News

The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare in Japan has approved Alcon's treatment for glaucoma and ocular hypertension, TRAVATANZ 0.004%.

A "strong association" has been discovered between use of AMO''s Complete MoisturePlus Multi-Purpose Solution and an increased risk of Acanthamoeba keratitis (AK).

The National Institute for health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) in England is to delay issuing guidance on Lucentis and Macugen after an unprecedented patient outcry over its decision to block access to them.

Carl Zeiss Meditec AG and the Ilmenau University, Germany, have formed a partnership to open a new ophthalmic laboratory at the Institut für Biomedizinische Technik und Informatik in Germany.

ORBIS International has been awarded a $5,000,000 grant from American International Group (AIG) to ensure the growth of its long-term blindness prevention programmes in the developing world.

The World Glaucoma Association has announced consensus findings that further determine the role of intraocular pressure (IOP) in glaucoma.

The FDA has granted fast track designation to LX211, a next generation calcineurin inhibitor developed by Lux Biosciences.

The Ex-PRESS implant appears to be as effective as trabeculectomy, furthermore it reduces postoperative compliance issues and seems to be safer, according to a paper presented at this year's World Glaucoma Congress held in Singapore.

The EMEA committee for Orphan Medicinal Products has adopted a positive opinion on orphan medicinal product designation for Isotechnika's ISA247, a treatment for chronic, non-infectious uveitis.

Topcon Medical Systems has launched a new Colour Balance Tool for its Imagenet digital imaging software.

Israeli firm IOPtima has completed development of its novel laser-based therapy for the treatment of glaucoma, OT134.

Microsurgical lab testing is a reliable method for assessing ophthalmology resident's surgical skills.

DNA elements have been identified that control when and where genes linked to blindness are "switched on".

The use of intracameral cefuroxime at the end of cataract surgery reduces the occurrence of postoperative endophthalmitis.

The gene, complement C3, has been identified as playing an important role in the pathogenesis of age-related macular degeneration.

Drugs which slow the progress of Alzheimer's disease may also protect patients at risk of eye damage from glaucoma.

Overall, this study showed that wound integrity was maintained in eyes receiving microcoaxial phaco, while all eyes receiving bimanual phaco had spontaneous wound leakage, increased wound hydration, penetration of ink particles into the anterior chamber and some degree of corneal wound burn

...we have been able to develop some real staging-based guidelines for the therapeutic treatment of keratoconus and, in our opinion, corneal collagen cross-linking is mainly effective in the first and second stage of the disease

Professor Gholam Peyman discovers a new use for dry eye therapy cyclosporine A.

Drugs which slow the progress of Alzheimer's disease may also protect patients at risk of eye damage from glaucoma, according to researchers at the University College London (UCL), UK.

Gene therapy is not a new concept; scientists have worked tirelessly over the years to try and identify genes that encode particular diseases, with a view to designing therapies that could, one day, eradicate certain debilitating or even fatal conditions.

Recent trials have demonstrated progress is being made in the treatment of uveitis, with the last 12 months yielding almost 2,000 scientific citations. Dr Emmett Cunningham investigates the most significant advances.

In industrialized countries, ocular trauma is the second leading cause of blindness among the over 50s population and the leading cause of monocular blindness among the general population; thus representing an important social health problem.

The National Institute for health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) in England is to delay issuing guidance on Lucentis and Macugen after an unprecedented patient outcry over its decision to block access to them.

The German Federal Financial Supervisory Authority has approved publication of Alcon's tender offer document for WaveLight AG. This tender offer marks the second step in the completion of Alcon's acquisition of WaveLight.

MICS is no longer just a more modern and innovative therapeutic option for cataract; it is also the best choice when offering refractive solutions.

As with all medical disciplines, the goal of every surgeon is to perform surgery that is minimally invasive, in order to reduce the risk of unwanted complications and a poor postoperative appearance, and to increase patient comfort and satisfaction.

Madhu Nagar reviews some of the studies that support SLT's place as a first-line therapeutic in the treatment of glaucoma.

The development of small sutureless incisions in cataract surgery has led to an increased interest in the use of topical ocular anaesthesia. Topical administration of anaesthetic agents is a very simple technique that can achieve good anaesthesia and eliminate potentially sight-threatening complications related to peribulbar or retrobulbar anaesthesia, such as haemorrhaging, optic nerve trauma or globe perforation.

Guy Sallet talks us through a new "viscoless" procedure and outlines the advantages of such surgery, which include fewer IOP spikes, shortened surgery time and less microincision blockages.