SAN FRANCISCO — Because IOP measurements are a “moving target,” glaucoma specialists have yet to agree on the best way of assessing the therapeutic effect of ocular hypotensive therapy, according to a presenter here.“We can’t make decisions based on single pressure measurements,” Anthony D. Realini, MD, MPH, said at the American Glaucoma Society annual meeting. Rather, several pre-treatment measurements and several on-treatment measurements are needed in order to decipher meaningful trends in IOP behavior.
Author: Healio ophthalmology
Ahmed valves with no patch grafts may manage glaucoma long term
SAN FRANCISCO — Glaucoma may be managed long term with Ahmed valves implanted without using patch grafts, according to a presenter here.Higher initial IOP, younger age and inferotemporal location were risk factors for valve failure, Felix Gil-Carrasco, MD, said in a poster presented at the American Glaucoma Society annual meeting.
Study: IOP, medications reduced 1 year after implantation of two micro-bypass stents
SAN FRANCISCO — IOP reduction of more than 10 mm Hg was sustained at 1 year in a study evaluating implantation of two Glaukos iStents in patients with open-angle glaucoma not controlled on one medication, a presenter said here.“For us as glaucoma surgeons, this really does offer us hope that there may be a new surgical option that could be available to medically uncontrolled open-angle glaucoma patients in the future,” L. Jay Katz, MD, said at the American Glaucoma Society annual meeting.
Weinreb lauded as AGS Innovator
SAN FRANCISCO – It takes about 15 years to translate something from the laboratory to the clinic, Robert N. Weinreb, MD, said in his acceptance of the AGS Innovator Award. Citing the number of years that elapsed between building the first confocal laser ophthalmoscope in 1983 in the laboratory to its broader acceptance, Weinreb told colleagues at the American Glaucoma Society annual meeting, “I thought if you did something better, people would beat a path to your door.”
Allegro continues studies of integrin peptide therapy
Allegro Ophthalmics has completed enrollment of a phase 1b/2a study of the impact of its integrin peptide therapy on wet age-related macular degeneration, according to a company news release. In addition, Allegro has begun a second study of the therapy’s impact on diabetic macular edema.Safety is the primary endpoint of the dose-ranging, monotherapy wet AMD study of ALG-1001, with secondary endpoints of improvement in central macular thickness and best corrected visual acuity.
IOP-lowering effect of excimer laser trabeculostomy stable over long term
SAN FRANCISCO — Excimer laser trabeculostomy is an effective IOP-lowering procedure, shown to consistently lower IOP over 5 years, according to a poster presented at the American Glaucoma Society annual meeting.”ELT is a MIGS procedure requiring no foreign body implantation,” poster coauthor Michael S. Berlin, MD, told Ocular Surgery News. The study findings are significant, he said, because the results are achieved with excimer laser trabeculostomy (ELT) alone, not combined with cataract surgery.
Removal of mini shunt unnecessary in cases of blebitis
SAN FRANCISCO — Managing blebitis in patients with an Ex-Press mini glaucoma shunt implanted under a scleral flap does not call for removal of the device, a speaker said here. Nor does the shunt need to be removed in cases of endophthalmitis, Steven R. Sarkisian Jr., MD, told colleagues at the American Glaucoma Society annual meeting.
New HIPAA/HITECH act omnibus rule: What must be done to comply?
Health care professionals and others working with personal medical information face considerable compliance risks and responsibilities under the omnibus final rule governing “protected health information” (PHI) that the Department of Health and Human Services issued in January 2013 (the Final Rule). The Final Rule sets standards and authorizes substantially increased penalties for violations of HHS’ regulations under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) and the 2009 Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act. Particularly in light of those increased penalties, HIPAA covered entities (health plans, health care clearinghouses, and most health care providers) and their “business associates” — which are now directly subject to HHS regulations — should be actively reviewing their new responsibilities under the Final Rule.
Long-term use of corticosteroids may be linked to infectious keratitis after PK
Infectious keratitis in eyes that have undergone penetrating keratoplasty may be related to extended use of corticosteroids, according to a study.The retrospective cohort study included 51 patients with infectious keratitis; 26 patients presented with …
Kala Pharmaceuticals raises $11.5 million to advance ophthalmic programs
Kala Pharmaceuticals has secured $11.5 million in Series A equity financing to help move two of its ophthalmic platforms through clinical proof of concept, according to a company news release.Kala focuses on products designed to penetrate the mucosal b…
STAAR Surgical reports net loss of $1.76 million in 2012
STAAR Surgical reported a net loss of $1.76 million in 2012 compared with a net income of $1.35 million in 2011, according to a company news release.There was a net loss of $1.41 million in the fourth quarter compared with a net income of $109,000 in t…
Ocular Therapeutix submits premarket approval application for hydrogel sealant
Ocular Therapeutix has submitted a premarket approval application to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for ReSure sealant, according to a company news release.The sealant, which uses the company’s proprietary hydrogel technology, has the proposed indication of intraoperatively managing clear corneal incisions with a wound leak and preventing fluid egress after cataract surgery or IOL placement, the release said.
RNFL changes portend glaucomatous visual field progression
Structural morphology correlated significantly with functional loss in patients with glaucoma and suspected glaucoma, according to a study.The prospective clinical trial included 310 glaucoma suspect and preperimetric eyes and 177 perimetric eyes that …
‘Heads-up’ 3-D cataract surgery performed in Asia
High-definition 3-D “heads-up” cataract surgery is now being performed in Asia, according to a news release from TrueVision.Clement C.Y. Tham, MD, an OSN APAO Edition Board Member and the first surgeon to perform the procedure in Asia, completed eight …
Carl Zeiss Meditec introduces data management options for Forum system
Carl Zeiss Meditec has announced the release of new management software and a glaucoma management application to expand the offerings of its Forum eye care data management system.The Forum Glaucoma Workplace will allow physicians to combine Cirrus optical coherence tomography and Humphrey Field Analyzer perimetry information and interactively review patients’ visual field data, according to a news release.
Additional glaucoma videos: Individualized surgery, additional Q&A and more
Click to view four recently posted glaucoma videos from Hawaiian Eye 2013.
OptiMedica gains patent for laser cataract surgery technology
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office will issue a fundamental patent to OptiMedica related to laser cataract surgery technology, according to a company news release.Patent No. 8394084, to be issued March 12, will cover a three-dimensional femtosecond l…
Joseph Colin, MD, dies of cancer
Joseph Colin, MD, an OSN Europe Edition Board Member, ophthalmic surgeon and educator, died Feb. 24 of metastatic renal cancer. At the time of his death, Colin was the chairman of the Department of Ophthalmology at Bordeaux University Medical School an…
Eylea drives increase in net income for Regeneron
Regeneron Pharmaceuticals reported a net income of $750.3 million in 2012, compared with a net loss of $221.8 million in 2011, according to a company press release.Revenues increased from $445.8 million in 2011 to $1.4 billion in 2012. Eylea (aflibercept) accounted for $838 million in U.S. net sales in 2012, leading to Regeneron’s first full year of profitability, according to the release.
More new glaucoma videos: Advances in imaging, combined cataract and glaucoma, IOP at home and more
Click to view four recently posted glaucoma videos from Hawaiian Eye 2013.