Bausch & Lomb (B&L) announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved Besivance (besifloxacin ophthalmic suspension) 0.6% for the treatment of bacterial conjunctivitis. Besivance is a new topical ophthalmic antibacterial, administered via sterile ophthalmic drops, that treats a wide range of eye pathogens including those that most commonly cause bacterial conjunctivitis, one of the most common ocular conditions worldwide.
     Besivance is the first fluoroquinolone specifically developed for ophthalmic use and is the first and only ophthalmic fluoroquinolone with no previous systemic use, according to the company. It offers broad-spectrum antibacterial activity, including activity against the strains that are the most common causes of bacterial conjunctivitis.
     "FDA approval of Besivance provides patients with an advanced therapy that can eradicate bacterial conjunctivitis at its source both safely and effectively," said Flemming Ornskov, MD, MPH, Corporate Vice President and Global President, Pharmaceuticals for B&L. "At Bausch & Lomb we are committed to developing innovative eye health products that help enhance patients' overall quality of life, and we are pleased to offer the medical community a new treatment option for this exceedingly common condition."
     Besivance will be available by prescription in U.S. pharmacies in the second quarter of 2009 and will be promoted by both the B&L and Pfizer, Inc. sales forces. See full prescribing information for Besivance at: www.besivance.com.

Record numbers of delegates made this year's Clinical Conference of the British Contact Lens Association (BCLA) the largest in its 33-year history. A total of 1,073 delegates registered over the four days of the conference, held in Manchester from May 28 - 31. This is the third successive year that the event has attracted more than 1,000 delegates.
     A total of 45 companies exhibited at the meeting. Including those who only attended the exhibition, there were an estimated 1,500 visitors in total.
     The BCLA Conference is a premier event for contact lens professionals in the UK and worldwide. This year, just over half of those registered (54%) were from overseas. Delegates came from 45 different countries, and the largest overseas delegations were from the USA (87) and Denmark (77), followed by Germany (39) and France (37).
     At the Gala Dinner on May 30, outgoing President Dr. Sarah Janikoun handed her chain of office to William Thomas and 21 new BCLA Fellowships were awarded. Former BCLA President Nigel Burnett Hodd received honorary life membership of the BCLA in recognition of his significant contribution to the Association.
     The 34th BCLA Clinical Conference and Exhibition will be held in Birmingham from May 27- 30, 2010. Keynote speakers will be David Anderson (UK), Suzi Fleiszig (USA) and Cristina Kenney (USA). Dr. Donald Korb (USA) will be the BCLA Medal Speaker and Dr. Panagiotis Kallinikos (Greece) will deliver the Irving Fatt Memorial Lecture. For more information on BCLA events and how to join, visit www.bcla.org.uk,

The Gas Permeable Lens Institute (GPLI), in association with The Contact Lens Manufacturers Association, hosts regular live online symposia during which contact lens fitters can communicate with industry experts. The 90 minute symposia are held on Tuesdays at 9 PM Eastern Time. The first hour of discussion is limited to the topic of month; however, attendees may ask any GP lens-related question during the remaining 30 minutes. For most scheduled symposia, case histories are posted prior to the discussion. All eye care professionals are invited to participate. 
     The topics and hosts for upcoming symposia include:
June 9 - Corneal Reshaping for Children and Adults with Dr. John Rinehart and Dr. Jeff Walline; click here for June's case studies.  
August 11 - GP Multifocal Correction with Dr. Rob Davis and Mr. Doug Benoit
October 13 - GP Correction of Keratoconus with Mr. Mike Ward and Dr. Ann Laurenzi
December 8 - GP Problem Solving with Dr. Pat Keech and Dr. Ken Maller
     For more information on these symposia and other educational programs offered by the GPLI, visit www.gpli.info.

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Prevent Blindness America (PBA) announced the recipients of its 2009 Investigator Awards. The Investigator Awards are grants awarded to research studies that are dedicated to preventing avoidable vision loss. The recipients were chosen by a panel of scientists in coordination with the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO). Over the years, PBA and its affiliates have awarded more than $500,000 to projects through its Investigator Award program.
     Investigator Award recipients for 2009 include Peter K. Kriz, MD, of Children's Hospital Boston, for his project entitled "Effectiveness of Protective Eyewear in Reducing Severe Eye Injuries in High School Field Hockey Players." The purpose of the study is to determine whether mandated protective eyewear effectively reduces the incidence of severe eye injuries within a select population of female hockey players.
     Loretta B. Szczotka-Flynn, OD, MS and co-investigator Mahmoud Ghannoum, PhD, from Case Western Reserve University received an award for their research project entitled, "Prevention of Soft Contact Lens Associated Fusarium Biofilms." The study will utilize a model of soft contact lens biofilms to assess the efficacy of contact lens solutions against them and test mechanisms of their prevention.
     Lastly, Steven M. Kymes, PhD, MHA, from Washington University in St. Louis, has received an award for his project "Development of a Model for Estimation of Longitudinal Changes in Mean Deviation in Patients with Primary Open Angle Glaucoma." This project will pool data from existing landmark glaucoma studies in an effort to construct a validated method of predicting the progression of glaucoma.
     PBA has also declared June as Vision Research Awareness Month in an effort to educate the public on the critical role that ongoing research studies play in saving sight.

The Contact Lens Spectrum calendar, which mailed with the November 2008 issue, highlights an interesting and challenging contact lens case each month. The June case report focuses on a teenager with ocular albinism who wanted to switch from thick heavy spectacles to contact lenses. To view the details of the case, visit www.clspectrum.com/photocalendar.asp?month=June.
     Visit the Contact Lens Spectrum case report page after the first of every month to review details and images from the latest case study. You can also view case studies from previous months in the archive at the bottom of the page.
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ISTA Pharmaceuticals, Inc. announced it has received notification from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that the Dermatologic and Ophthalmic Drugs Advisory Committee will review ISTA's New Drug Application (NDA) for Bepreve (bepotastine ophthalmic solution) on June 26, 2009.
     On November 13, 2008, ISTA announced it had filed its NDA with the FDA for Bepreve as an eye drop treatment for ocular itching associated with allergic conjunctivitis. The NDA filing includes data from ISTA's Phase III clinical studies with Bepreve which demonstrated highly statistically significant reductions in the primary endpoints of ocular itching, according to the company. As bepotastine is a new chemical entity in the U.S., ISTA expected an Advisory Committee would be convened for Bepreve. ISTA continues to expect a standard review of ten months and has been given a Prescription Drug User Fee Action (PDUFA) date of September 12, 2009.

Bausch & Lomb (B&L) Japan has named Francisco Ascencion as President, effective immediately. Mr. Ascension has been serving as interim president since mid-January.
     Mr. Ascencion joined B&L in 2003 in the Corporate Audit Group. In 2004, he was named Director of Finance and Operations for the company's Mexican and Latin American Distributors businesses, and in 2006, he was appointed Controller of B&L Japan. Prior to joining B&L, he worked for Valeo Electrical Systems, Pricewaterhouse Coopers and Coopers & Lybrand.
     Mr. Ascencion holds a degree in Strategic Administration from the Instituto Tecnologico de Estudios Monterrey (ITESM) and obtained his CPA from the National Autonomous University of Mexico.

Researchers wanted to prospectively examine the recovery of various parameters after discontinuation of overnight orthokeratology. Seventeen subjects undergoing orthokeratology for 12 months were examined. Refraction, corneal topography, wavefront aberrometry, a visual acuity test and a contrast sensitivity test were performed at baseline, 12 months after commencement of the procedure, and one week and one month after discontinuation of the treatment. Asymmetry and higher-order irregularity components were calculated using a Fourier analysis of the corneal topography data. Contrast sensitivity was assessed at four spatial frequencies, and the area under the log contrast sensitivity function (AULCSF) was calculated.
     Orthokeratology significantly reduced manifest refraction (p<0.0001, Dunnett test) and significantly improved uncorrected visual acuity (UCVA) at 12 months after commencement of the procedure (p<0.0001). Asymmetry and higher-order irregularity components increased significantly (p<0.0001, p = 0.0032, respectively), and third- and fourth-order aberrations also increased significantly (p<0.0001). The treatment resulted in significant decreases in AULCSF (p = 0.0004). After discontinuing lens wear, all parameters, such as refraction, UCVA, asymmetry, higher-order irregularity, third-order aberration, fourth-order aberration and AULCSF, returned to the baseline level at one week.
     The researchers concluded that this study confirmed that the effect of orthokeratology is completely reversible in light of optical quality of the eye and quality of vision, as well as refraction and visual acuity.
Hiraoka T, Okamoto C, Ishii Y, Okamoto F, Oshika T. Recovery of corneal irregular astigmatism, ocular higher-order aberrations, and contrast sensitivity after discontinuation of overnight orthokeratology. Br J Ophthalmol 2009;93:203-8.

The 2009 British Contact Lens Association (BCLA) annual meeting turned out to be a great success. There were over 1,000 delegates registered for the event, which was the largest meeting ever in its 33 year history. There was a tremendous amount of excellent clinical and research information presented on topics ranging from prescribing trends, to infiltrative and infectious keratitis, care solutions, orthokeratology, and dry eye in lens wear. There was even discussion about forthcoming new rules and regulations for industry and practitioners. If you ever have the chance, I'd highly recommend that you attend at least one BCLA Congress.
Jason J. Nichols, OD, MPH, PhD, FAAO

This month at www.siliconehydrogels.org: the relationship between wettability and comfort; corneal ecstasia vs. corneal warpage; best lenses for aging eyes; and the effect of contact lens materials on physiology.