News

ALG-1001 is the first of a new class of drugs, integrin peptide therapy, now going through clinical trials for patients with age-related macular degeneration, diabetic macular oedema and vitreomacular traction.

Prof. Iester describes his recent study investigating whether the addition of a tear substitute would protect exposed corneal epithelial cells from damage.

In this article, the authors summarize a recently published case study of a macular hole formation and its spontaneous closure after vitrectomy.

With a greater understanding of how ocular nutrition affects sight, ophthalmologists need to encourage healthy diets with nutrients and antioxidants essential for healthy vision.

Findings from recent clinical trials are providing some guidance on oxygen management in preterm infants.

Postoperative refractive outcome shifts toward myopia in patients being treated for rhegmatogenous retinal detachment (RRD) with the combination of phacoemulsification and pars plana vitrectomy, compared with patients who underwent combined surgery for other vitreoretinal pathologies

Radiused phacoemulsification tips were less efficient than non-radiused tips when used with torsional ultrasound (US), according to an experimental study.

Micropulse diode transscleral cyclophotocoagulation (TSCPC) lowers IOP consistently, predictably, and with minimal ocular complications, according to a recently published study.

A Phase II dose-ranging study has been initiated for Amakem Therapeutics? glaucoma drug candidate AMA0076, a highly potent, locally acting Rho Kinase (ROCK) inhibitor designed to reduce intraocular pressure (IOP) while minimizing common ROCK inhibitor side effects such as hyperaemia.

Scleral buckling or pars plana vitrectomy (PPV) can be used to treat rhegmatogenous retinal detachment (RD) associated with Beh?et's disease (BD), according to researchers in the Department of Ophthalmology, Zagazig University, Egypt.

A supracilliary micro-stent, when implanted in conjunction with cataract surgery, substantially reduces intraocular pressure (IOP) with minimal complications in patients with open-angle glaucoma, according to researchers in Germany and the US.

Patients with refractory glaucoma in whom a proprietary glaucoma implant was placed needed significantly less adjunctive medication to experience success in treatment compared with those who received a proprietary glaucoma valve. However, fewer of those in the latter group had serious postoperative complications, according to recently published 3-year outcomes.

The correlation between hyperglycaemia and retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) is significant, according to logistical regression analysis of gestational age and birth weight data in a recent study.

Real world experience of leading ophthalmic products

Recombinant human Nerve Growth Factor (rhNGF) may offer hope for patients with neurotrophic keratitis (NK), according to researchers in Milan, Italy, who presented preliminary data from a Phase I study at the annual meeting of the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology.

A tetracycline-inducible Cre mouse line created specifically to study the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) is suitable for Cre/lox-based gene activation and inactivation in adult RPE, which makes the mice suitable for long-term studies requiring conditional gene targeting.

Implantation of a capsular tension ring effectively reduces the percentage area of posterior capsular opacification (PCO) and the Nd:YAG laser capsulotomy rate in patients with highly myopic eyes, according to researchers in Albania and Turkey.

Cigarette smoking causes a temporary but significant increase in choroidal thickness, according to research conducted at the Department of Ophthalmology, Faculty of Medicine, Abant Izzet Baysal University, Bolu, Turkey.

The eXcellence in Ophthalmology Vision Award (XOVA) competition is accepting entries until 30 June.

A round-up of the latest ophthalmic products

This year, the Vision UK 2014 conference was to be held on Thursday 12 June at the Queen Elizabeth II conference centre in London, UK. Attendees can look forward to key opinion leaders discussing the UK Vision Strategy and emphasizing the initiatives that need to be implemented across the UK.

For a small percentage of patients who have macular holes, ocriplasmin injection represents an adequate treatment option; however, for most patients, pars plana vitrectomy will likely remain the treatment of choice.

In children, implantation of a multifocal IOL remains a topic of debate. With lacking evidence on post surgery outcomes and no head-to-head comparison of multifocal IOLs in children, this issue remains to be clarified. Therefore, the authors of this article were prompted to perform research in this area to address a number of concerns among paediatric ophthalmologists.

The natural history of diabetic retinopathy is modified by long-term treatment with intravitreal ranibizumab, reports one ophthalmologist.

In this article, the authors describe their novel technique for penetrative trabeculectomy in primary open-angle glaucoma patients, called sutureless trabeculectomy.

Preservatives are an important component of topical multidose glaucoma medications. However, many glaucoma patients have symptoms of ocular surface disease (OSD), which can affect quality of life, treatment adherence and surgical outcomes. In this article, Prof. Baudouin offers straightforward steps to assess OSD and identify the patients most at risk.

The authors have sought to expand the concept of automated alternation flicker to improve detection of glaucomatous optic neuropathy and highlight their findings in this article.

In this article, Dr Portaliou discusses a new multi-component adjustable lens that may be the answer paediatric ophthalmologists have been waiting for.

Determining the optimal IOL power for children is as much an art as a science.

Carbon dioxide laser assisted sclerectomy surgery (CLASS) is being used as an effective and safe, minimally invasive treatment for glaucoma. In this article, two surgeons at the forefront of research, development and implementation of this approach discuss this surgical option and its benefits for the ophthalmic market.