WAIKOLOA, Hawaii — Multiple options are available to treat myopic traction maculopathy, a speaker said here.“The pathogenesis of myopic traction maculopathy is not completely understood, but I think it’s a very important clue that this virtually always occurs within a posterior staphyloma,” Mark W. Johnson, MD, said at Retina 2013.
Category: News
Rate of endophthalmitis after cataract surgery remains low
WAIKOLOA, Hawaii — Endophthalmitis after cataract surgery is uncommon, but it does happen, according to a speaker, with reported rates varying from 0.03% to 0.15%.When looking back at a single institution’s experience over a 15-year period during which nearly 60,000 cataract surgeries were performed, only 16 cases (0.03%) were identified, OSN Retina/Vitreous Board Member Andrew A. Moshfeghi, MD, MBA, said at Hawaiian Eye 2013.
Intraocular lymphoma has many clinical implications
WAIKOLOA, Hawaii — The rarity of intraocular lymphoma causes concern and has many clinical implications for physicians, a speaker said here.According to Janet L. Davis, MD, the largest clinical implication of intraocular lymphoma is that the disease is rare.
iExaminer iPhone Adapter for Welch Allyn’s PanOptic Ophthalmoscope Cleared in U.S. (w/video)
Welch Allyn received 510(k) FDA clearance for the iExaminer attachment that connects the company’s PanOptic Ophthalmoscope to an iPhone for more fun and utility when doing fundus exams. The combined system allows clinicians to image the eye while saving the images for later review or to share with colleagues. Moreover, the system i (Read more...)
Ampio Pharma Says FDA Accepts IND For Diabetic Macular Edema Drug
Ampio Pharmaceuticals, Inc. said the FDA has accepted its IND for Optina, an oral drug used in the treatment of diabetic macular edema, or DME. Optina had been given 505-b-2 status by FDA in July, 2012. Drugs designated under this pathway can be approv…
The Complexity Of Gene Therapy For Congenital Blindness
Independent clinical trials, including one conducted at the Scheie Eye Institute at the Perelman School of Medicine, have reported safety and efficacy for Leber congenital amaurosis (LCA), a congenital form of blindness caused by mutations in a gene (R…
Low Incidence of Acute Anterior Uveitis After Intravenous Zoledronate
About one in 100 patients could develop acute anterior uveitis (AAU) in the week after receiving intravenous zoledronate, researchers from New Zealand report. “The study was the first to quantify the incidence of AAU following zoledronate infusion,” Dr…
Genetic testing identifies mutations known to cause inherited glaucoma
WAIKOLOA, Hawaii — Genetic testing is available to identify mutations in genes known to cause dominant and recessive forms of inherited glaucoma, a speaker said here.According to Janey L. Wiggs, MD, PhD, genetic testing for early-onset forms of glaucoma can provide valuable diagnostic and prognostic information.
Study: Pseudophakic dysphotopsia impedes function
WAIKOLOA, Hawaii — Researchers have found a correlation between pseudophakic dysphotopsia and impeded function, suggesting that the unwanted images are more than just an annoyance, according to a speaker here.Of 2,953 pseudophakic candidates considered for a visual quality study, only 70 met the criteria of having uncomplicated surgery, 20/20 results and no obvious ocular disease — no dry eye, no posterior capsule opacification (PCO), no blepharitis and no ocular complaint.
OCT may detect pre-perimetric changes in glaucomatous eyes
WAIKOLOA, Hawaii — Optic nerve head microcirculation is reduced in glaucoma patients, a speaker said here.“Conventionally, OCT is used to measure structure with micron precision, and that has been very useful in terms of characterizing the structure of the optic nerve head, the nerve fiber layer and the ganglion cell complex,” David Huang, MD, PhD, said at Hawaiian Eye 2013. “We developed a technique where we decomposed the OCT image into several spectral bands and analyzed them separately and recombined them to enhance a signal of flow.”
Individualized glaucoma surgery offers effective results
WAIKOLOA, Hawaii — Glaucoma surgery should be individualized to each patient’s specific needs and form of glaucoma, a speaker said here.According to Thomas W. Samuelson, MD, OSN Glaucoma Section Editor, reducing glaucoma surgical complications is now easier for physicians due to the availability of the correct surgical tools.
Goniotomy, trabeculotomy produce most successful results in pediatric glaucoma
WAIKOLOA, Hawaii — Goniotomy and trabeculotomy are the most effective surgical methods for infantile glaucoma, a speaker said here.“The first thing that’s most important in these surgeries is visualization,” Ken K. Nischal, MD, FRCOphth, said at Hawaiian Eye 2013. “It’s really important to understand that the goniolens you use will affect how easy or how difficult the procedure becomes.”
Diagnostic vitrectomy for uveitis indicated to obtain tissue for biopsy
WAIKOLOA, Hawaii — The need for a biopsy specimen in a patient with uveitis is an indication for diagnostic vitrectomy, a somewhat technique-based but mostly disease-based procedure, according to a speaker.“Figuring out the disease and what you need to do to control it is an essential part of the surgery, because the disease, in many cases, is going to be ongoing even after the surgical procedure,” Janet L. Davis, MD, told colleagues at Retina 2013.
Trypan blue staining aids in performing proliferative vitreoretinopathy surgery
WAIKOLOA, Hawaii — Despite advances in vitreoretinal surgical techniques, proliferative vitreoretinopathy remains an obstacle to successful surgical repair. “It’s actually responsible for 75% of all primary surgical failures,” Sophie J. Bakri, MD, said at Retina 2013.
Small globe size, high concentration of VEGF in vitreous may be risk factor for early AMD
HYDERABAD, India — Small globe size, possibly in correlation with a thicker vitreous and a higher concentration of VEGF, may be a major risk factor for early age-related macular degeneration, according to a speaker here. “In the Beijing Eye Study, hyperopia, short interscleral spur distance and small optic disc size, besides older age, were found to be the main risk factors associated with early AMD. This points to a small globe size, and we may speculate that the vitreous plays a role,” Jost B. Jonas, MD, said at the joint (Read more...)
Pavlov’s rats? Rodents trained to link rewards to visual cues
In experiments on rats outfitted with tiny goggles, scientists say they have learned that the brain’s initial vision processing center not only relays visual stimuli, but also can “learn” time intervals and create specifically timed expectations of fut…
Intravitreal Bevacizumab Injections for ROP
Are these promising findings sufficient to establish a new standard of treatment? Medscape Ophthalmology
Neuromyelitis Optica: Improving Diagnostic Accuracy
Findings of an epidemiologic study can improve the diagnostic accuracy in patients with neuroinflammatory disease. Medscape Neurology
Gene therapy does not slow or halt progression of cell loss in Leber congenital amaurosis
Independent clinical trials, including one conducted at the Scheie Eye Institute at the Perelman School of Medicine, have reported safety and efficacy for Leber congenital amaurosis (LCA), a congenital form of blindness caused by mutations in a gene (R…
The Complexity Of Gene Therapy For Congenital Blindness
Independent clinical trials, including one conducted at the Scheie Eye Institute at the Perelman School of Medicine, have reported safety and efficacy for Leber congenital amaurosis (LCA), a congenital form of blindness caused by mutations in a gene (…