News

IVAX Corp. joins the growing number of drug manufacturers to market its version of brimonidine tartrate ophthalmic solution 0.2%.

The FDA has given 510(k) clearance to IRIDEX Corp.'s solid-state IRIS Medical IQ 810 infrared diode laser photocoagulator for the treatment of retinal disorders and glaucoma.

Heidelberg Engineering has received FDA clearance for its Rostock Cornea Module, a key component of its confocal laser microscope.

East Baltimore, MD-The new Walter J. Stark, MD, and Margaret C. Mosher Center for Cataract and Corneal Disease at Johns Hopkins' Wilmer Eye Institute will focus on research, evaluation, and management of corneal and external eye diseases, especially cataracts.

Marshfield Hills, MA-FCI Ophthalmics has won distribution rights for the Mackool Cataract Support System.

Sterling, VA-WaveLight's chief executive officer said the company has achieved its greatest accomplishment to date by capturing 20% of all new refractive laser sales in the United States during the last 12 months with its Allegretto Wave.

Santa Barbara, CA-Miravant Medical Technologies has picked Photrex as the brand name for its tin ethyl etiopurpurin (SnET2) drug being developed for photodynamic therapy in the treatment of wet AMD.

Aliso Viejo, CA-The FDA has given Eyeonics Inc. approval to market its Crystalens accommodating IOL in quarter-diopter steps. The approval makes eyeonics the first U.S. company to launch 0.25-D IOLs, the company said. The lenses were made available Nov. 1 to credentialed Crystalens surgeons.

New York-Stuart L. Fine, MD, chairman of the department of ophthalmology at the University of Pennsylvania Health System and director of the Scheie Eye Institute, Philadelphia, has won the 2004 Lighthouse International Pisart Vision Award.

Fountain Hills, AZ-Officials with Coronado Industries Inc., which makes proprietary devices for use in pneumatic trabeculoplasty (PNT), are planning to negotiate distribution rights for the United States market following what they call a successful run at the American Academy of Ophthalmology meeting in New Orleans in October.

Duluth, GA-Norwood EyeCare, a subsidiary of Melbourne, Australia-based Norwood Abbey, has opened its North American headquarters outside of Atlanta in an area vacated by CIBA Vision's surgical business and with the talents of one of that company's senior executives.

Fremont, CA-Nine months into its hyperopia clinical study, Nidek has analyzed 248 of the 300 eyes to be studied for the treatment of hyperopia and hyperopic astigmatism.

New Orleans-Awareness of strategies for preventing post-LASIK dry eye are important because if it occurs, it can lead to unhappy patients and be challenging to treat, said Stephen C. Pflugfelder, MD, in a keynote address during the American Academy of Ophthalmology's refractive surgery subspecialty day.

Although the news of Advanced Medical Optics Inc. (AMO) buying VISX caught many on Wall Street off guard, several analysts are saying the deal makes sense in retrospect.

Irvine, CA-IntraLase Corp. glided into the public realm in early October with a successful initial public offering (IPO) at the top of its indicated range, selling nearly 7.3 million shares and raising $86.6 million.

Dublin, CA-The acquisition of San Diego-based Laser Diagnostic Technologies Inc. (LDT) by global device manufacturer and distributor Carl Zeiss Meditec Inc. will give greater exposure to the former company's single product-a novel technology for detecting glaucoma.

Sylmar, CA-Second Sight Medical Prod-ucts Inc. (SSMP) has created a partnership with the Department of Energy (DOE) Artificial Retina Project under a cooperative research and development agree-ment.

San Francisco-EyeCare America, the public service program of the Foundation of the American Academy of Ophthalmology (FAAO), received a $1.125 million grant from Alcon Laboratories Inc., Fort Worth, TX.

For the ophthalmologist considering diversification by setting up an in-house lens fabrication lab, the benefits are numerous: the ability to trim costs, speed up delivery time of glasses, and offer better quality control. Perhaps the two most compelling reasons for doing in-house work are patient satisfaction and additional profits.

New Orleans-The C-01-99 phase III clinical trial of anecortave acetate for depot suspension (Retaane, Alcon Laboratories Inc.) found that the drug did not meet the primary endpoint of non-inferiority to verteporfin (Visudyne, Novartis Ophthalmics and QLT Inc.) in the treatment of neovascular age-related macular degeneration (AMD).

New Orleans-The VEGF (vascular endothelial growth factor) Inhibition Study in Ocular Neovascularization (VISION), a phase III appraisal of three doses of pegaptanib sodium injection (Macugen, Eyetech Pharmaceuticals), found that the 0.3-mg dose of the drug improves visual outcomes in patients with age-related macular degeneration (AMD) compared with a sham procedure and usual care (photodynamic therapy [PDT]).

New Orleans-Two phase III trials, one phase II trial, and one extension trial are under way for anti-VEGF agent, ranibizumab (Lucentis, Genentech). The extension trial indicates that ranibizumab provides a long-term benefit to patients and that it is well tolerated, according to Jeffrey S. Heier, MD, who described the studies during the retina subspecialty day here at the American Academy of Ophthalmology annual meeting.

Baltimore-Intraocular implantation of fluocinolone acetonide (Retisert, Bausch & Lomb) has resulted in significant decreases in the recurrence rate of non-infectious posterior segment uveitis and improvements in visual acuity (VA), it was an-nounced at the annual meeting of the Retina Society here.

Reviewing the evidence for photodynamic therapy (PDT) as a vital tool in the treatment of predominantly classic subfoveal choroidal neovascularization (CNV) due to age-related macular degeneration (AMD), Neil M. Bressler, MD, suggested that it was the best currently available treatment despite limitations, while Jack O. Sipperley, MD, questioned whether PDT was cost-effective.

The best outcomes were achieved in patients with PIC, toxoplasmosis, Stargardt's disease, and birdshot choroidopathy, and the results were better than expected in eyes with angioid streaks.

Sylmar, CA-Second Sight Medical Prod-ucts Inc. (SSMP) has created a partnership with the Department of Energy (DOE) Artificial Retina Project under a cooperative research and development agree-ment.

Retina special report

Animal models are useful tools for research into the etiology, progression, and treatment of disease. Several animal models have been developed to mimic various features of ophthalmic angiogenesis and many of these models have been used to assess the efficacy and safety of treatment regimens prior to clinical use, as well as to test formulations of drugs and modes of administration.

There are many locations within the eye that an IOL can be placed. Most often, lenses are placed in the bag, but they may be placed in the sulcus, sewn into the posterior chamber, or sewn into or clipped onto the iris. Another location can be in the anterior chamber. Let's look at the evolution of anterior chamber IOLs (AC IOLs) in this month's column.

Nashville, TN-GlazMed International Inc., a non-profit Nashville-based organization dedicated to the dissemination of medical knowledge, technology, and information, announces a collaboration between the United States and Russia-the establishment of the Inter-Regional Association of Ophthalmology.