News

Barranquilla, Colombia-The Carriazo-Pendular microkeratome (Schwind Eye-Tech Solutions) is a highly versatile microkeratome that can be used with great safety to produce high-quality flaps for LASIK and perhaps even for LASEK procedures, said Cesar Carriazo, MD.

The Centurion SES EpiEdge epikeratome (CIBA Vision) is a simple instru-ment to use that safely and reliably separates the epithelium from the stroma via mechanical forces to create an intact epithelial sheet in eyes undergoing Epi-LASIK, said Ioannis G. Pallikaris, MD, PhD, who invented Epi-LASIK and participated in the development of the epikeratome.

The HydroKeratome Waterjet System (Visijet Inc.), the first microkeratome that creates a LASIK flap using a continuous beam of ultra-high-pressure water instead of a metal blade, debuted at the 2003 annual meeting of the American Academy of Ophthalmology in Anaheim.

Washington, DC-A bill recently introduced in the House of Representatives would provide $75 million in grants to states for eye exams and treatment for uninsured children.

San Francisco-The American Academy of Ophthalmic Executives (AAOE) and the Joint Commission on Allied Health Personnel in Ophthalmology (JCAHPO) will jointly develop and offer the ophthalmic coding specialist examination and title.

New York-Tim Sear, Alcon Inc.'s chairman, president, and chief executive officer, rang the closing bell of the New York Stock Exchange at 4 p.m. Dec. 4 to celebrate the company's dramatic rise in stock price since its initial public offering.

Irvine, CA-Allergan plans to launch epinastine (Elestat), an ophthalmic antihistamine it has licensed for ophthalmic uses, during the first quarter of 2004.

Fremont, CA-Nidek is introducing a new combination pachymeter and A-scan ultrasound unit, and what it is calling the industry's smallest green laser photocoagulator to the United States market. The products, which were launched at the American Academy of Ophthalmology annual meeting, both recently received FDA approval for commercial sales and marketing.

Des Plaines, IL-European regulatory officials have cleared the use of Addition Technology Inc.'s micro-thin prescription inserts (Intacs) for the treatment of keratoconus.

New York-Pfizer Inc. is launching a new business group to combine its products with those gained with the April acquisition of Pharmacia Corp.

Santa Ana, CA-Advanced Medical Optics (AMO) is claiming, in a complaint filed in federal court, that Alcon's Infiniti and Series 20000 Legacy phacoemulsification systems infringe AMO patents for advanced fluidics technologies in the removal of cataracts.

Marco Island, FL-The American College of Eye Surgeons (ACES) andthe Society for Excellence in Eyecare (SEE), along with Ophthalmology Times,will join for the first time to present the SEE Island/Quality Surgery XVIIISeminar. The conference, to be held Feb. 28 to March 3 at the recently renovatedMarco Island Marriott Resort, will merge the best faculty and presentationsfrom the two ophthalmic societies.

Physicians need to have a firm understanding of the resource-based relative value scale (RBRVS) because this scale assigns valuation for billions of dollars worth of procedures and services that physicians provide annually. In addition, it directly has an impact on how the money will be apportioned.

Antwerp, Belgium-Patients who have received the CrystaLens AT-45 accommodating IOL (eyeonics, formerly C&C Vision, Aliso Viejo, CA) after cataract extraction achieve very good distance and intermediate vision as well as improvements in their near vision, according to Erik L. Mertens, MD, FEBO, director and ophthalmic surgeon at Antwerp Eye Center, Antwerp, Belgium.

The Allegretto excimer laser (WaveLight Laser Technologie, Erlangen, Germany) improves refractive predictability and enhances the outcome of LASIK, based on the results of a recently completed trial of the laser system in patients with myopia and myopic astigmatism, said Karl G. Stonecipher, MD.

Atlanta-LASIK based on preoperative aberrometry data reduces the amount of postoperative halo and creates a sharper retinal image compared with conventional LASIK treatment, according to results of a retrospective study conducted at Emory Vision in Atlanta.

Ottawa-Results from the first cohort of hyperopic patients treated with wavefront-guided LASIK using the CustomVue System (VISX) show excellent safety, predictability, and stability with unparalleled vision outcomes, reported W. Bruce Jackson, MD.

Developments in refractive surgery are interdependent and encompass diagnostics, surgical technology, and supportive therapeutics, all of which have a common goal: emmetropia. A number of advances have grabbed the attention of refractive surgeons over the past year, such as improvements in lasers, materials, and refinements in indications for certain refractive procedures. Wavefront technology is still taking center stage.

Portland, OR-The addition of the burst mode to the Millennium Phacoemulsification System (Bausch & Lomb, Rochester, NY) is a boon to the system, according to a recent study. Using the burst mode during cataract surgery reduces the amount of energy that enters the eye, which allows for a less invasive procedure and improved visual outcomes.

Munich, Germany-The aspheric Z9000 IOL (Tecnis, Pfizer) is associated with better mesopic contrast sensitivity relative to conventional IOLs, but does not maintain its superiority to spherical implants when testing is performed under mesopic conditions with glare, said Mike P. Holzer, MD, at the European Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgeons annual meeting.

Although advanced nuclear sclerotic cataracts are seen with less frequency within the average U.S. practice, the rock-hard cataract does occasionally present in our examining lane and on the operating table. These dense lenses can be some of our most difficult cases due to numerous intrinsic challenges including poor visibility, fibrotic or fragile anterior capsules, large lens size, adherent cortical capsular connections, a thin or deficient epinucleus, and tenacious leathery lens fibers. Special considerations should allow the surgeon to approach these advanced cataracts with more confidence and decrease the incidence of serious intraoperative complications.

Tokyo-A new approach to phacoemulsification incorporating prechopping and the Legacy (Alcon) system with its NeoSonix handpiece (Alcon) equipped with a specially designed ultrasound tip (Akahoshi tip) and using the AdvanTec short burst mode allows removal of even hard cataracts with a minimum of ultrasound energy, said Takayuki Akahoshi, MD.

Leaders in cataract surgery agree the past year has been a time of significant developments in both technique and technology.

Santa Monica, CA-A temporal hinge LASIK flap technique significantly increases the area of treatable corneal stromal bed for a given flap diameter compared with a superior hinge flap and offers a number of other advantages, including enabling retention of a broad hinge, said Kerry K. Assil, MD.

Marblehead, MA-As the year draws to a close, U.S. ophthalmologists are taking an assessment of where things stand in their practices and in the world around them. Many are finding comfort in the knowledge that the ophthalmic market continues to hold its own in an uncertain economic climate, said Kenneth P. Taylor in an independent analysis of the vision-care sector.

Rochester, NY-Bausch &Lomb is looking to the future and the past as it celebrates the FDA acceptance of a new drug application for its new anti-inflammatory/antibiotic combination product while marking the company's 150 years in business.

As the growth of MD dispensing has been steadily increasing within the past few years, the American Association of Dispensing Ophthalmologists Inc. (AADO) has seen a parallel rise in the growth of the organization.

Boston-A recent study found that optical coherence tomography (OCT) seems to be more sensitive to changes in the retinal nerve fiber layer over time compared with standard visual field testing in patients with glaucoma, according to Gadi Wollstein, MD.

Parma, Italy-YAG laser iridotomy has a protective effect in patients with pigment dispersion syndrome (PDS) who are at high risk of developing pigmentary glaucoma, according to the results of a 10-year follow-up study from the Institute of Ophthalmology in Parma, Italy.

Cincinnati, OH-Early results from an FDA clinical trial suggest that the toric implantable contact lens (ICL, STAAR Surgical) is extremely promising as a safe and effective alternative to LASIK for the correction of myopia with astigmatism, reported David Schneider, MD.