Unilens Vision Inc. announced the acquisition of the specialty gas permeable contact lens manufacturer Aero Contact Lens, Inc. located in Michigan. Under the terms of the agreement, Unilens acquired certain assets of Aero Contact Lens, Inc. including regulatory approvals, customer lists, trade names and various other resources. The gas permeable Aero Contact Lens Brands acquired through the asset purchase include the V/X Multifocal, the Aspirations Multifocal and the R-2000 Keratoconus Lens. The lenses will be manufactured and marketed by Unilens under their pre-existing product brand names from the Unilens Corporation, USA headquarters and manufacturing facility located in Largo, Florida.
     Unilens will continue the Aero Contact Lens tradition of excellent customer service and consultation from the Aero Michigan office and current Aero pricing and policy programs will stay in effect to ensure a smooth transition.

Practice Resource Management, Inc. is currently conducting an online web-based study, the Global Contact Lens Annuity Study, to determine the economic impact of contact lens drop-out in an eye care business/practice. It is well established that contact lens drop-out is frequent, but there is little data on the true economic impact of contact lens dropout. This new model to evaluate the health economics of a contact lens practice is being designed to assess the average value that a contact lens patient represents to U.S. and worldwide contact lens practices.
     This brief online survey interview is designed to help practitioners understand the true value of contact lens patients to their business in addition to the impact on business' profitability when a contact lens patient drops out, using real-time, location specific information and currency conversions. Upon completion of the interview, respondents will immediately be provided with key metrics for their practices, countrywide averages of these key metrics, and global averages of these key metrics.
     The study is being conducted 12/8/2008 - 1/31/2009 during which time the website will be active and collecting data. To register and login for the study, go to http://GCLAC.PracticeResourceMgmt.com. The privacy policy does not allow disclosure or discussion of general practice specific information. Further, the highest degree of security and confidentiality will be maintained during the course of the study using 128-bit data & password encryption and verification processes. 

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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The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Dermatologic and Ophthalmic Drugs Advisory Committee voted unanimously to recommend approval of Bausch & Lomb's (B&L) besifloxacin ophthalmic suspension, 0.6%, for the treatment of bacterial conjunctivitis. The company has developed this broad-spectrum, anti-infective drop specifically for ophthalmic use. All new chemical entities such as besifloxacin, a fluoroquinolone, must be reviewed by an FDA advisory committee as part of the approvals review process for new drug applications.
     "We are encouraged by the committee discussion and vote, and look forward to continue working with the FDA to gain final approval," said Flemming Ornskov, MD, MPH, Corporate Vice President and Global President, Pharmaceuticals, B&L. "Our intent remains to bring this innovative product to market, beginning in the U.S., in 2009."

The thought of Christmas shopping getting you down?  Give the Gift of Vision.  www.givingsight.org/giftofvision
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Earlier this year, Alcon redesigned its Opti-Free Replenish MPDS starter kits to make them more environmentally friendly. Now, working with the optometric community and the Arbor Day Foundation, the country's oldest and largest tree-planting organization, Alcon is planting thousands of healthy young trees in National Forests across the U.S.
     "Because a healthy earth is important to everyone, we want to do our part to restore America's precious natural resources," says David Smat, Alcon's Associate Director of Corporate Environmental Affairs. "We asked optometrists across the nation if they would like to participate in this initiative, and thousands responded. We thank them for helping Alcon achieve its goal of planting 10,000 new trees."
     This initiative comes on the heels of a packaging redesign that helped make Opti-Free Replenish MPDS starter kits more eco-friendly. Released in July, the new starter kits are 44% smaller, requiring fewer resources to manufacture and generating less waste when the packaging is discarded. This redesign allowed Alcon to increase the number of starter kits shipped per pallet, without increasing energy and natural resource consumption. 

17+ hours of CE  ·  International Speakers  ·  Hands-on Access to New Products  ·  On the Strip in Las Vegas
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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The majority of studies investigating protein deposition on contact lens materials require that the deposit of interest be removed, potentially resulting in erroneous results if some proteins are not removed adequately. The purpose of this study was to investigate the use of in situ imaging methods to examine protein deposition on conventional poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (polyHEMA)-based and silicone hydrogel contact lens materials.
     Six silicone hydrogel and five polyHEMA-based hydrogel contact lens materials were examined by Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) and/or Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) techniques, after being deposited with proteins in an in vitro model. AFM studies examined lenses deposited solely with lysozyme at approximate physiological concentrations and SEM studies were conducted on lenses exposed to a dilute mixture of lysozyme and albumin-conjugated gold spheres.
     AFM studies demonstrated that the lens materials had markedly differing surface topographies. SEM results showed that galyfilcon A and balafilcon A lenses deposited both lysozyme and albumin in relatively large aggregates, as compared with lotrafilcon A and B, in which the proteins were deposited in a more evenly spread, monolayer formation. Polymacon lenses deposited more protein than any of the silicone hydrogel materials and much of the protein was aggregated together. AFM data indicated that balafilcon A, lotrafilcon A and polymacon deposited lysozyme in a similar manner, with very little lysozyme being deposited in discrete areas. Galyfilcon A behaved very differently, with the lysozyme exhibiting both aggregates as well as string-like formations over the lens surface.
     The authors concluded that imaging techniques that allow proteins to be examined in situ show much promise for determining the extent and physical characterization of protein on contact lens materials. These techniques indicate that the pattern of deposition of proteins onto silicone hydrogel contact lens materials differs between materials, depending upon their bulk and surface composition.
Teichroeb JH, Forrest JA, Ngai V, Martin JW, Jones L, Medley J. Imaging protein deposits on contact lens materials. Optom Vis Sci 2008;85:1151-64. 

In looking forward to 2009, we anticipate seeing several new contact lens innovations introduced to the market. We know that there will be a daily disposable silicone hydrogel lens introduced in the United States, and it is likely that we will see more silicone hydrogel options with multifocal and toric lenses. It is also possible that we will see a new or reformulated care solution become available. As I discuss in my annual review to be published in the January issue of Contact Lens Spectrum, the ophthalmic sector as a whole showed some growth in 2008 and most of you are expecting further individual practice growth in 2009. I hope that these exciting new innovations will indeed come to fruition and as you expect, I am certain that our field will again prosper this forthcoming year.  
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?