CooperVision has expanded the sphere powers of its Proclear 1-Day contact lenses by extending the plus sphere power range up to +6.00D. Additionally, CooperVision is now offering Proclear 1-Day in a 30-lens revenue carton.
     "CooperVision is committed to continuously evolving our portfolio of premium contact lenses, thus providing a greater selection to patients and practitioners alike," said James Gardner, Director of Marketing, CooperVision. "With the addition of new sphere powers and a smaller carton option for Proclear 1-Day, we have created even more opportunities for patients to experience exceptional levels of comfort and health, along with the convenience they have come to expect from daily disposable lenses."
     Proclear 1-Day lenses are manufactured with CooperVision-patented PC Technology, which, according to the company, keeps them moist and comfortable throughout the day. Proclear 1-Day lenses are made with omafilcon A material, the only lens material with an FDA-cleared indication associated with improved comfort for contact lens wearers who experience mild discomfort or symptoms relating to dryness during lens wear. The company also indicates that Proclear 1-Day lenses feature aspheric front surface optics, which correct for lens and theoretical corneal aberrations, resulting in crisp, clear vision.
     In addition to the new sphere power ranges, Proclear 1-Day lenses have a center thickness of 0.09mm at -3.00D, a Dk/t of 36.6, a 60 percent water content, an 8.7mm base curve, and a 14.2mm diameter. For more information, visit www.coopervision.com/1day. 

Brien Holden, CEO of the Institute for Eye Research, and Professor of the School of Optometry and Vision Science at the University of New South Wales, has been awarded the prestigious Carel C. Koch Memorial Medal Award at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Optometry (AAO). Professor Holden received the award as recognition by the Academy of his outstanding contribution to the enhancement and development of relationships between optometry and other professions.
     Carel Koch was a founding member of the Academy and for more than thirty years its secretary and editor of the Academy's journal, Optometry & Vision Science. "Carel Koch is a major figure in the history of optometry who made outstanding contributions to scholarly works and the development of the Academy," said Professor Holden. "To be presented with this award by the Academy is a great honor and in a major way a tribute to Nag Rao, Antti Vannas, Hugh Taylor and Serge Resnikoff, four of the many ophthalmologists I have worked with over the years who cared more about advancing eye health and vision care, especially for those in need, than professional boundaries."

Allergan, Inc. announced that it has expanded its Optive brand line with the addition of Optive Sensitive Preservative-Free Lubricant Eye Drops, an over-the-counter (OTC) artificial tear for patients suffering from dry eye or dryness following LASIK surgery. Optive is Allergan's line of artificial tears with a dual action formula that works both on the ocular surface and at the cellular level to provide long-lasting relief from dry eye symptoms, according to the company. 
     "Optive Sensitive has undergone testing and has been shown to perform excellently in both dry eye and post-LASIK patient populations," said Joseph Vehige, OD, Allergan's Senior Director, Consumer Eye Care Research and Development. "We are pleased to be able to offer dry eye sufferers, including patients who have undergone LASIK surgery, a new option in managing their signs and symptoms of dry eye."
     To find out more information about Optive Sensitive Preservative-Free Lubricant Eye Drops and Optive Lubricant Eye Drops, please visit www.OptiveSolutions.com.

Athletes, teens, part-time wearers, and those who are solution-sensitive, suffer from allergies or frequently travel are all great 1·DAY ACUVUE® MOIST™ Brand Contact Lens candidates. All these patient types and more can benefit from the long lasting comfort of LACREON™ technology, the convenience of fresh lenses every day and the protection of Class II UV blocking.* Improve the quality of life for more patients by prescribing 1·DAY ACUVUE® MOIST™ Brand. To learn more, go to:
*Important Product and UV Information | Important Safety Information
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OccuLogix, Inc. announced that its subsidiary, OcuSense, Inc., has submitted its 510(k) premarket notification to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for clearance to market the TearLab Osmolarity System and the TearLab Osmolarity Test Card in the United States. The TearLab system recently obtained CE Marking and is currently being sold and marketed in five European countries through exclusive distributor agreements. In the United States the system is currently available for research use only.
     The TearLab Osmolarity System uses a novel lab-on-a-chip approach that requires less than 50 nL of tear fluid in order to measure tear osmolarity. According to OccuLogix, by using such a small amount of tears, the system eliminates the challenges that previously prevented point-of-care osmolarity testing. The system can produce a sample-to-answer result in less than 30 seconds and is simple enough to be operated by a technician.

The Institute for Eye Research, in collaboration with the University of Wollongong and the University of New South Wales (UNSW), has secured an Australian Research Council (ARC) linkage grant that will support a collaborative project investigating tear film lipids. The project will identify the molecules within this essential "oil slick" to better understand dry eye syndrome and the discomfort associated with contact lens wear.
     Dr Zhenjun Zhao, a Senior Research Fellow at the Institute, was instrumental in obtaining the ARC funding. Professor Mark Willcox, Chief Scientific Officer at the Institute and Professor at the School of Optometry and Vision Science, UNSW, anticipates some major benefits resulting from the project. "I'm certain this grant, that brings us together with our very successful and highly regarded partners at the University of Wollongong, will prove to be highly beneficial and help us understand lipids in tears and their roles in dry eye and contact lens discomfort and spoliation. It is hoped that ultimately this research will lead to new treatments for dry eye and novel technologies that provide greater comfort for contact lens wearers."

Join Contact Lens Spectrum and the Health Care Conference Group for the Global Specialty Lens Symposium (GSLS), January 15-18, 2009, at Bally's Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, NV. The GSLS will include presentations on the latest techniques and technologies for the successful management of ocular conditions - from presbyopia to pediatric vision correction - using today's specialty contact lenses. Truly an international meeting, GSLS will provide insights of experts from around the globe and hands-on access to the most current products available. The program will be accredited for continuing education under COPE, NCLE and JCAHPO, offering 17+ credit hours. 
     Visit www.GSLSymposium.com for more information or to register for this unique meeting. Companies interested in exhibiting should contact Sean Casey at 732-483-4302 or sean.casey@wolterskluwer.com.
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Prevent Blindness America has been awarded a 3-year cooperative agreement from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), with a first year grant of $1 million. The volunteer eye health and safety organization will use the grant to fund its National Vision Preservation Initiative, a public and private collaborative effort designed to develop an integrative and pioneering approach to eye health promotion and vision loss prevention. 
     Prevent Blindness America will coordinate the program with participating organizations that include Duke Clinical Research Institute, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH), and three Prevent Blindness America affiliates - Prevent Blindness North Carolina, Prevent Blindness Ohio and Prevent Blindness Tri-State.
     The National Vision Preservation Initiative has four subcomponents, including funding to implement and evaluate a primary care vision screening program for adults in community clinics in Cleveland and Columbus, Ohio. In North Carolina, a program will focus on pediatric vision screenings in schools and pediatric office settings. A New York-based component of the program will involve the development of a statewide vision collaborative and the integration of vision health services throughout the NYSDOH. Finally, a comprehensive database for clinical and public health data that can be used to calculate the epidemiology of vision impairment as well as the utilization of vision care and eye health-related services will be developed.
     From 2003-2008, Prevent Blindness America and its affiliates partnered with the CDC on a separate cooperative agreement which helped to expand the organization's capacity to educate and screen older Americans and populations at greater risk of underserved vision problems, including those who may not have adequate access to eye care. Special focus was given to vision loss and related eye diseases, such as diabetes.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of cosmetically tinted soft contact lenses on ocular higher-order aberrations (HOAs) and visual performance, and to analyze the relationship between these parameters after the lens wear. In 44 eyes of 22 subjects, visual acuity, contrast sensitivity under photopic and mesopic conditions, and ocular higher-order aberrations were evaluated before and after wearing tinted soft contact lenses (1-Day Acuvue Colours, Vistakon, Jacksonville, FL). Contrast sensitivity under a photopic condition was determined at 3, 6, 12, and 18 cycles per degree, and the area under the log contrast sensitivity function (AULCSF) was calculated. Mesopic contrast sensitivity with and without glare was assessed. Ocular higher-order aberrations for a 4-mm pupil were measured, and coma-like, spherical-like, and total higher-order aberrations were determined.
     The tinted contact lens wearing resulted in significant decreases in log contrast sensitivity at all spatial frequencies (P < 0.05) and AULCSF (P < 0.0001), although 100% contrast visual acuity did not change. Log mesopic contrast sensitivity with and without glare was also reduced significantly by the lens wear (P < 0.0001). The contact lens wear significantly increased coma-like, spherical-like, and total higher-order aberrations (P < 0.0001). The induced changes in higher-order aberrations were analyzed in relation to the changes in contrast sensitivity function. Although the changes in coma-like and spherical-like aberrations did not correlate significantly with those in AULCSF (P > 0.05), the changes in total higher-order aberrations showed a significant correlation with those in AULCSF (P < 0.05). On the other hand, there was no significant relationship between the changes in higher-order aberrations and the changes in log mesopic contrast sensitivity with and without glare (P > 0.05).
     The authors concluded that cosmetically tinted contact lenses increase ocular higher-order aberrations and worsen contrast sensitivity under both photopic and mesopic conditions. Increases in higher-order aberrations are responsible for decreased contrast sensitivity under the photopic condition. Tinted contact lens wearers should be sufficiently informed about the possible reduction in optical quality of the eye and quality of vision.
Hiraoka T, Ishii Y, Okamoto F, Oshika T. Influence of cosmetically tinted soft contact lenses on higher-order wavefront aberrations and visual performance. Graefes Arch Clin Exp Ophthalmol 2008.

Until recently, my success in fitting challenging patients with globular keratoconus or pellucid marginal degeneration tended to be with a piggy-back design. Frequently, one cannot avoid corneal binding or adherence with just a rigid lens for these patients. However, over the past year or so I have found that, when the Rx is obtainable, the PureVision toric lens offers great comfort, vision and physiology for these patients. I have even been able to move some of my patients out of a piggy-back modality to the PureVision toric. The high modulus of the material, along with the lower water content, seems to offer enough rigidity to give much better than average vision for these patients. Needless to say, with the high oxygen permeability of this material, the corneal physiology also is exemplary. It would be great to be able to obtain this material in a custom lens!
Patricia M. Keech, OD, FAAO
Shoreline, WA  

I recently had an experience as a patient myself, which does not happen very often for me. It was both very interesting and educational for me to experience life on the other side of the chair. I know that we say this frequently in our electronic and print media, but your staff can make all the difference in the world, not only on how your patients perceive their visit in your office, but also in terms of their ultimate success in their care. I cannot emphasize enough the importance of treating your patients just as you would like to be treated as a patient. All staff and doctors involved with a patient's care should be sympathetic, kind, informative, consistent, and confident in the management and treatment plans. In doing so, patients will respect you and comply with your care instructions. They will also turn into life-long, loyal patients of your practice.
Jason J. Nichols, OD, MPH, PhD, FAAO

This month at www.siliconehydrogels.org: factors affecting patient comfort, lens-solution staining, part two of our ARVO 2008 synopsis, and silicone allergies - fact or fabrication?