Author: Healio ophthalmology

VIDEO: Clinical trials show similarities between ranibizumab, aflibercept in treating DME

SEATTLE — At the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology meeting, Marco A. Zarbin, MD, PhD, discusses a review of randomized clinical trials of anti-VEGF agents for treating diabetic macular edema, including RISE, RIDE, VIVID, VISTA, RESTORE, Protocol T and Protocol S. The review found that both aflibercept and ranibizumab were “equally effective” in inducing a two-step regression in diabetic retinopathy, durability of the anti-VEGFs was “almost identical,” and incidence of systemic side effects “was comparable” in all the studies, Zarbin said.

Abnormal ERGs reversed to normal in patients treated with Jetrea

SEATTLE — Full-field electroretinograms in patients treated with ocriplasmin changed normally, and treated patients with abnormal ERGs reversed to normal by 2 years, according to a poster presented here. The OASIS phase 3b clinical trial assessed long-term outcomes in patients with symptomatic vitreomacular adhesion (VMA), and this substudy evaluated “the relationship of ERG changes with anatomic and visual outcomes for up to 24 months after a single injection of ocriplasmin 0.125 mg,” Joseph I. Markoff, MD, said at the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology meeting.

CooperVision studies myopia control using daily disposables in children

SEATTLE – “With every diopter of increase in myopia, you have an increased risk of ocular pathology,” according to Arthur Back, BOptom, PhD, FAAO.Back, chief technology officer for CooperVision, told Primary Care Optometry News in an interview here at the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology meeting that the company is working on a solution to control the progression of myopia in children through the use of daily disposable contact lenses.

CooperVision studies myopia control using daily disposables in children

SEATTLE – “With every diopter of increase in myopia, you have an increased risk of ocular pathology,” according to Arthur Back, BOptom, PhD, FAAO.Back, chief technology officer for CooperVision, told Primary Care Optometry News in an interview here at the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology meeting that the company is working on a solution to control the progression of myopia in children through the use of daily disposable contact lenses.

Lower levels of vitamin D associated with increased risk of noninfectious uveitis

SEATTLE — Patients with noninfectious uveitis had lower levels of vitamin D compared to patients without noninfectious uveitis, according to a poster presented here. “Given that noninfectious uveitis is postulated to be caused by immune dysfunction, the purpose of this study was to determine if there was an association between vitamin D levels and the development of noninfectious uveitis,” Lindsay Grotting, MD, said at the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology meeting.

RNFL thickness correlated to cognitive function

SEATTLE – Researchers reported here at the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology meeting that a thicker retinal nerve fiber layer was associated with better performance on the mini mental state examination and reaction time.Eneh Jones-Odeh, of King’s College, London, said she and her colleagues evaluated twins “to determine the relationship between RNFL and how well people perform in different cognitive tests.”

RNFL thickness correlated to cognitive function

SEATTLE – Researchers reported here at the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology meeting that a thicker retinal nerve fiber layer was associated with better performance on the mini mental state examination and reaction time.Eneh Jones-Odeh, of King’s College, London, said she and her colleagues evaluated twins “to determine the relationship between RNFL and how well people perform in different cognitive tests.”

Compliance with contact lens care does not match awareness

SEATTLE – A survey of contact lens wearers showed that the majority said they receive information on contact lens care from their doctors; however, compliance is still an issue.“Despite Internet access, people are more likely to get information from doctors,” Margaret Wang told Primary Care Optometry News here at the Association for Research for Vision and Ophthalmology meeting. “But we found that people don’t necessarily listen to their doctors.”

Compliance with contact lens care does not match awareness

SEATTLE – A survey of contact lens wearers showed that the majority said they receive information on contact lens care from their doctors; however, compliance is still an issue.“Despite Internet access, people are more likely to get information from doctors,” Margaret Wang told Primary Care Optometry News here at the Association for Research for Vision and Ophthalmology meeting. “But we found that people don’t necessarily listen to their doctors.”

VIDEO: PlayStation effective for amblyopia treatment

SEATTLE – Ricardo Torres-Vidal, of the Asociacion para Evitar la Ceguera en Mexico, discussed his study involving the use of PlayStation Portable in the treatment of children with amblyopia, here at the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology meeting. Children who used the PSP in combination with wearing red and green spectacles had a measurable gain in visual acuity as compared to the other groups. Torres believes the free choice of game or movie improves compliance.

Analysis: Lucentis and Eylea comparable in injection frequency, cost in AMD patients at 2 years

SEATTLE — Ranibizumab and aflibercept were shown to be comparable in injection frequency and cost for the treatment of patients with neovascular age-related macular degeneration at 2 years, according to a poster presented here. “In terms of the real-world use of aflibercept and ranibizumab, there seems to be no difference whether the patient is treatment naïve or treatment experienced, and that’s true at 1 year and at 2 years,” Szilárd Kiss, MD, told Ocular Surgery News in an interview at the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology meeting.

CK, cross-linking yield improvement in corrected distance visual acuity in patients with ectasia

SEATTLE — Conductive keratoplasty in combination with epi-on cross-linking showed improvement in corrected distance visual acuity in patients with ectasia, according to a poster presented here. “It’s a really exciting study, and it’s an ongoing study. Our numbers are growing rapidly, and we’re having really great results in terms of 1 day vs. same day,” Olivia Dryjski, MD, told Ocular Surgery News in an interview at the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology meeting.

Study: Hypochlorous acid eliminates nearly all staph from lower lids

SEATTLE – Saline containing 0.01% pure hypochlorous acid was found to reduce Staphylococcus overall from the skin below the eyelid in 99.6% of ocular specimens, according to David W. Stroman, PhD.“This is the first clinical study with a product many of you know as Avenova (NovaBay),” Stroman said here at the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology meeting.

Study: Hypochlorous acid eliminates nearly all staph from lower lids

SEATTLE – Saline containing 0.01% pure hypochlorous acid was found to reduce Staphylococcus overall from the skin below the eyelid in 99.6% of ocular specimens, according to David W. Stroman, PhD.“This is the first clinical study with a product many of you know as Avenova (NovaBay),” Stroman said here at the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology meeting.

Phakic IOLs: Where we are and what the future will bring

Phakic IOLs are a long-standing refractive surgical procedure that has experienced ups and downs since the early ’50s when the first implantations were performed by Strampelli and Barraquer. Three main pathways have been followed since the beginning of the development of phakic lenses. The longest and most sinuous and problematic has been the one followed by angle-supported phakic IOLs. A second, more straightforward, led to the development of iris-supported lenses, and the third, straightforward as well, is the one of posterior chamber lenses. At the start of and along each (Read more...)