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Volume 18, Number 16
17 May 2013



NJ enacts eye safety legislation
New Jersey governor Chris Christie has signed legislation ensuring continuity of therapy for people with ocular problems, according to the NJ Academy of Ophthalmology. This legislation will allow for the uninterrupted administration of necessary eye medication for patients who are in need of early refills. The House and Senate versions require insurance companies and health plans to provide coverage for the early refill of prescription eye drops at 70% of the predicted days of use. For example, a prescribed medication with an expected duration of 30 days of use could be refilled at 21 days instead of forcing the patient to wait until day 30. The legislation goes into effect in August.


Ophthalmologists inducted into National Inventors Hall of Fame
Two ophthalmologists who invented iris recognition scanners have been inducted into the United States Patent and Trademark Office’s National Inventors Hall of Fame. Leonard Flom, MD, and the late Aran Safir, MD, (1926-2007) were awarded their patent in 1987. The technology works by matching a scanned image of a user’s iris with a previously collected image in order to confirm an individual’s identity. Iris recognition devices are now widely used in a number of high-security sectors, ranging from government agencies such as the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to private companies.


NY Eye and Ear appoints new chair
New York Medical College (Valhalla, NY, USA) and the New York Eye and Ear Infirmary (New York, NY, USA) have appointed Paul A. Sidoti, MD, as chairman of the Department of Ophthalmology at the New York Eye and Ear Infirmary (NYEEI), an affiliate of New York Medical College, the college announced. Dr. Sidoti was previously the NYEEI ophthalmology residency program director and director of the comprehensive ophthalmology service at NYEEI.


U Alabama granted US$1.235 million from NEI
The National Eye Institute (Washington, DC) has granted the University of Alabama at Birmingham US$1.125 million to study the biomechanics of the eye and its role in the risk of developing glaucoma, the university said in a news release. Currently, university researchers are investigating whether age- and race-related differences in the biomechanics of the optic nerve head may contribute to this risk.


RESEARCH BRIEFS
  • Photorefractive keratectomy (PRK) for low degrees of myopia seemed safe and effective up to 19 years after surgery with conventional broad beam laser ablation, according to a Danish study. A.H. Vestergaard and colleagues retrospectively reviewed the charts of 160 eyes that received PRK at 5.0- to 6.5-mm optical zones; retreated eyes were excluded and only one eye of each patient was used to evaluate the long-term outcomes. Mean follow-up time was 16 years. Mean preoperative spherical equivalent was –4.84±2.95 D. At last follow-up examination, achieved refraction was –1.00±1.56 D (range: –10.75 to +1.00 D) from attempted refraction, and the change in mean refractive error from six months postoperatively was less than 1.00 D. Results from a subgroup of unilateral treated patients indicated that myopic progression was the main reason for the residual refractive error. Eyes with lower myopia had a much higher percentage within 1 D of attempted refraction than those with high myopia (72% vs. 47%, respectively). The study is published in the Journal of Refractive Surgery.
  • The total effective rate of acupuncture for amblyopia was significantly superior to conventional treatment, indicating that acupuncture is a promising treatment for amblyopia, according to a meta-analysis. Xingke Yan and colleagues systematically searched several databases to assess the evidence of efficacy and safety of acupuncture for amblyopia and analyze the current situation of its clinical setting. Fourteen trials involving 2,662 participants satisfied the minimum criteria for meta-analysis. The evidence showed that the total effective rate of treatment within the group receiving acupuncture was higher than that in the conventional group; there were statistically significant differences between groups (P<0.00001). However, because of the low number of randomized clinical trials and controlled clinical trials, “especially those of large sample size and multicenter randomized controlled studies that were quantitatively insufficient, we could not reach a completely affirmative conclusion until further studies of high quality are available,” the authors wrote in Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine.
  • Flap subluxation or folds requiring flap repositioning were significantly more frequent when a temporal hinge was used, according to one surgeon’s experience. V. Galvis and colleagues conducted a retrospective review of all consecutive eyes on which LASIK was performed by one single surgeon at an ophthalmological institute in Colombia between May 2005 and January 2011, looking for eyes that required flap repositioning. Demographic data, preoperative refraction, hinge position, and visual outcomes following flap repositioning were evaluated. A literature review on the subject was also conducted. They found 37 eyes on which flap repositioning was performed—12 eyes (32.4%) with subluxation and 25 eyes (67.6%) with folds; 21 eyes (56.8%) had a temporal hinge and 16 eyes (43.2%) had a superior hinge. With regard to the total number of eyes on which LASIK was performed (2,595), the overall incidence was 1.4%. Sixteen out of 2,093 eyes (0.8%) with a superior hinge and 21 out of 502 eyes (4.2%) with a temporal hinge had flap-related postoperative complications. A final best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) between 20/20 and 20/25 was found in 75.7% and a final BCVA between 20/30 and 20/40 was found in 21.6%. Only one eye had less than 20/40 (previous amblyopia). From the eight eyes with a BCVA between 20/30 and 20/40, three had residual microstriae and one had corneal haze. Six eyes (16.2 %) lost two or more lines of BCVA. The study is published online ahead of print in International Ophthalmology.
  • The combination of simulation and the new intensive training program is safer than the traditional program for cataract surgery training, according to a study published online ahead of print in Eye. J.M. Baxter and colleagues in the Intensive Cataract Training Study Group analyzed results from an intensive surgical training program implemented in August 2010 for year three ophthalmology trainees at a U.K. location. Trainees participated in extraocular surgery and 50 h of virtual reality cataract surgery simulator training over a two-year period. Their third year comprised six months of intensive phacoemulsification training in a tertiary center followed by a six-month period of consolidation in a district general hospital. At two years, three trainees had completed a full year of intensive training. In the first six months of training, Trainee 1 completed 156 cases, Trainee 2 completed 194 cases, and Trainee 3 completed 151 full cases as primary surgeons with an average rate of posterior capsule rupture (PCR) of 1%. At 12 months, Trainee 1 completed 291, Trainee 2 completed 318, and Trainee 3 completed 294 cases, with an average PCR rate of 0.66%.
NEW PRODUCT BRIEFS
  • Visiometrics (Barcelona, Spain) launched its next generation Optical Quality Analysis System, the HD Analyzer, in Europe. The system “allows for an objective analysis of optical quality” by providing a measure of light scatter. The HD Analyzer uses a punctual light source that is imaged on the retina. The size and shape of the light are analyzed by the system in order to determine the higher order aberrations and scattered light, the company said.


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