Eight jurisdictions in the United States reviewed syphilis cases in 2014-2015 and found 0.6% of the patients had symptoms consistent with ocular syphilis, according to a report. Ocular syphilis clusters were reported in Washington and California in ear…
Author: Healio ophthalmology
PUBLICATION EXCLUSIVE: 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...)
Second Sight reports gross loss, higher net loss for third quarter
Second Sight Medical Products reported a gross loss of $1.4 million in the third quarter compared with a gross profit of $1.5 million in the third quarter of 2015.A company press release attributed the loss to lower revenues, production costs and exces…
Study: Basketball leading cause of sports-related ocular trauma in men
A study found that approximately 30,000 people present to the emergency department each year after experiencing eye injuries related to sports, but appropriate protective eyewear could potentially reduce the number of sports-related ocular trauma incid…
EyeGate Pharmaceuticals reports higher net loss in third quarter
EyeGate Pharmaceuticals reported a $3.377 million net loss in the third quarter, compared with a $1.356 million net loss in the third quarter of 2015, according to a company press release.A phase 3 confirmatory trial of EGP-437 for the treatment of ant…
Combination of squalamine, ranibizumab improves BCVA in eyes with retinal vein occlusion
Patients with macular edema secondary to retinal vein occlusion who received a combination of squalamine and ranibizumab had a better improvement in best corrected visual acuity than patients who received ranibizumab alone, according to a study. The si…
CMS finalizes updated payment rates, policy changes affecting OPPS and ASCs
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has issued a final rule with comment period that updates payment rates and makes policy changes that affect the Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment System and Ambulatory Surgical Center payment system …
New CPT codes to cover programming of Argus II retinal prosthesis system
The American Medical Association Current Procedural Terminology Editorial Panel approved two new Category III CPT codes for programming the Argus II retinal prosthesis system, Second Sight Medical Products announced in a press release.In addition, CMS …
Allergan reports Q3 financial results
Allergan plc reported its continuing operations performance for the third quarter of 2016, including total net revenues of $3.6 billion, a 4% increase compared with the prior year quarter.Strong performance from key brands in eye care, aesthetics, plas…
BLOG: The best thing I saw at AAO? Allergan’s social contract
The AAO meeting is always a great time to catch up with friends and learn about new technologies. To be sure, this meeting had some exciting new approvals, like Shire’s Xiidra for dry eye, Alcon’s CyPass micro-stent for glaucoma, and the AMO Symfony implant—the first extended depth-of-focus implant in the U.S. While technology is great, I was most impressed with Allergan’s announcement by CEO Brent Saunders of the company’s new social contract.
Under what circumstances would you consider the off-label combination of corneal inlay surgery and LASIK?
PointWith the Kamra inlay, we have found the “sweet spot” for our happiest patients is a refractive error around –0.75 D. However, at least half of our presbyopic patients present with a refractive error significantly different from this value. In these cases, we have used LASIK to correct the refraction to this value.
Posterior corneal astigmatism can be incorporated into toric IOL selection
Since before the turn of the 20th century, we recognized that there was a mismatch between anterior corneal astigmatism and refraction, although we were unable to pinpoint the cause. However, a new look with the aid of modern technology has shown us th…
Study raises awareness of rare but dangerous complication during pars plana vitrectomy
Pars plana vitrectomy is a low-risk procedure, but some studies published over the past decade have identified cases of sudden death during the procedure.There have been a number of cases over the past 10 years reported in both ophthalmology and anesth…
Technique creates precise, well-centered anterior capsulotomy
The use of an iris hook and pupil expansion ring for femtosecond laser-assisted cataract surgery in patients with insufficient mydriasis and an ectopic pupil produces a round, centrally located anterior capsulotomy opening, according to a report descri…
Pediatric patient presents with new-onset diplopia and headache
A 7-year-old boy presented to the Tufts Medical Center emergency department with a 2-week history of headache and 1-week history of binocular horizontal diplopia. He had no medical history. His ocular history was significant only for mild myopia for wh…
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...)
Ophthalmologists explore new and pending optical concepts for enhancing vision in presbyopic patients
Corneal inlays, or more specifically presbyopic inlays, are gaining traction as another viable option to improve vision.Over the past 18 months, the FDA has approved the first two of these inlays: the Kamra (AcuFocus) in April 2015 and the Raindrop (Re…
OSN New York 2016 Product Showcase
Exhibitors at the Ocular Surgery News New York 2016 Symposium were invited to send a description of products that will be displayed at this year’s meeting, to be held in New York City on November 4-6. Click here to see this year’s Product Showcase.
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...)
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-Exupery