Blue-blocking IOLs damage health

Bevacizumab: less effective against larger lesions

The efficacy of bevacizumab as a treatment for choroidal neovascularization (CNV) is dependent on initial lesion size and the patient's reading ability, according to a report published online ahead of print by the British Journal of Ophthalmology.

Anja Lux and co-workers from the Heinrich Heine University of Duesseldorf, Germany conducted a study to determine the characteristics of non-responders to intravitreal bevacizumab treatment. A total of 43 patients (44 eyes) with visual loss due to CNV received intravitreal injections of 1.25 mg bevacizumab and were followed-up every four weeks for two, three or six months. Re-injections were performed when persistent leakage was observed by fluorescein angiography.

This study suggests that non-responders to intraviteal bevacizumab as a treatment for CNV are likely to be those who have a large initial lesion size.

New supranational European society

Five of the largest European ophthalmic societies have founded a new supranational society - The Federation of European Ophthalmology (FEOph).

The societies involved in the launch of the FEOph are the French Society of Ophthalmology, the German Society of Ophthalmology, the Italian Society of Ophthalmology, the Royal College of Ophthalmologists in the UK and the Spanish Society of Ophthalmology.

Happy 50th birthday SOE

The European Society of Ophthalmology (SOE) celebrated its 50th anniversary at its 2007 Jubilee Congress, held in June, in partnership with the American Academy of Ophthalmology.

At the opening ceremony, Zdenek Gregor, president of SOE, welcomed the 4,000 delegates from 90 different countries and spoke of his pride of a scientific programme that resulted from the active co-operation of more than 40 subspecialty societies and supranational organizations.

José Cunha-Vaz was awarded the 2007 Helmholtz Medal for his contribution to both posterior and anterior segment imaging. During his lecture, Dr Vaz spoke of the importance of the invention of the ophthalmoscope saying the discovery "opened the gate to seeing the fundus of the eye".

Blue-blocking IOLs damage health

Blue-blocking intraocular lenses (IOLs) offer no advantages to the eye and could actually cause health problems such as insomnia and depression, according to Martin Mainster, MD speaking at the OSN Rome Symposium in May.

Dr Mainster emphasized how important blue light is to good vision and health. He explained that blue light-sensitive cells synchronize the body's biological clock to environmental day/night cycles, guaranteeing proper hormonal and physiological rhythms. Furthermore, blue light provides 35% of rod-mediated scotopic sensitivity, making it essential for good vision in dim-light conditions.

Dr Mainster also stressed that no evidence has been found of a correlation existing between blue-light exposure and the pathogenesis of degenerative retinal disorders.

3-D test identifies early stage glaucoma

A 3-D computer automated threshold Amsler grid test is able to identify abnormalities characteristic of glaucoma in glaucoma suspects whose achromatic Humphrey visual field test was normal, according to a report published online ahead of print by the British Journal of Ophthalmology.

Paul Nazemi and colleagues from Doheny Eye Institute, University of Southern California, USA examined 66 eyes of 33 patients with risk factors for glaucoma with the recently developed 3-D computer-based threshold Amsler grid test and with standard automated perimetry. Twenty-three eyes of 15 patients with no risk factors were examined as controls.