TearLab Corporation announced that Health Canada has issued a Medical Device License for the TearLab Osmolarity System. The TearLab system is intended to measure the osmolarity of human tears to aid in the diagnosis of patients with signs or symptoms of dry eye disease, in conjunction with other methods of clinical evaluation. The Health Canada license allows the company to immediately begin marketing the system in Canada.
     "TearLab represents an excellent solution for practitioners and patients alike, as it offers a rapid and very easy to undertake screening for tear osmolarity values in the practice, with no discomfort to the patient," stated researcher, Lyndon Jones, OD, PhD. Dr. Jones is a professor at the University of Waterloo's School of Optometry and Associate Director of the Centre for Contact Lens Research and has used the TearLab device in a variety of studies.
     Elias Vamvakas, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of TearLab Corporation said, "This Health Canada approval is another significant regulatory and commercialization milestone for our Company."
     The TearLab Osmolarity System uses a novel lab-on-a-chip approach that requires less than 50 nL (nanoliters) of tear fluid in order to measure tear osmolarity. According to the company, the TearLab Osmolarity System can produce a sample-to-answer result in less than 30 seconds and eliminates the challenges that previously prevented point-of-care osmolarity testing.

Odyssey Medical announced the results of a recent study (C. McCabe. Review of Ophthalmology, November 2009) which showed significant success in the treatment of patients with dry eye syndrome (DES) using the company's Parasol punctal occluder. The prospective, non-randomized study in patients who had failed artificial tears included 108 patients (216 eyes), over a one year period.  Among the key results reported by the company are: a 92% retention rate; 91% of patients reported more moisture in eyes; 43% of patients recorded improved visual acuity; and patients experienced steady gains in comfort and vision upon their 1 year visit.
     For more information on the Parasol punctal occluder, visit www.odysseymed.com.

John F. Amos, OD announced his resignation as Dean of the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) School of Optometry effective December 31, 2009.  Dr. Amos plans to remain on faculty for several more months.
     Dr. Amos has been a faculty member at UAB for 37 years and served as Dean since 2000. "The development and ultimate success of the School and its programs are a direct reflection on the quality of the faculty, staff, students and alumni," said Amos. "These years have provided me many wonderful memories of the friendships formed, the exciting environment that exists for teaching, scholarship and service, and the many accomplishments achieved. I certainly want to thank everyone for their support during the past nine years during which I have had the privilege of serving as Interim Dean and Dean."

Presbyopia often signals the end of contact lens wear, even for committed wearers. But now with ACUVUE® OASYS™ Brand Contact Lenses for PRESBYOPIA, you can satisfy the comfort and vision needs of your presbyopic patients. The unique optics of STEREO PRECISION TECHNOLOGY™ leverage the eye's natural depth of clear focus for balanced vision at all distances, with less dependence on illumination. And the STEREO PRECISION SELECT™ Tool removes the guesswork of fitting, allowing for a 74% fit success rate in two visits or less.¹ With ACUVUE® OASYS™ Brand for PRESBYOPIA, you're expanding the solid foundation of patient commitment and satisfaction provided by all ACUVUE® OASYS™ contact lenses-supporting continued practice retention and growth.
Click here for more information.

1. Data on file. Johnson & Johnson, 2008.
     ACUVUE® Brand Contact Lenses are indicated for vision correction. As with any contact lens, eye problems, including corneal ulcers, can develop. Some wearers may experience mild irritation, itching or discomfort. Lenses should not be prescribed if patients have any eye infection, or experience eye discomfort, excessive tearing, vision changes, redness or other eye problems. Consult the package insert for complete information. Complete information is also available from VISTAKON®, Division of Johnson & Johnson Vision Care, Inc., by calling 1-800-843-2020 or by visiting jnjvisioncare.com.
     ACUVUE®, ACUVUE® OASYS™, STEREO PRECISION TECHNOLOGY™, STEREO PRECISION SELECT™, and VISTAKON® are trademarks of Johnson & Johnson Vision Care, Inc.
© Johnson & Johnson Vision Care, Inc. 2009.

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Newly published research, by investigators at the North East England Stem Cell Institute (NESCI) in the journal Stem Cells, reported the first successful treatment of eight patients with Limbal Stem Cell Deficiency (LSCD) using the patients' own stem cells without the need of suppressing their immunity. (Kolli S, Ahmad S, Lako M, Figueiredo F, Successful clinical implementation of corneal epithelial stem cell therapy for treatment of unilateral limbal stem cell deficiency, Stem Cells 2009, DOI: 10.1002/stem.276)
     Dr. Francisco Figueiredo, a member of the NESCI team, said, "Corneal cloudiness has been estimated to cause blindness in 8 million people (10% of total blindness) worldwide each year. A large number of ocular surface diseases, both acquired and congenital, share features of partial or complete LSCD." Chemical burns to the eye are the most common cause of LSCD.
     Professor Michael Whitaker FMedSci, Co-Director of NESCI, which is a collaboration between Durham and Newcastle Universities, Newcastle NHS Foundation Trust and other partners, said: "Stem cells from bone marrow have been used successfully for many years to treat cancer and immune disease, but this is the first successful stem cell therapy using stem cells from the eye without animal products to treat disease."
     "It is hugely exciting to see that a type of stem cell therapy can now be applied routinely to treat a form of blindness," said Professor Robin Ali, FMedSci, Department of Genetics, UCL Institute of Ophthalmology, London. "These results also provide us with further encouragement to develop stem cell therapies to repair the retina in order to treat conditions such as age related macular degeneration."
     A larger study involving 24 new patients is currently underway with funding from the UK's Medical Research Council.

Global Specialty Lens Symposium, January 28-31, 2010, Bally's Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas
With an expert international faculty and a CE-accredited agenda, the 2010 GSLS will include insightful presentations by experts in the field, hands-on demonstrations of cutting-edge products as well as scientific papers and posters. Look for more detailed information in future issues of Contact Lens Spectrum and online at www.GSLSymposium.com.
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Grading contact lens complications is a time-effective process, which, if performed accurately, may improve patient management significantly. Multiple factors have been identified that influence grading accuracy, such as the knowledge, training, and experience of the observer. The aim of this study was to further explore the effect of knowledge on grading accuracy, both in terms of intensity and specificity, and to do so by avoiding the need to require the subjects to interpolate between whole number grades.
     Optometry students were divided into three knowledge groups according to their academic progress and in such a way that knowledge intensity and specificity could be evaluated separately. A vertical visual analog scale was devised to allow subjects to grade three different conditions of medium severity (position 50 of the scale) from the Institute for Eye Research grading scale, mainly, bulbar hyperemia, limbal vascularization, and lid redness.
     Bulbar hyperemia was graded lowest (mean = 21.5; SD = 1.4), followed by limbal vascularization (mean = 40.7; SD = 1.6) and lid redness (mean = 51.2; SD = 1.3), and these differences were found to be statistically significant (ANOVA, p = 0.000). Knowledge was found to influence the grading process, resulting in statistically significant differences in the overall grading performance of the three knowledge groups (ANOVA, p = 0.048). Furthermore, even if knowledge intensity failed to improve grading accuracy over a certain threshold, a combination of knowledge intensity and specificity resulted in an enhancement of the homogeneity of the grading data.
     The researchers concluded that knowledge intensity and specificity both contribute to improve grading skills, albeit through different mechanisms. An intermediate knowledge of contact lens complications is required to attain good grading accuracy, and a basic training in pathology is also advised.
Cardona G, Seres C. Grading contact lens complications: the effect of knowledge on grading accuracy. Curr Eye Res 2009;34:1074-81.

With all of the holiday advertising associated with this time of year, it just amazes me how advanced and inexpensive various electronic technologies have become. Many of you are on the front-lines of building some very tech savvy practices. I'd like to hear from you on this topic. What sort of tips or tricks with consumer technologies have you employed in your practices? Please email me with your tips, suggestions, and ideas (jnichols@optometry.osu.edu).
Jason J. Nichols, OD, MPH, PhD, FAAO 

This month at www.siliconehydrogels.org: adverse events with daily wear of silicone hydrogels, SEALs with extended wear, controlling case contamination, contact lens complications, and part two of our AAO 2008 synopsis.