LinkOPH

It has been a busy 2 weeks in the clinic since I wrote my last commentary on dry eye syndrome, focusing on the screening diagnostics I use in my practice. First, a few more thoughts on the diagnosis side, and then on to therapy. I will compare what I do today vs. what I did in the past and focus on what I am really doing in my clinical practice today.In disclosure, I have practiced as a consultative corneal specialist for 38 years, so I may see a different mix of patients than other clinicians, and I consult widely in the field of ocular surface disease, including with companies that manufacture some of the products I will mention and/or their competitors. One could write a several hundred page book on the topic of ocular surface disease, and my comments are limited to a few paragraphs, so many topics are left out. The focus is on the horses, not the zebras. I have seen a few cases of ligneous conjunctivitis in my career and have had more ocular pemphigoid to treat than some, but these rarer cases are not the topic of today’s commentary.

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A 74-year-old man was referred to the retina service at Lahey Hospital and Medical Center by an outside ophthalmologist with progressive decreased vision in the left eye for 2 months. Cataract surgery was performed 2 days before presentation.The patien…

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When teaching my ophthalmology residents, I find that going through an entire case from initial consultation to postoperative care is a great way for them to learn how to approach a complex cataract case. This method requires them to put together a wid…

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Anti-VEGF injections may improve visual outcomes in patients with diabetic macular edema who have vitreomacular adhesions, according to a substudy of READ-3.“VMA does not adversely influence treatment outcomes and therefore should not preclude patients with DME from receiving treatment with anti-VEGF agents,” study author Yasir J. Sepah, MBBS, told Ocular Surgery News.

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LASIK with unique femtosecond laser flap creation settings improved vision with no serious complications in patients who had previously undergone radial keratotomy, according to a study.The settings helped surgeons avoid intraoperative and postoperativ…

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Happy New Year! How were your holidays? Did your team win its bowl game? How was New Year’s Eve? Did you manage to stay up late enough to see the ball drop? Now, here’s the kicker: How many of your new year’s resolutions have you already blown?I definitely feel you on that last one. So much so that I am going to take an entirely different approach this year and not make any traditional resolutions. Instead I am going to begin my year, both professionally and personally, with a listing of some of the wonderful people and things for which I am thankful. Using that list, I plan to make a single, solitary resolution. Each time things get sticky or tough, every time life throws me a curveball, the first thing I will do is refer back to that list so that whatever reaction I have to a setback is launched from a place of gratitude.

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