Early adopters discuss how they are using femtosecond lasers for cataract surgery. Medscape Ophthalmology
Category: News
Central field loss creates driving hazard
People with central field loss experience a range of difficulties when driving that could pose a danger to themselves and pedestrians, researchers believe.
Modifying Existing Cells In The Eye May One Day Restore Vision
Doctors may one day treat some forms of blindness by altering the genetic program of the light-sensing cells of the eye, according to scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. Working in mice with retinitis pigmentosa, a dise…
FDA Approves Retinal Photo App for iPhone
Physicians who monitor patients for retinal pathology now have help from a new FDA-approved system: an adapter and an app that can record, store, print, and email fundus photos taken with the iPhone. FDA Approvals
Gene Therapy Restores Vision but Fails to Save Rods, Cones
The photoreceptor layer thins in eyes that are genetically treated for Leber congenital amaurosis 2, despite lasting improvements in vision. Medscape Medical News
Modern Management of Astigmatism
Are there any new and improved methods for managing astigmatism? Read this study to find out about the latest treatment strategies. International Ophthalmology Clinics
Photo of the Month: Ultrasound Eye Emergencies
What is the diagnosis for this 60-year-old man who presents to the ED with an eye emergency? American Academy of Emergency Medicine
Reprogramming eye cells that enable night vision may one day treat retinitis pigmentosa
Doctors may one day treat some forms of blindness by altering the genetic program of the light-sensing cells of the eye, according to scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.
Hydrus Microstent: A Promising New Approach
An ex vivo examination seeks to determine whether outflow facility can be increased with a microstent. Medscape Ophthalmology
Study explores regular aspirin use and potential risks for macular degeneration
This week, a study published in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine, explored the connection between regular aspirin use and the potential risks for developing the blinding eye disease, macular degeneration. As a result, there is increased confusion and…
FDA Clears iPhone App for Retinal Images
(MedPage Today) — An iPhone adapter with a companion app designed to make it easy to share high resolution images of the retinal nerve and fundus has received 510(k) clearance from the Federal Drug Administration.
Extramacular scanning shows promise in uveitic disorders
New optical coherence tomography scanning protocols offer enhanced characterization of patients with birdshot chorioretinopathy, UK researchers report.
Lab Notes: New Target for Sepsis Lung Injury
(MedPage Today) — A newly recognized step in development of sepsis-induced lung injury looks like a promising therapeutic target, researchers suggested. Also this week: the need for light in utero.
Corneal Collagen Cross-Linking May Help With Keratoconus
Corneal collagen cross-linking (CXL) helps control keratoconus progression in all age groups, but it works best in adults under 40, new data suggest. The procedure involves a photo-oxidative reaction, catalyzed by riboflavin, that stiffens the cornea. …
Understanding How Eye Cells Become Damaged Could Help Prevent Blindness
Light-sensing cells in the eye rely on their outer segment to convert light into neural signals that allow us to see. But because of its unique cylindrical shape, the outer segment is prone to breakage, which can cause blindness in humans. A study publ…
Bandage contact lenses under development as drug delivery vehicles
WAIKOLOA, Hawaii — Bandage contact lenses, which provide pain relief and comfort from exposed nerve endings that occur with corneal maladies such as corneal abrasions from corneal dystrophies, neurotrophic keratopathy, bullous keratopathy and postsurgical states, may also be developed into drug delivery vehicles, a speaker said here. “The motivating factor for this development is that the eye, the cornea in particular, has a very strong bioprotective mechanism. It allows low permeability of medicine to get into the eye. We know that the tear fluid that drains into the nasal cavity (Read more...)
Submacular hemorrhages may be managed with anti-VEGF
WAIKOLOA, Hawaii — Intravitreal injections may successfully help manage submacular hemorrhages, according to a speaker here.“We know that submacular hemorrhages have a significant variability in their clinical course,” Mark W. Johnson, MD, said at Retina 2013. “But it does seem that poor prognostic factors include thick blood under the fovea and the presence of AMD. And we know that when an eye has both of these factors, the final visual outcome if you don’t treat these is rarely better than 20/200.”
Pathoanatomy of trauma-induced ocular injuries aids in diagnosis
WAIKOLOA, Hawaii — Ocular trauma has multiple presentations, a speaker said here.“Understanding the pathoanatomy of trauma-induced injuries aids in diagnosis,” Suber Huang, MD, said at Retina 2013. “The first look at the injury is often the best and most helpful.”
Recognizing conjunctival chalasis avoids dry eye misdiagnosis
WAIKOLOA, Hawaii — Recognizing conjunctival chalasis depends on listening to the patient’s symptoms and investigating any report of a specific site of discomfort or foreign body sensation, a speaker said.“Conjunctival chalasis occurs when there is a degeneration of Tenon’s fascia that ordinarily tethers the bulbar conjunctiva to the globe,” OSN Cataract Surgery Section Editor John A. Hovanesian, MD, FACS, said at Hawaiian Eye 2013. “This allows stretching and redundancy of the conjunctiva, which bunches up at the inferior lid margin, and sometimes elsewhere, and causes a foreign body sensation especially when (Read more...)
DMEK minimizes drawbacks of PK
WAIKOLOA, Hawaii — Endothelial keratoplasty procedures only replace the part of the cornea that is dysfunctional, making them potentially safer and yielding better visual results compared with penetrating keratoplasty, a speaker said here.“As we get more experience, we are becoming more exact in the way that we do the tissue replacement,” Francis W. Price Jr., MD, said at Hawaiian Eye 2013.