis of persistent macular edema in patients undergoing anti-VEGF therapy for diabetic macular edema.The study showed that patients with more persistent macular edema at 1, 2 and 3 years had worse vision and may require more intensive treatment options earlier in the process.

11 pieces of advice from the physician-patient

LAS VEGAS — In an emotional lecture at ACG 2016, Philip O. Katz, MD, gave his colleagues a look into what a patient experiences and how to best treat a peer.“My view from the other side of the bed has given me insight into a part of medicine that I had never experienced,” Katz, chairman of the division of gastroenterology at Einstein Medical Center and clinical professor of medicine at the Sidney Kimmel Medical College at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia, said during the David Graham Lecture. “Do you believe (Read more...)

How would Clinton or Trump impact the country’s health care system?

Two separate analyses completed by the Commonwealth Fund and an economist at the Rand Corporation of proposed health care plans from Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump show how each presidential candidate’s plan would affect citizens’ health care throughout America. Both analyses noted that Trump would repeal the Affordable Care Act (ACA) if elected to the presidency and Clinton would modify the ACA.

Modern LASIK outcomes on par with PROWL results

CHICAGO — In a literature review of a large series of eyes looking at modern LASIK outcomes, no article gave a negative impression of LASIK, Kerry D. Solomon, MD, told colleagues at Refractive Surgery Subspecialty Day preceding the American Academy of Ophthalmology meeting.“We can definitively say that modern LASIK surgery is significantly safer and more effective than [when] it was first approved by the FDA,” Solomon said. “Clearly our modern results have improved over time, as you would expect, with better screening processes and better technology that is available to (Read more...)