Julia Talsma

Las Vegas-The numbers speak for themselves. Today, there are between 4,500 and 5,000 certified ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs) in the United States-outpacing the number of hospitals offering outpatient surgical procedures. More ASCs are expected to sprout up around the country at a rate of about 8% per year.

Stanford, CA-Refractive surgeons performing conductive keratoplasty (CK, Refractec) for correction of mild to moderate hyperopia can expect good visual results initially, but they should warn patients that CK effects might not be permanent, explained Jason S. Ehrlich, MD, PhD.

Las Vegas-Patients with subfoveal cho-roidal neovascularization (CNV) who received monthly injections of ranibizumab (Lucentis, Genentech) for 3 months and quarterly thereafter fared better than those patients receiving sham treatment in the PIER study. Vision in patients receiving the quarterly injections in this trial was not as good as that in patients who received monthly doses of ranibizumab for the duration of the MARINA and ANCHOR studies, however, reported Peter K. Kaiser, MD.

London-Conductive keratoplasty (CK, Refractec), an effective treatment for the correction of hyperopia or presbyopia, might be a useful procedure for cataract patients with residual astigmatism, according to Tejas D. Shah, MD, who spoke at the XXIV Congress of the European Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgeons.

Las Vegas-Post-LASIK dry eye is a common problem even in patients with no preoperative evidence of dry eye. In fact, the prevalence of dry eye in the adult population has been reported to be as high as 70% (under certain conditions). Therefore, all LASIK candidates should be treated as if they might develop the condition, according to a refractive surgery expert.

Baltimore-Surgical results for patients requesting a blepharoplasty can be improved if the surgeon carefully examines individuals for coexisting diagnoses, pre-existing asymmetries, brow position, and lower eyelid malposition, explained Shannath L. Merbs, MD, PhD, FACS.

Staying at one of the hotel resorts provides easy access to Las Vegas night life.

San Diego-With the availability of foldable IOLs able to correct up to -31 D of spherical error, refractive lens exchange (RLE) for high myopia is now an option for patients hoping to achieve a good refractive outcome. However, patients will need to be monitored long term for potential complications, such as retinal detachments and posterior capsular opacification (PCO), explained Thomas Kohnen, MD, who spoke during the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery annual meeting.

Difference in quality of vision seen in first week after LASEK procedure.

Simple procedure helps reduce higher-order aberrations, allowing patients to see better

Buenos Aires, Argentina-Contrast sensitivity, a more sensitive and accurate measure of functional vision than Snellen visual acuity, has been shown to improve after both LASIK and LASEK procedures in patients with low-to-moderate myopia, according to Carlos Argento, MD, and Mar?aJos? Cosentino, MD.

San Francisco-Femtosecond laser technology (Intralase FS laser, IntraLase Corp.) provides LASIK surgeons a more precise, predictable method for creating a corneal flap than the conventional mechanical microkeratomes, explained two LASIK experts at the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery annual meeting.

San Francisco-Several studies have described LASEK as a good substitute for PRK or LASIK, but is it truly a better surgical option?

San Francisco-Could phakic IOLs some day emerge as the dominant refractive surgical approach, especially considering the past problems with early innovations?

San Francisco-Patient noncompliance can be overcome with the delivery of medication to the eye with intraocular time-release systems, according to James P. Gills, MD, who spoke during the Innovator's Session at the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery annual meeting.

San Francisco-Corneal topography and wavefront data are key to assessing the internal aberrations of the eye accurately and are essential for surgeons to perform customized ablations accurately, said Stephen D. Klyce, PhD, who spoke during the Innovator's Session at the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery annual meeting.

San Francisco-Refractive surgery continues to evolve as researchers strive to achieve better quality of vision for patients, said Ioannis G. Pallikaris, MD, PhD, the first ophthalmologist to deliver the Charles D. Kelman Innovator's Lecture at the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery annual meeting.

San Francisco-Creativity is the key to innovation and can best be described by the three "I"s-inspiration, insight, and intuition-according to Charles D. Kelman, MD.

San Francisco-With the presbyopic population reaching 51% (141 million) in the United States, the interest in surgical correction of presbyopia will likely take off as the baby boomers look for alternatives to glasses, according to Richard L. Lindstrom, MD, who delivered the Binkhorst Lecture during the opening session of the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery annual meeting.

San Francisco-At 1-year follow-up, the majority of patients who received the hyperopic Implantable Contact Lens (ICL, STAAR Surgical, Monrovia, CA) for correction of moderate to high hyperopia were satisfied with an uncorrected visual acuity (UCVA) of at least 20/40 or better, noted Paul J. Dougherty, MD, who spoke during the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery Annual Meeting.

San Francisco-Confocal microscopy is an excellent supplement to the slit-lamp examination for identifying suspected pathology by viewing specific layers of the anterior segment, according to Herbert E. Kaufman, MD, who spoke during the Innovator's Session at the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery Annual Meeting.

Salt Lake City-Patients with pseudoexfoliation who have undergone cataract surgery are at risk for spontaneous IOL dislocation years after the procedure, according to Alan S. Crandall, MD.

San Francisco-LASIK continues to be the predominant refractive procedure for treating patients with refractive errors ranging from +3 to -9 to -10 D, according to Richard J. Duffey, MD, who presented the results of the 2002 ASCRS survey of U.S. trends in refractive sur-gery.

Columbia, MO-Neuroretinitis may be linked to multiple sclerosis in some patients, according to the results of a small case series. Further study, however, is warranted, reported Kyle Williams, MD.

Orlando-Protecting patients' privacy has always been a top priority for physicians and staff alike, but now it is mandatory. By April 14, your practice must have taken the necessary steps to comply with Title II of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) of 1996, which pertains to privacy of health data, according to a panel of experts who spoke during the American Academy of Ophthalmology annual meeting.

Orlando-Recent advances in macular surgery are now making it possible to treat the various disorders associated with pathologic myopia, according to Yasuo Tano, MD, who delivered the Edward Jackson Memorial Lecture during the opening session of the American Academy of Ophthalmology annual meeting.

Orlando-Ophthalmologists should be aware of the risks to the ocular surface associated with long-term use of glaucoma medications, according to Robert J. Noecker, MD, MBA, who also spoke at the Cornea Health symposium during the American Academy of Ophthalmology annual meeting.

Orlando-Pay attention to the ocular surface before undertaking a cataract or refractive procedure, advised John D. Sheppard, MD, who outlined strategies in his practice for avoiding surgical complications at the Cornea Health symposium held during the American Academy of Ophthalmology annual meeting.

Durham, NC-Sustained-release drug delivery systems are a promising new approach for treating posterior segment diseases, according to Glenn J. Jaffe, MD.

Philadelphia-Consumers considering LASIK can now make informed decisions about whether this refractive procedure is appropriate for them with the help of new guidelines recently released during the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery (ASCRS) annual meeting.