BARCELONA — Keith Barton, MD, co-chair of the Ophthalmology Futures European Forum, gives highlights of this year’s meeting. The OFEF meeting provides a unique opportunity for clinicians, industry, regulators and business consultants to interact.
Author: Healio ophthalmology
Safety, efficacy and cost factor into physicians’ decisions regarding glaucoma medication
Glaucoma medication costs, along with safety and efficacy profiles, can be an important consideration when prescribing medications, according to a glaucoma specialist.Patients have to pay for glaucoma prescriptions on top of drugs prescribed for comorb…
The rise of ‘practice collapse disorder’
“For something to collapse, not all systems have to shut down. In most cases, just one system is enough. For example, the human body is a system of systems. If just one system, such as the cardiovascular system, shuts down, death follows.”— Robert Kiyosaki
Speaker: Eye screenings could start at older age in children with type 1 diabetes
Screening examinations for diabetic retinopathy among children with type 1 diabetes could begin later than currently recommended, Megan M. Geloneck, MD, said in a presentation at the American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus annua…
Three wishes: What the premium surgeon longs for today
Today’s premium surgeon is constantly challenged with achieving perfect visual outcomes in the world of refractive and refractive cataract surgery. The infamous “three wishes” joke involves a protagonist such as a genie granting three wishes, in which the first two are ideal and the third is either misinterpreted or intentionally granted in an awkward literal fashion and cannot be reversed because it is the final wish, resulting in the punchline of the joke.A perfect example: The premium surgeon is granted a new femtosecond laser with built-in aberrometry and hands-free remote (Read more...)
Presentation spectrum and management of iris cysts
Iris cysts are benign lesions that arise from iris tissue and are seen clinically in cyst or elevated form. They can be primary, with no etiological cause, or secondary, with etiological cause. Primary iris cysts are divided into epithelial and stromal…
Post-cataract surgery intraocular injections offer alternative to traditional drop therapy
With more than 3 million procedures performed annually in the U.S., cataract surgery is nearly a rite of passage. Technological advances including phacoemulsification and premium IOLs have all contributed to making cataract surgery one of the safest and most effective procedures performed. However, the post-surgical drop regimen has remained a largely unchanged and cumbersome process for both patients and office staff.As an “in the trenches” surgeon working to provide the best care for my patients, I believe the time has arrived to confidently adopt the practice of administering post-surgical pharmacological (Read more...)
Physicians face constant decisions regarding new technology
New devices in ophthalmology range from the disruptive to the disappointing, with lots of incremental gains in between. Capital equipment manufacturers often offer significant upgrades to lasers and phaco machines, but these can come with a significant…
Optimize cataract surgery outcomes by addressing corneal pathology
A major factor in optimizing cataract surgery outcomes is obtaining reliable measurements of the cornea. Much of the pathology that compromises this reliability is readily apparent. Being able to identify and address more subtle abnormalities in a time…
Patient experiences vision loss in Indonesia
A previously healthy 19-year-old college student was referred to the New England Eye Center for evaluation after returning from Indonesia where she had studied abroad and suffered a severe illness requiring hospitalization. She had blurred vision in bo…
Fallout from failed clinical trials poses challenges to companies
So far in 2015, four different ophthalmic products in phase 3 clinical trials failed to meet their primary endpoints. Ocular Surgery News spoke with three of these companies to find out what happened and how they responded. Their stories offer a telling glimpse at the challenges and opportunities companies face when endpoints are missed in clinical trials as part of the overall innovation cycle.“Private companies often simply learn from their experience and make appropriate adjustments to their research and business plan. They continue on as long as their investors are (Read more...)
Number of glaucoma procedures in US decreases despite aging population
As the aging population grows in the U.S., the number of Medicare beneficiaries has increased but the number of glaucoma procedures has declined, according to a study.“The main message is that the landscape of glaucoma surgery is changing,” study author Pradeep Y. Ramulu, MD, PhD, told Ocular Surgery News. “Before, trabeculectomy was, far and away, the primary surgery for glaucoma. Now, there are more cyclophotocoagulations performed than primary trabeculectomies, and most of these are done endoscopically. Also, it is interesting to see that several minimally invasive glaucoma procedures, such as (Read more...)
Implantable Miniature Telescope retains positive results in 5-year follow-up
The Implantable Miniature Telescope showed favorable safety and efficacy outcomes for treating end-stage age-related macular degeneration over the long term, particularly in patients younger than 75 years old, according to a study.The IMT (VisionCare Ophthalmic Technologies) is a fixed-focus telescopic system that enlarges visual objects in a patient’s central visual field.
Cataract surgery embodies power of innovation cycle
The innovation cycle is critical to product development and also to enhancing care delivery. In the innovation cycle, an unmet need is recognized, human and financial capital are applied to provide a solution to the unmet need, failure is always encoun…
Digital markerless system improves predictability for astigmatism correction
A digital markerless method may be more accurate for toric IOL alignment than manual ink marking for astigmatism correction during cataract surgery, according to a presentation at the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery annual meeting.I…
Electronic health records may improve financial returns, workflow efficiency
The use of electronic health records may result in significant financial returns and workflow efficiency for practices, according to a report.The prospective financial analysis, reported in Ophthalmology, evaluated data that affected cash flows relevan…
Novel eyelid massaging device improves dry eye symptoms
BARCELONA — A novel eyelid massaging device improved symptoms of dry eye by enhancing stability and uniformity of the tear lipid layer, according a speaker. “Eyepeace is designed to express the meibomian glands by a massaging, vertical motion, as a treatment for meibomian gland dysfunction (MGD). It is meant to be used by the patients at home twice a day,” Johnny Moore, MA, FRCOphth, PhD, said at the EuCornea meeting preceding the European Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgeons meeting.
Hypochlorous acid reduces fungal infection rate in patients with Boston K-Pro
BARCELONA — The rates of fungal infection are low but not insignificant in patients with a Boston keratoprosthesis, according to a speaker.In a retrospective study of 15 case reports of fungal keratitis or endophthalmitis in Boston K-Pro patients between 2001 and 2015, Silvia Odorcic, MD, FRCSC, and colleagues found the rate of fungal infection to range from 0.009 to 0.02 per patient-year of follow-up.
Children with type 1 diabetes can safely delay vision screenings
Eye screenings for diabetic retinopathy in children with type 1 diabetes should begin at age 15 years or 5 years after diabetes diagnosis, whichever comes later, according to research in Ophthalmology.In a retrospective cohort study of children with ty…
Speaker: Suspect viral cause in cases of anterior uveitis
BARCELONA — A viral cause should be suspected in cases of anterior uveitis, the most common form of uveitis, according to a speaker.Whereas 48% of new cases are idiopathic, viruses are increasingly identified in cases of anterior uveitis, Samir Shoughy, MD, told colleagues aid at the International Conference on Ocular Infections held jointly with the European Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgeons meeting.