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ESCRS congress 2008

Join OTE in booth BL10 at this year's ESCRS congress

Understanding the glaucoma continuum enables earlier detection and better monitoring of the disease, according to Dr Theodore Krupin.

The UK's medical reimbursement governing body, the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE), is to reimburse Lucentis (ranibizumab; Novartis) jointly with Novartis under a dose-capping scheme, reversing NICE's earlier, much derided, decision not to reimburse the drug.

Pfizer has announced that it does not plan to begin a Phase III trial of its experimental compound PF-03187207 for glaucoma and ocular hypertension in Asia.

Dr Frank Schaeffel & Dr Hakan Kaymak discuss a new device that measures tilt and decentration of the crystalline lens in both phakic eyes of healthy subjects.

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Dr Liliana Werner believes that it is the shape of an IOL edge, rather than the material from which it is made, that determines the likelihood of PCO.

The prevalence of vernal keratoconjunctivitis (VKC) in Europe is 3.2 per 10000 inhabitants, according to a study published in the August 2008 issue of the British Journal of Ophthalmology.

By considering geometry, tissue properties and histology, Dr Paul Ernest outlines qualities of a well-constructed wound.

The "multiburst" mode of bimanual microincision phacoemulsification machines is unsuitable for treating cataracts with a nuclear density of Grade 3 and above, according to study results published in the July 2008 issue of Clinical & Experimental Ophthalmology.

Promising early results indicate new phakic IOL could win the support of surgeons, according to Dr Camille Budo.

A review of the latest technologies to be used during micro-incision cataract surgery (MICS)

Augmenting combined phacoemulsification and deep sclerectomy (PDS) with intraoperative mitomycin C (MMC) is safe and likely to produce lower intraocular pressure (IOP) values than conducting PDS without MMC, according to the results of a study published in the August 2008 issue of Eye.

Many UK institutions are not compliant with current international guidelines on tonometer disinfection, according to a study published in the August 2008 issue of Eye.

The Phase II extension study of VEGF Trap-Eye for wet age-related macular degeneration (AMD) has demonstrated extremely favourable results in relation to the primary and key secondary endpoints at the 12-week time point.

Glaucoma patients are at an increased risk of developing ocular surface disease (OSD) in at least one eye, according to a study published in the August 2008 issue of the Journal of Glaucoma.

Control charts are an accurate way of measuring disparity in endophthalmitis following phacoemulsification, according to a study published online ahead of print by Eye.

Paediatric subjects who require frequent steroid therapy are at an increased risk of developing amblyopia due to cataracts, according to a study published online ahead of print by Pediatrics International, the official English language publication of the Japan Pediatric Society.

The protein/peptide patterns in the aqueous humour of primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) subjects differs significantly from that of control subjects, according to a study published in the August 2008 issue of Molecular Vision.

Defocus curve measurement of subjective amplitude of accommodation (AoA) is not affected by non-randomized letter sequences in presbyopic subjects, according to results of a study published in the August 2008 issue of the Journal of Cataract & Refractive Surgery.

Patients with glaucoma are not at an increased risk of developing systemic vascular disease, according to a study published in the August 2008 issue of the Acta Ophthalmologica.

The incidence of endophthalmitis is independent of whether prophylactic antibiotics are administered in conjunction with Avastin (bevacizumab) injections, according to results of a study published in the February 2008 issue of Spektrum der Augenheilkunde.

The Phase IIb clinical trial of I-vation TA (Merck & Co), an intravitreal injection incorporating triamcinolone acetonide (TA) for the treatment of diabetic macular oedema (DME), has been suspended.

Early unilateral cataract surgery in infants can produce good visual outcomes even if patching is discontinued, according to a study in the August 2008 issue of the Archives of Ophthalmology.

A genetic mutation that is associated with recessive cone-rod dystrophy in dachshunds may play the same role in humans, according to a study in the August 2008 issue of Genome Research.

IBI-20089, a drug candidate for the treatment of cystoid macular oedema (CME), has completed patient enrollment for initial clinical testing, according to the drug's manufacturer, Icon Bioscience Inc (IBI).

Three-day application of levofloxacin in the presence of polyvinyl alcohol-iodine or povidone iodine offers the best infection control in phaco patients, according to a study published in the May 2008 issue of the Japanese Journal of Ophthalmology.

Sufferers of retinitis pigmentosa (RP) have a lower concentration of vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGF-A) in the aqueous humour than non-sufferers, according to results of a study published in the August 2008 issue of Investigative Ophthalmology and Visual Science.

Implanting a multifocal intraocular lens (IOL) into the non-dominant eye is a promising treatment for presbyopic emmetropic patients, according to a study published in the February 2008 issue of Spektrum der Augenheilkunde.