News

Atlanta—Arterial dissection can be overlooked in a patient who presents to an ophthalmologist with acute orbital or periorbital pain. Val?rie Biousse, MD, described the appropriate steps to take to ensure an accurate diagnosis and avoid a subsequent cerebral insult.

Stryker, OH—An old "sap" lives in northwest Ohio—or better yet, an old tree full of sap. As a hobby, David Brounley, MD, enjoys producing maple syrup on his 55-acre property and sharing the sweet concoction with his wife and other loved ones.

About one out of every six people had some anxiety that appeared to be associated with their retinal disease.

Rochester, NY—Differentiating between migraine and transient ischemic attack at first may appear daunting, but a careful history-taking with attention to the details of the particular attack should help sort things out.

Austin, TX—Volume loss is an important aspect of post-enucleation socket syndrome (PESS), resulting from the inability of the prosthetic orbital implant to replace all of the volume lost from an enucleated or eviscerated socket. Fortunately, there are a number of effective techniques for volume augmentation in PESS, said John Shore, MD, FACS, who is in practice with Texas Oculoplastic Consultants, Austin, TX.

Selective laser trabeculoplasty (SLT) can be used at a variety of intervention points in the treatment of glaucoma. The effect varies, depending on the treatment history of the patient.

Dorado Beach, Puerto Rico—Recognizing that non-compliance and non-adherence are common among patients being treated with medical therapy for glaucoma, clinicians need to determine if medication is being used as prescribed, and if not, the reasons why, said Marshall N. Cyrlin, MD, at the Current Concepts in Ophthalmology meeting, sponsored by Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and Ophthalmology Times.

St. Louis—The main lesson to be learned from the Ocular Hypertension Treatment Study (OHTS) is that not every patient with ocular hypertension needs to be treated, according to Michael A. Kass, MD, a professor in the department of ophthalmology and visual sciences at Washington University in St. Louis, and chairman of the groundbreaking large-scale study.

New approaches to early detection, diagnosis, and management are essential to deal with the public health problem of glaucoma, the leading cause of blindness in the United States. Speakers at a continuing education symposium held during the American Academy of Ophthalmology meeting discussed topics such as the glaucoma continuum, application of the results of large clinical trials, global risk assessment principles, and pharmacotherapy.

Cardiovascular medicine has provided a road map that ophthalmology can follow in risk assessment.

New York—Laser presbyopia reversal (LAPR) is showing significant promise and patient satisfaction based on 12-month follow-up results from a U.S. phase II clinical trial, said Sandra C. Belmont, MD.

Wavefront-guided LASIK yields more accurate corrections and better quality of vision compared with conventional LASIK regardless of which laser system is used, said Robert K. Maloney, MD, at the American Academy of Ophthalmology refractive surgery subspecialty day meeting in New Orleans.

Each of the lasers can cut to depths up to 400 ?m and can create flaps with a minimum thickness of 90 ?m.

Atlanta—Interim study analyses from a multicenter, North American trial indicate LASIK for treatment of hyperopia with or without astigmatism using the Nidek EC-5000 excimer laser is associated with consistently good safety and efficacy outcomes, reported George O. Waring III, MD, the medical monitor for the study.

Conductive keratoplasty (CK) (NearVision, Refractec Inc.) improves near vision in presbyopic eyes and in presbyopic eyes that had undergone an excimer laser procedure.

San Francisco—A number of studies have suggested an increased rate of endophthalmitis with clear cornea surgery compared with scleral tunnel surgery, and potential causes of this increase include incision location, incision architecture and changes in antibiotic prophylaxis, according to David G. Hwang, MD.

Dorado Beach, Puerto Rico—Bimanual microincision phacoemulsification is ready for prime time and expected to have an even brighter future, according to William W. Culbertson, MD, at the Current Concepts in Ophthalmology meeting.

The cartridge allows easy IOL loading, visualization of progression, and implantation through an unenlarged incision.

For the past few years, the lure of ever smaller incisions has enticed cataract surgeons who perform temporal, clear corneal phacoemulsification with topical anesthesia. With a variety of shooters, we have been placing IOLs through 2.5- to 2.8-mm incisions and we feel comfortable with our self-sealing wounds and good results. Still, as many of us recall with previous transitions in our cataract surgery development, taking on a new skill requires stepping out of one's comfort zone to take advantage of even better technology. Such has been the situation with bimanual phacoemulsification.

Contrast sensitivity testing has long been a technology that clinicians know has value, but the interpretation and implementation of the results were not clear. A number of recent scientific publications and new FDA standards have paved the way for contrast sensitivity to be more easily incorporated into routine clinical practice. This article traces the background of contrast sensitivity testing and some of the exciting developments related to its use in FDA clinical trials, for the management of "quality of vision," and for the monitoring and treatment of disease.

The 2005 keynote session, to be held in the Grand Floridian D in the convention center on Sunday, May 1, from 5:15 to 7:15 p.m., will feature two distinguished speakers: NIH Director Elias A. Zerhouni, MD, who will speak on "NIH: Advancing science in the 21st century," and 2003 Nobel Laureate Peter Agre, MD, who will deliver a address titled "Aquaporin water channels—From atomic structure to clinical medicine."

Fort Lauderdale, FL—The theme of this year's annual meeting of the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) is "Global Networking." More than 9,000 scientists will be in attendance, and there will be in excess of 5,500 paper and poster presentations, more than 50 special events and presentations, and more than 100 exhibitors from which to choose. The conference begins Sunday, May 1, and wraps up on Thursday, May 5.

San Diego—Thomas A. George has joined Ophthonix Inc. as its chief financial officer. George, a CPA with more than 27 years of financial management experience, will oversee all financial controls, organization, and relationships.

Evry, France—Novagali Pharma, a drug delivery specialty company using cationic emulsions to develop age-related macular degeneration treatments, has hired Florence Barouki-Binlich, MD, as its vice president for development and medical affairs.

East Hanover, NJ—Novartis Ophthalmics is offering its Visudyne Access Network to help patients with age-related macular degeneration (AMD) get information about their disease.

Springfield, IL—Illinois ophthalmologists could face 3 years in prison under a proposed state law if they implant "eye jewelry" in a patient.

Seattle, WA—Visient Therapeutics Inc. has enrolled its first patient in a new phase I clinical trial to evaluate Light Infusion Technology (Litx) in patients with advanced age-related macular degeneration (AMD). The patient was treated by Gary Edd Fish, MD, at Texas Retina Associates in Dallas.

Fairfax, VA—The American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery (ASCRS) 's Clinical Committees are ready to publish the first in a series of white papers on ophthalmic practice and clinical issues.

S?Paulo, Brazil—Ophthalmologists from all over the world are being called together for the first World Ophthalmology Congress.

Walter J. Stark, MD, will present the 16th Wilmer Memorial Lecture, which will highlight the contributions made in cataract surgery.