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Editor's Commentary - Jason J. Nichols, OD, MPH, PhD, FAAO
It's December now which means that 2013 is winding down—and it seems rather quickly I might add. We have had a great year in contact lenses, and we'll be sure to fill you in on all those details with our Annual Report for 2013, which prints in the January 2014 issue. With the new year upon us, have you started to think about your contact lens practice resolutions? It's time to give it some thought.

ABB Optical Group Expands Their Portfolio of Custom Soft Contact Lenses

ABB Optical Group now offers its customers two new custom soft contact lens product lines. Customers can order through the ABB Optical Group specialty contact lens department the full line of SynergEyes Inc. products and BioColors from Orion Vision Group.

The new BioColors is an extensive line of lenses available in any prescription in sphere powers of +/- 20.00 in 0.25D steps and up to a 6 diopters of cylinder power with axis in 1 degree steps around the clock; 16 tint colors combined with a choice of starburst and/or limbal ring elements. BioColors are available in Methafilcon 55%, Polymacon 38% and Definitive 74% silicone hydrogel.

Orion also has prosthetic lenses, in standard colors and hand painted, occluded pupil, and clear pupil features, available with four underprint shades to select from.

ABB Optical Group recommends that customers purchase the BioColors fitting set for warranty exchange privileges. This 23 lens fitting set includes the full range of 16 tints, clear starburst lens, clear limbal ring lens, four underprint shades, one occluded pupil lens, one clear toric lens, and costs under $200.

To learn more about the new custom soft lenses or to place your order for a trial set contact ABB Optical Group’s Specialty Contact Lens Consultation Team at 800–772–3911 and choose option 4. Those attending the Global Specialty Lens Symposium in Las Vegas, January 23-26, 2014, are welcome to stop by their booth, number 322, to learn more about the company’s complete custom soft contact lens product offerings.

American Academy of Ophthalmology and American Academy of Optometry Explore Educational Opportunities to Advance Quality Eye Care

The American Academy of Ophthalmology and the American Academy of Optometry announced a joint initiative to work together to better prepare and support their members in delivering the highest quality eye care. The two organizations are continuing education leaders for ophthalmology and optometry, respectively. They are engaging with each other in an effort to foster a mutual approach to serving a growing population of patients in the United States who are expected to require eye health services in the near future.

This effort marks the first-ever large-scale, organized effort within the optometry and ophthalmology professions in support of joint educational initiatives. The two academies’ leaders said that they believe that truly effective collaborative care requires coordination of education and standards of care between the professions of optometry and ophthalmology, which together cover the spectrum of eye care services that range from primary care through the most complex surgical management.

By working together, the two organizations anticipate being better positioned to assist their respective members in being able to efficiently manage the rapidly growing demand for eye care due to many chronic eye diseases increasing in prevalence in the U.S. related to the aging Baby Boomer population. They also expect that healthcare reform will result in a significant increase in the number of Americans seeking eye care.

The academies are jointly informing their respective memberships to ensure that their members are aware of this collaborative strategic effort and have an opportunity to provide feedback to the organizations as they begin to create educational opportunities. The organizations anticipate that these programs will be developed over the next 12-18 months with a formal launch in 2015.

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Don’t Miss the 2014 Global Specialty Lens Symposium – January 23 - 26
Register today to attend the Global Specialty Lens Symposium to be held January 23 - 26, 2014 at the Rio All Suites Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. Brought to you by Contact Lens Spectrum, this 3 1/2 day comprehensive meeting focuses on the latest techniques and technologies for the successful management of ocular conditions using today's specialty contact lenses. It includes insightful presentations by international experts in the field, hands-on demonstrations of cutting-edge products and valuable continuing education credits.

Visit www.GSLSymposium.com for more information and registration.
– ADVERTISING
AllAboutVision.com Releases Free Patient Handout for Practitioners

As the year comes to an end, many people are planning New Year’s resolutions and focusing on better health. To help eyecare professionals encourage their patients to make eye health a priority, AllAboutVision.com has released the 2014 Checklist for an Eye-Healthy New Year.

The checklist, which can be downloaded and personalized, is available to practitioners for free at www.allaboutvision.com/ecp/seasonal-checklist.htm. It lists 12 simple tips to help patients improve their vision and eye health throughout the year. Once downloaded, doctors can add their practice contact information and print or email out as many copies as they would like.

In addition to the patient handout, AllAboutVision.com has created a fun infographic with eight tips for healthy vision in the New Year. To read, share, or embed the infographic on a practice website, visit www.allaboutvision.com/resources/checklist-infographic.htm.

AOAExcel Offers Customized Financial Lending for ODs

AOAExcel, a wholly owned subsidiary of the American Optometric Association, has recently partnered with Healthcare Professional Funding (HPF) to offer financial solutions for ODs looking to advance their practice.

With over three decades of experience in healthcare financing, HPF is highly skilled in understanding the unique needs of every practice and designing lending programs that best meet the needs of individual doctors. HPF offers 100% financing for the entire project with competitive fixed rates, fast approvals and no hidden fees. Financing projects include: equipment, start-up, purchasing a practice, improvements, relocation, and expansion.

To learn more about a customized lending plan to enhance your practice; visit www.ExcelOD.com/practice-finance or call 855-944-2265.


Superior Peripheral Marginal Degeneration
Edward Boshnick, OD, Miami, Florida

This picture shows rare superior peripheral marginal degeneration. Uncorrected vision in this eye is 20/800. With a 20mm scleral lens patient is able to see 20/20. Soft contact lenses and eye glasses are unable to improve visual acuity beyond 20/150. This is a binocular condition as both corneas have the same appearance

We thank Dr. Boshnick for this image and we welcome photo submissions from our other readers! It is easy to submit a photo for consideration for publishing in Contact Lenses Today. Simply visit http://www.cltoday.com/upload/upload.aspx to upload your image. Please include an explanation of the photo and your full name, degree or title and city/state/country


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CARE SOLUTION CORNER
Susan J. Gromacki, OD, MS, FAAO

Characteristics of Compliant and Noncompliant Patients

Noncompliance (or nonadherence) with a medical treatment regimen can result in progression of disease.1 Given the possible association between non-compliance and infection,2 industry and practitioners alike have been attempting to understand the personal characteristics of noncompliant patients so that we can better identify them and provide them the education they need.

A recent presentation at the American Academy of Optometry’s Annual Meeting3 helps shed some light on this issue. After surveying 9677 patients, the authors concluded that patients who were not compliant with replacing their contact lenses as recommended were also less likely to purchase an annual supply of contact lenses and return for their annual eye examinations on time. The interval between eye examinations (IEE) was shorter for patients who purchased their lenses directly from their eyecare practitioner (15.7 months) than for those who purchased their lenses from the internet (17.4 months) or another supplier (17.3 months) (both p<0.001). In addition, patients who had a higher household income, insurance covering eye examinations, or were of the female gender were found to be more likely to return for their annual eye examinations as scheduled. In conclusion, it seems that patients who are noncompliant with one component of their contact lens wear are more likely to be noncompliant in other areas as well.

1. Szabo MM, Enlow PT and Duncan CL. Understanding the psychology of non-adherence. Rev Corn CL. 2013 June:14-17.
2. Chang DC, Grant GB, O’Donnell K, et al. Multisite outbreak of Fusarium keratitis associated with use of a contact lens solution. JAMA. 2006;296(8):953-963.
3. Dumbleton K, Richter D, Jones L et al. http://member.aaopt.org/Submission/Search/SubmissionViewer.asp?SID=32126&BR=SP

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OCULAR SURFACE UPDATE
Katherine M. Mastrota, MS, OD, FAAO

Moxibustion and Dry Eye

Last week I had the opportunity to be in the audience at a CE lecture at SUNY Optometry. The speaker was a well-respected and accomplished practitioner of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), Professor Wei Yang. Dr. Yang, via translator, described his practice in the Acupuncture Department at the China Beijing Tongren Hospital. Dr. Yang has worked with acupuncture for more than 30 years, most recently focused on the treatment of dry eye with acupuncture and moxibustion. He sees approximately 10,000 patients yearly. Speaking to the significant interest in the topic, the room was filled with optometrists and TCM practitioners.

Moxibustion, the application of heat to acupuncture points, has been used throughout Asia for thousands of years and is one of the oldest forms of oriental therapy.

Moxibustion involves the burning of mugwort, a small, spongy herb, to facilitate healing. The purpose of moxibustion, as with most forms of traditional Chinese medicine, is to strengthen the blood, stimulate the flow of qi (natural energy/life force), and maintain general health. A 2013 literature analysis on acupuncture-moxibustion for dry eye syndrome suggests that it promotes tear production.1 More to follow…

1. Zhang CH, Zhang LL, Ma XP, Yang L, Hong,J, Lui J, Wu LX. Research on acupuncture-moxibuation for dry eye eyndrome. J. Acupunct Tuina Sci. 2013, 11(2):72-78.

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The TFOS International Workshop on CL Discomfort: Executive Summary

Recent estimates suggest that up to half of contact lens wearers experience contact lens discomfort (CLD) with considerable frequency. This condition impacts millions of contact lens wearers worldwide; however, there is a paucity of consensus and standardization in the scientific and clinical communities on the characterization of the condition, including the definition, classification, epidemiology, pathophysiology, diagnosis, management, influence of contact lens materials, designs and care, and the proper design of clinical trials.

The Tear Film & Ocular Surface Society (TFOS), a nonprofit organization, has recently completed and published the TFOS International Workshop on Contact Lens Discomfort in IOVS (http://www.iovs.org/content/54/11.toc). The process of conducting the workshop began in January 2012—a process that took approximately 18 months to complete and included 79 experts in the field. These experts participated in one or more topical subcommittees, and were assigned with taking an evidence-based approach at evaluating CLD. Eight topical subcommittees were formed, with each generating a related report, all of which were circulated for presentation, review, and input of the entire workshop membership.

The entire workshop is published in English, with subsequent translations into numerous other languages in progress. All of this information is intended to be available and accessible online, free of charge. The Executive summary is intended to serve as a summary of the eight subcommittee reports, and all information contained in the Executive Summary was abstracted from the full reports.

TFOS has conducted two prior international, consensus building workshops, including the Dry Eye WorkShop (DEWS; available in the public domain at http://www.tearfilm.org/tearfilm-reports-dews-report.php) and the Meibomian Gland Dysfunction Workshop (MGD; available in the public domain at http://www.tearfilm.org/tearfilm-reports-mgdreport.php).

Nichols JJ, Willcox MD, Bron AJ, Belmonte C, Ciolino JB, Craig JP, Dogru M, Foulks GN, Jones L, Nelson JD, Nichols KK, Purslow C, Schaumberg DA, Stapleton F, Sullivan DA; members of the TFOS International Workshop on Contact Lens Discomfort. The TFOS International Workshop on Contact Lens Discomfort: Executive Summary. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2013 Oct 18;54(11):TFOS7-TFOS13. doi: 10.1167/iovs.13-13212.
Source: The Ocular Surface Institute, University of Houston College of Optometry, Houston, Texas.


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