CONTACT LENSES TODAY
September 30, 2007
Contact Lenses Today® is edited by Dr. Carla Mack and the staff of Contact Lens Spectrum. This week
CLToday® reaches more than 12,000 readers in 74 countries.
CooperVision Announces Management Changes
Effective November 1, 2007, CooperVision will make changes to its management structure including the
promotion of key personnel. Thomas R. Shone will assume the role of president, CooperVision U.S. and will be responsible for sales,
marketing, customer service and professional relations. Mr. Shone previously served as senior vice president of strategic marketing for
the company. Additional changes include the promotion of Steve Reiman to vice president of strategic accounts and Mark W. Bertolin to
vice president of sales development and technology. Jeffrey A. McLean will continue in his role as president of the Americas and will
also oversee distribution and packaging throughout the United States, Canada, Latin American, Mexico and South America.
B&L Partners with Susan G. Komen
As part of National Breast Cancer Awareness month, Bausch & Lomb (B&L) has introduced a special pink
package for it ReNu with Multiplus MPS contact lens solution that features the Susan G. Komen for the Cure logo and a pink contact lens
case. The company has pledged to donate 10% of retail sales of these packages ($0.75 per box) towards a donation goal of $375,000. B&L
has committed to a minimum donation of $250,000 towards the fight against breast cancer, regardless of sales. The limited-edition package
is available at retailers through October 31.
Menicon Launches PremiO in UK
UltraVision has launched the Menicon PremiO silicone hydrogel contact lens in the UK and Ireland. (The lens
was introduced in March in the U.S., see CLToday, April 1, 2007.) The lens features a water-philic monomer, MeniSilk, and Nanoglass surface
technology, according to the company. Menicon PremiO is available as a two-week replacement, daily/flexi-wear lens or for one-week
replacement in an extended-wear modality. It features a Dk value of 129, 40% water content, 14mm diameter, two base curves (8.3 and 8.6mm)
and launch parameters from -7.00D to 2.00D with extended plus and minus powers to be added in early 2008.
Increased
Comfort Delivers Lasting Patient Satisfaction
Nothing drives referrals like satisfied patients. And nothing satisfies patients like the comfort and minimal
corneal staining that can be provided by ACUVUE® OASYS™ Brand Contact Lenses with HYDRACLEAR™ Plus. In a recent clinical
study, new wearers exhibited no significant difference in corneal staining and reported no significant difference in overall comfort
between ACUVUE® OASYS™ and no lens. And in an in-market trial, 89% of patients fit with ACUVUE® OASYS™ would recommend
their doctors based on their experience. How will you satisfy your patients and build your practice with ACUVUE® OASYS™?
More About ACUVUE® OASYS®
Important Safety Information
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Global Keratoconus Congress 2007 – Agenda Available
The agenda for the second Global Keratoconus Congress is now available online. The event will be hosted at
Bally’s in Las Vegas, January 25-27, 2008. Please visit http://www.GKCongress.com. There you will
find the educational program agenda and information on hotel accommodations, as well as the ability to register for the event. The program
will be accredited for continuing education under COPE, NCLE and JCAHPO.
Companies interested in exhibiting should contact Heather
Seasholtz at 215-643-8073.
--ADVERTISING
Give
Sight, Give Hope
Join the World Sight Day Challenge on October 11, 2007. Optometry Giving Sight hopes practitioners will help
give sight to the millions in need by: donating exam fees on World Sight Day, signing up for a regular monthly donation of $25, $50 or $100,
and asking patients to add $5 to their invoices in October. Visit www.givingsight.org.
--ADVERTISING
Abstract:
CL-Induced Corneal Warpage
A study in October’s Cornea journal describes a case of corneal warpage secondary to hydrogel lens wear
that was initially mistaken for keratoconus. A 26-year-old Chinese female hydrogel lens wearer presented to the authors with an interest in
refractive surgery. Clinicians performed topography and pachymetry measurements and diagnosed keratoconus in the right eye, with suspect
keratoconus in the left. The diagnosis was confirmed at a one-week follow-up visit, but keratoconus treatment was delayed due to the presence
of superficial punctate keratitis.
After eight weeks without lens wear, doctors performed corneal mapping again,
which now revealed regular, with-the-rule astigmatism and no evidence of keratoconus. The authors conclude that soft contact lens wear can
induce corneal warpage mimicking keratoconus. They note that initiating standard keratoconus treatment before resolution of the warpage could
have provided impetus for the protrusion to remain or even progress. They say the case gives reason to pause when dealing with contact lens
wearers who present with corneal curvature irregularities such as keratoconus or ectasia due to the possibility of lens-induced warpage.
Tsseng SS, Hsiao JC, Chang DC. Mistaken Diagnosis of Keratoconus Because of Corneal Warpage Induced by Hydrogel Lens Wear. Cornea. 2007
Oct;26(9):1153-55.
Reader Commentary:
Swimming in CLs
What is the official stance on swimming in contact lenses with regards to Acanthamoeba? What do you tell
your patients about it? In the past, I've always recommended wearing goggles over lenses, then sterilizing them after swimming, sitting in a
hot tub, etc. Is this okay? What about rinsing GPs with water after cleaning them (before conditioning)?
Tiffany J. Stuckey,
O.D.
Maryland Heights, Mo.
Editor's Commentary:
Reinforce Lens Care with Patient Education
I recently fit a new patient with soft toric contact lenses and was performing the final contact lens visit
before releasing the prescription. I've made a conscious effort to personally review and document proper cleaning and solution use at each
visit, but this patient beat me to the punch on his third visit in a six-week period. He openly reported that he was reusing his contact lens
solution because it appeared clean. Without taking a breath, he proceeded to ask whether it was okay to rinse his soft contact lenses with
water. This new wearer had received written instructions on proper solution use and verbal instructions at least twice; that day was to be
third set of verbal instructions. The very next patient I saw stopped me mid-sentence during my instructions and reported she'd worn contact
lenses for years and knew how to take care of them.
Each of you has similar stories. Our patients are still
uninformed and as Dr. Stuckey states, there is still some confusion among contact lens practitioners as well. While some of you think we've
covered this topic enough, I wholeheartedly disagree. The AOA's lens care guidelines and associated risk factors for Acanthamoeba can
be found at http://www.aoa.org/x8186.xml. The AOA does not make a distinction between GP and soft
materials. My personal recommendations are to avoid water and lens contact, including GP lenses. It’s unlikely that you will begin to see
people wearing goggles while sitting in hot tubs at your local spa or pool in the near future. I tell patients that if they choose to wear
their contact lenses while swimming, they will have a very dirty lens that could potentially cause sight-threatening problems.
Carla
Mack, O.D., F.A.A.O.
This month at http://www.siliconehydrogels.org explore the
significance of the recent “no-rub” solution recalls, learn about atypical upper lid margin staining in dry-eyed silicone hydrogel wearers
and review the latest in silicone hydrogel research present at ARVO 2007.
Report adverse contact lens reactions here:
http://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/medwatch/ or call (800)
FDA-1088.
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