The macula is the central portion of the retina. Disease affecting the macula may be classified by the layer they affect! All reduce vision.
Category: Blogs
Why Vision is Poor with Silicone Oil
Silicone oil is commonly used to fix a retinal detachment but often the vision following its use is poor. Here are some of the more common reasons why you don’t see.
AMD Update 21: Good News for Patients With Stargardt’s Disease
Stargardt’s disease (also known as Stargardt macular dystrophy) is the most common form of inherited juvenile macular degeneration. Inherited as an autosomal recessive trait, it is a severe form of macular degeneration that begins in late childhood, …
My 52nd Birthday!
I’m 52 years old this past Wednesday (9/5). As with last year, I want to take my birthday celebration to write about what I’ve learned through this website. My Practice Now 3.5 years old and > 450 articles, RetinaEyeDoctor.com now has…
Lucentis Approved for Diabetic Retinopathy
Lucentis is now FDA approved for the treatment of diabetic retinopathy. While recently approved, this is not really a “new” treatment.
My Summer Vacation
Finally back from vacation. We went to Smith Mountain Lake. Kids learned how to ski, tube…and feed the carp!
Gene Therapy in Ophthalmology Update 14: Early Positive Results in Ongoing Gene Therapy Wet AMD and Stargardt’s Disease Studies
Last week, Oxford BioMedica and its partner Sanofi announced positive results in their ongoing gene therapy clinical trials for wet AMD and Stargardt’s disease. In an interim review of their Phase I (RetinoStat) and Phase I/IIa (StarGen) trials, the …
Stem Cells in Ophthalmology Update 22: A Stargardt’s Clinical Trial Patient’s Story – In Her Own Words
Back a few months ago, I got an inquiry about my tables of clinical trials published in my online Journal. I responded to the woman inquirer and found out that she was considering participating in a clinical trial. The inquirer was Maurie Hill. She has…
Iluvien Update 7: Alimera Sciences to Re-File for FDA Approval of Iluvien for Chronic DME
Since my last update in April (Update 6), when the first country, Austria, of an anticipated seven European Union country market approvals was announced, four additional EU approvals have occurred, bringing the total of approvals to five – with Austr…
Vitrectomy for Diabetic Retinopathy
Diabetic retinopathy sometimes requires treatment with eye surgery called a vitrectomy. Surgery, however, can be avoided.
Eye Vitamins for Macular Degeneration
Most patients taking vitamins for macular degeneration actually don’t need them. These popular vitamins are only indicated for a specific subset of macular degeneration.
Gene Therapy in Ophthalmology Update 13: New Clinical Site for Usher Syndrome Clinical Trials
In joint news releases, both the Foudation Fighting Blindness (FFB) and Oxford BioMedica announced that FFB had recently awarded $125,000 to the Centre Hospitalier National d’Ophtalmologie des Quinze-Vingts, a clinical trial site for UshStat, a gene th…
Gene Therapy in Ophthalmology Update 12: First Gene Therapy Approval on the Horizon
As Andrew Pollack writes in today’s NYTimes, “After more than two decades of dashed expectations, the field of gene therapy appears close to reaching a milestone: a regulatory approval. The European Medicines Agency has recommended approval of a ge…
When a Retinal Detachment Becomes an Emergency
There are only 2 emergency situations faced by a retinal surgeon. Not all retinal detachments are emergencies…most are not.
AMD Update 20: How Fovista Works to Increase Vision in the Treatment of Wet AMD
Because I was denied the opportunity to tell you how the combined therapy works, as told by Dr. Pravin Dugel (see AMD Update 19), I decided to take another tack. With the permission of Ophthotech, I would like to explain and illustrate how the combined…
What is an Epiretinal Membrane or Macular Pucker?
Epiretinal membranes, ERM or macular pucker are a non-blinding cause of decreased vision. The earlier the membrane is removed, the better the visual results.
Josef Bille, Laser Surgery Pioneer, Wins Lifetime Achievement Award from European Patent Office
The following writeup was taken from the Optics.org website, with just a few changes.I first met Professor Bille when he was at Intelligent Surgical Lasers (ISL), developing a picosecond laser for intrastromal ablation. I’ve since followed his career…
CentraSight Telescope for Macular Degeneration More Available
The CentraSight Telescope for macular degeneration was approved by the FDA last year. It is now more widely available!
AMD Update 19: Combination Therapy May Be A “Game Changer” for Wet AMD
You may have seen or heard the news that a new drug, Fovista, from Ophthotech, when used in combination with Lucentis (and probably Avastin), has the potential to greatly improve the outcomes now experienced with anti-VEGF monotherapy. The results from…
Patient Blinded by Wet ARMD Reads with iPad
Though legally blind from ARMD, my patient prefers the Apple iPad over the Kindle for various reasons.