CONTACT LENSES TODAY
March 26, 2006
Contact Lenses Today® is edited by Dr. Joseph T. Barr and the staff of Contact Lens Spectrum. This week CLToday® reaches more
than 12,000 readers in 74 countries.
The Global Orthokeratology Symposium presents "Fundamentals of Corneal Reshaping"
— a newly formatted educational experience for 2006. Held in conjunction with the Southern California College of Optometry, this 2-day
course designed for the novice or new orthokeratology practitioner will focus on patient selection, corneal topography, choosing a design — plus "live" fitting and
next-day follow-up with actual patients. Go to http://www.GOS2006.com for more information.
--ADVERTISING
J&J Opens European Vision Care Institute
The Vision Care Institute of Johnson & Johnson has opened its first European facility in Prague. The first course scheduled is a three-day
training course on fitting disposable contact lenses. Courses will be taught in the national language of each group of attendees to reach as many practitioners as
possible. Participants will also concentrate on communication skills.
VSP Concentrates on Kids Vision
A new video from VSP titled, Get Focused Sports Vision, features a series of baseball drills that challenge kids’ visual awareness. It
provides coaches, parents and teachers with tools to help kids sharpen their skills while they learn about the importance of eyecare. The drills, for kids age five to
18, require only household products or sporting goods that most parents already own. Drills include distortion goggles to show kids blurred vision, a Brock string that
trains the eyes to focus on objects at varying distances and a marsden ball, which helps kids focus and keep their heads still.
PBS To Air GP Documentary
The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) will run a mini-documentary on GP lenses as part of an effort to educate viewers on often-unknown
topics of interest. It is expected to air repeatedly in various time slots on 140 stations over the next 60-90 days. The documentary,
Spotlight On: Vision, features
interviews with Bruce Anderson, O.D., Ed Bennett, O.D., Walter Choate, O.D. and Wiley Curtis, O.D. It focuses on the role that GPs play in improving vision and includes
segments on corneal reshaping, lenses for presbyopia and advances in GP technology.
To assist O.D.s in anticipated patient inquiries on the movie, the Contact Lens
Manufacturers Association (CLMA) will make the program available on DVD through CLMA member labs. It will also soon be available on the association’s web site at
http://www.contactlenses.org.
ACUVUE® ADVANCE™ Brand Contact Lenses for ASTIGMATISM help unmask low cylinder astigmats.
Correcting astigmatism used to be a choice between clear, stable vision or long-lasting comfort. For low cylinder astigmatic patients this
meant a spherical or aspheric lens prescription that masked their condition.
Now, you have a chance to unmask these patients. Because of Accelerated Stabilization
Design, ACUVUE® ADVANCE™ for ASTIGMATISM offers crisp, stable vision regardless of the activity. Because of patented HYDRACLEAR™ Technology the new lens
provides immediate and all-day comfort.
Now, patients might not have to tolerate even a low level of blur that comes with masking their astigmatism.
--ADVERTISING
Vistakon Offers Computer Vision Quiz
In an effort to help educate patients about how to prevent or reduce common computer-related vision problems, Vistakon has launched an
interactive quiz at http://www.computerquiz.jnjvision.com. According to a national survey, 75% of all jobs in the U.S.
rely on computers and the average employee spends 72% of their time working on a computer during a typical week. Studies show the majority of people who work at a computer
experience some eye or vision problems and that these increase with the amount of time spent on the computer. The new quiz can be used as a tool to educate patients who
complain about computer-related vision problems.
Educating The Public
Lippincott Williams and Wilkins Vision Care Group, publisher of
CLToday and Contact Lens Spectrum, recently sponsored an article on the
importance of eye care in the March 20th issue of Fortune. The article discusses various public health campaigns such as VCA’s Check Yearly, See Clearly, the NEI’s Prevent
Blindness America and VSP’s Sight for Students programs. It also includes information on innovations in vision care such as AR coating, silicone hydrogel
contact lenses and new drugs, as well as basic information on prevalent eye
diseases. The article explains why early detection is the best way to prevent vision loss and reinforces
the value of regular eye exams.
Abstract:
Cyclosporine In CL Patients
A recent study aimed to evaluate the effect of cyclosporine 0.05% on contact lens comfort and reducing dry eye symptoms in those who are
intolerant of lens wear. A total of 17 patients with self-reported contact lens-related dryness were randomized to use either cyclosporine or rewetting drops twice a
day, before and after lens wear. After five weeks of treatment, cyclosporine significantly improved dry eye symptoms. Patients in the cyclosporine group decreased the use
of rewetting drops, while patients who used rewetting drops alone increased use. Wearing time increased slightly more in the cyclosporine group. There were no significant
differences in mean corneal staining between groups. Patients using cyclosporine showed statistically better improvement in temporal bulbar conjunctival flourescein
staining. The pilot study concludes cyclosporine is beneficial for contact lens wearers with dry eye and reduces contact lens intolerance.
Hom MM. Use of
cyclosporine 0.05% ophthalmic emulsion for contact lens-intolerant patients. Eye Contact Lens. 2006 Mar;32(2):109-11.
Editor's Commentary:
GPs Get Their Due
I am pleased to hear about the GP lens documentary mentioned above and applaud the efforts of all those involved. I've thought for a
long time that the public would benefit from a lot more public relations information about the good, healthy, value of GP lenses. Think about it, the lenses are now
FDA-approved for use after surgery and have been used safely and effectively for daily and extended-wear for over a quarter of a century. The public needs to know about
these well-kept secrets.
Fitting Tip:
Improvised Filter
Regarding last week’s tip, I always see doctors refer to the use of wratten filters for GPs. I absolutely agree, but for the photographically
impaired, you can use any yellow glass #2 filter with your slit lamp. They come in different sizes with metal or plastic rings. I use 50-55mm lenses with my slit
lamps. You can find them in any photography store.
Craig Match, O.D.
Halifax, Pa.
This month at http://www.siliconehydrogels.org/, consider the impact that lens care products can have on comfort; compare
the characteristics of lysozyme deposition on various contact lens materials; and compare the corneal staining characteristics of various lens-solution
combinations.
Report adverse contact lens reactions here: http://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/medwatch/ or call
(800) FDA-1088.
Access a reporting form for complications you've seen that were a result of contact lenses dispensed without a valid prescription
at the Association of Regulatory Boards of Optometry's (ARBO's) Web
site: http://www.arbo.org/arbo.asp?dt=R&doc=Complications. Complete and send the form online or print it
out and fax it to (866) 886-6164.
Send your favorite tips to tips@cltoday.com -- if your tip is selected
as 'Best of the Month,' you'll receive a free
T-shirt (see http://www.CLToday.com for details). Please include your full name, degree or title and city/state/country.
Visit Contact Lens Spectrum (http://www.clspectrum.com) for interactive clinical posters and issue
archives. Visit Contact Lenses Today for our Best Fitting Tips.
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