Optician articles from February 2004

Optician archives from February 2004

Scleritis - thinning and necrosis.
February 6, 2004... Description The sclera is composed of criss-crossed lamellae of collagen fibres. It is of varying thickness being much thinner immediately posterior to the muscle insertions (approximately 0.3mm) and thickest around the optic nerve...

United in Manchester.(H J Wheeldon )
February 6, 2004... In the last of the profiles on the 2003 optician award winners, Samantha Dalton visited H J Wheeldon in Manchester to discover exactly what ingredients helped make it the Eyecare Practice of the Year Not many practices can boast they have...

Are you good with a camera?(www.visions-of-science.co.uk)
February 6, 2004... Practitioners are invited to enter a prestigious annual photographic competition from today. And a special category has been introduced to the contest to encourage more health professionals to get involved. Launched this week the 2004...

The decay of Dk?
February 6, 2004... In the first of three articles looking at contact lens material properties, Dr Philip Morgan and Dr Noel Brennan review the measurement of the oxygen performance of soft contact lenses and the clinical relevance of these measures for currently...

Buy in Munich.
February 6, 2004... optician reports from this year's increasingly popular Opti Munich exhibition where, unlike the UK, a flake or two of snow, doesn't make things grind to a halt The three-day Opti Munich show was memorable for the large numbers of...

The use of 1-Day Acuvue in patients reporting dry, sensitive or easily irritated eyes.
February 6, 2004... When choosing a soft lens for patients with symptoms of dryness and irritation there are many factors to consider. Cristina Schnider, Jane Veys and John Meyler evaluate the use of daily disposable lenses in self-identified sufferers The...

AO progressive gets Teflon coating.
February 6, 2004... u American Optical has teamed up its Teflon EasyCare lens coating with its general-purpose progressive the AO Pro Easy. The company states the AO Pro Easy provides visual performance patients can rely on, with a patented smoothing technique...

Education providers face funding crisis.
February 6, 2004... Time maybe running out for some providers of CET to the profession. Proposed fees for education companies could signal the end to the UK's nationwide professional development coverage. Samantha Dalton reports April is supposed to be 'the...

Topcon takes automated refraction on the road.(Brief Article)
February 6, 2004... Berkshire instruments supplier Topcon GB is to continue to highlight its 'breakthrough' refraction solution to practitioners this month via a nationwide five-venue seminar tour. 'Refraction: Do we still need to do it?' will start next...

Vision link to sleep disorder.(Brief Article)
February 6, 2004... A new study has found that eye disease can cause serious sleep disorders. Research in the US, published in this month's Ophthalmology shows inner retinal and optic nerve disease could be behind pathological sleepiness in some individuals. ...

Replay doubles the learning experience.(Brief Article)
February 6, 2004... The autumn clinical conference formerly known as NetLectures Live, which was attended by 250 delegates last October, has proved to be so successful it is being developed into two events. CET provider Replay Learning (formerly NetLectures)...

BCLA event to cover anterior ; management.(British Contact Lens Association)(Brief Article)
February 6, 2004... Management options for the anterior eye will be the topic for the second of the British Contact Lens Association's new-format CET events for 2004. The half-day course, which starts at 2pm, will be held at the Royal Society of Medicine in...

Regulators urge MEPs to vote for safeguards.
February 6, 2004... The GOC and other UK health regulators hope a European Parliament meeting next week will ensure practitioners from the continent need to be regulated before they can practise in Britain. It was in January last year (News, January 31 2003)...

Keeping pace; My fellow hack Moneo seems to have a conveniently selective memory when dealing with the College of Optometrists and the General Optical Council on the issue of quantitative surveys of their respective members and registrants. Having recently taken me to task for criticising the GOC Code of Conduct ques.
February 6, 2004... tionnaire and asserting that seeking the views of the professions has to be good, regardless of the way in which it is done, he now takes a swipe at the College for sending out a consultation document asking for views on the proposed new Bye...

Top-up fee 'only fair way' to pay for CET.(continuing education and training)(Brief Article)
February 6, 2004... The controversial issue of proposed fees for continuing education providers would be solved if the GOC raised the registration fee for optometrists. That was the message from the AOP and FODO at a meeting with optometry's regulatory body...

MPs investigate laser surgery safety record.
February 6, 2004... Representatives from the refractive surgery sector will be probed by MPs in the House of Commons next week in a forum on the safety of laser eye surgery. It follows last Wednesday's adjournment debate on the safety of laser eye surgery. ...

Luxottica profits slide as US dollar weakens.(Brief Article)
February 6, 2004... The Luxottica group announced a 28 per cent drop in profits for 2003 at E267.3m, mainly due to the weak dollar against the euro. Turnover in 2003 fell 11.2 per cent to E2.82bn but rose by 5.9 per cent in the fourth quarter to E718.1m. ...

Dutch group bids for Vision Express parent.(Hal Trusts)(Brief Article)
February 6, 2004... Vision Express' French parent company GrandVision is expected to be taken over by Dutch investment fund Hal Trusts, the group which holds retail optician interests in Germany, Holland and Italy. If it goes ahead, the deal - which values...

Show business in Japan.(Brief Article)
February 6, 2004... The 17th International Optical Fair Tokyo will be held from October 18-20 2004 at Tokyo Big Sight, with some 360 exhibitors expected. The last show, in October 2003, attracted 15,092 visitors, 344 exhibitors from 15 countries including the...

Seasonal allergic conjunctivitis (SAC); Allergic rhinoconjunctivitis, hayfever conjunctivitis.
February 13, 2004... Description Seasonal allergic conjunctivitis (SAC) is the most common form of ocular allergy. It is usually associated with allergic rhinitis (hay fever) and may be associated with other allergic diseases such as eczema and asthma....

The Diploma in OrthopticsPart 2 - The examination.
February 13, 2004... In the second part of our series looking at the Diploma in Orthoptics, Professor Bruce Evans explains the exact nature of the examination and describes how best to prepare for it All three modules in Orthoptics A are examined together and...

Defending Lasik.
February 13, 2004... Emanuel Rosen gives his opinions on the use and development of laser refractive surgery techniques and provides a response to the views put forward by William Jory (optician November 21) Lasik is currently the most frequently performed...

Swede talk.
February 13, 2004... optician reports on the start up of the joint venture Ego Frame, purveyors of Scandinavian fashion including the frames and sunglasses of J Lindeberg If you have noticed an increase in brightly coloured garments at international golf...

Brown-McLean syndrome in long-term contact lens wearers.
February 13, 2004... In another of our occasional series on unusual case presentations, Steve Johns describes a condition which, though rare, may exist undiagnosed for many years It is not uncommon to observe corneal changes in eyes that have undergone...

Expect the unexpected.
February 13, 2004... Another successful Eyecare 3000 conference included presentations on the management of glaucoma, diabetes, vitreo-retinal surgery and the latest research in the field of neuroscience. Caroline Chaplin reports from Glasgow With the...

New material from Lamda Polytech.(Lamda Polytech )
February 13, 2004... u Lamda Polytech has launched a new contact lens material. Managing director David Walsh said the Hydroplus 55, a water-retentive 55 per cent hydrophilic material, was the first of a 'series of breakthroughs' in product innovation. The...

MP questions varying cost of laser surgery.
February 13, 2004... 'What exactly is it that people are paying for?' the MP who brought about a House of Commons debate on refractive surgery asked his colleagues. Dr Ashok Kumar called for tighter safeguards for refractive surgery at the adjournment debate,...

Euro Diploma exam to be held in June.(Brief Article)
February 13, 2004... The next clinical examination for the European Diploma in Optometry will take place from June 4-6 2004 in Cologne. Part A (Visual perception and optical technologies) will take place on June 6, part B (Management of vision problems) on June...

When I'm 64.
February 13, 2004... Whether it's the impact it will have on the nation's healthcare or the black hole that exists in pension funds, we are forever being reminded how we live in an increasingly ageing population. optician looks at a few styles aimed at the growing...

moneowrites.
February 13, 2004... Let me run a couple of NHS speak questions past you and see how you react. Do you feel engaged by your primary care trust? Do you have ownership of the various strategies and policies of your primary care trust? These organisations deal a...

B&L targets new drivers.(Brief Article)
February 13, 2004... Bausch & Lomb has launched a six-month drivers' vision awareness campaign with the British School of Motoring (BSM). The eye care company is encouraging people who are registering for a driving course to take up a free contact lens trial...

Multiples face fight for survival, warns Hardy.(D&A )(Brief Article)
February 13, 2004... At least one optical multiple will disappear in 2004 because the retail market is stagnant and oversupplied. This was the renewed warning from D&A chief executive Russell Hardy this week, following a positive 2003 trading statement for the...

Parents of murdered OO to sue the police.
February 13, 2004... The parents of Giles Van Colle, the optometrist who was murdered three years ago, have issued a writ against the police for failing to protect him. Irwin and Corinne Van Colle have brought the action against the chief constable of...

Want to be a winner? Enter now!(Brief Article)
February 13, 2004... The hunt has begun to find the finalists for the optician Awards 2004. This year there is a range of new categories open to practices of all types and sizes across the UK and Ireland. Winners will be announced at a glittering black tie...

Refractive surgery in Commons spotlight.(Brief Article)
February 13, 2004... Key players from the UK's laser eye sector attended this week's House of Commons public forum on the safety of refractive surgery. One of the hosts, veteran Labour backbencher Frank Cook MP, has reportedly formed an all-party campaigning...

Latest news in low vision care.(Brief Article)
February 13, 2004... A primary care trust is targeting optometrists in a drive to inform them of forthcoming changes in low vision care. Camden & Islington PCT has joined forces with the RNIB to host a CET afternoon in April to inform practitioners of the...

Health Clinic back in black, claims boss.(Health Clinic plc)(Brief Article)
February 13, 2004... The full extent of the Health Clinic's previous financial difficulties have been revealed by the man who bought the group. Optical Express chief executive David Moulsdale told optician this week that the group he took out of administration...

Sebaceous cell carcinoma; Sebaceous gland carcinoma, meibomian carcinoma.
February 20, 2004... DESCRIPTION The eyelids contain modified sebaceous glands, including the meibomian glands which secrete the lipid layer of the tear film, and the Glands of Zeis which are associated with the lash follicles. There are also sebaceous glands...

Keeler Kowa nonmyd a-D.(Product/Service Evaluation)
February 20, 2004... In recent years, retinal imaging systems have become increasingly sophisticated but also increasingly affordable. With this in mind, James Sutton reviews one such system from Keeler The Kowa system offers either a 45[degrees] or 20[degrees]...

Reading problems and beyond.
February 20, 2004... Christine Fitzmaurice reports on a USoptometric conference held at the end of last year which discussed the latest research into reading difficulties, brain injury and developmental disorders Colour was high on the agenda at the recent...

The Red Desaturation Confrontation Disc.
February 20, 2004... Rachael Smith describes how she came to design a new chart for rapid evaluation of visual fields useful when looking for gross defects of neurological origin This article describes a new test chart to enable quick evaluation and detection...

Win a Coolpix camera.
February 20, 2004... After the impressive number of entrants to our last photographic competition, optician has teamed up with Keeler to launch a new competition aimed at highlighting the photographic skills of practitioners. Colin West of Keeler explains the rules...

Political correctness; or justified concern?
February 20, 2004... John Stewart-Robinson is an advocate of the principle that prescribing small amounts of prism help alleviate learning difficulties in some children. But he is now at loggerheads with his LOC and PCT and is having his methods evaluated by a peer...

Fraud falls in Wales.(Brief Article)
February 20, 2004... Optical practitioners in Wales have played a key role in cutting patient fraud by more than one fifth, Welsh Assembly health minister Jane Hutt has said. The NHS Counter Fraud Service reported a 22 per cent reduction in the annual [pounds...

Nidek NT-4000; Is one puff enough?(Product/Service Evaluation)
February 20, 2004... Tina Romanay looks at a new non-contact tonometer that claims to compensate for the ocular pulse variation, allowing for accuracy of measurement with just one puff For many years it has been standard practice to measure intraocular...

Nidek RT-900.(Product/Service Evaluation)
February 20, 2004... Bill Harvey tries out the latest addition to the increasingly popular range of automated refractor heads I have a personal bias towards automated refractor heads. As with most students before and since, my university training involved the...

GDx VCC lecture.(variable cornea compensator)
February 20, 2004... Kirit Patel attended a recent seminar run by two advocates of the GDx which ended with a screening session Veni-Vidi, UK distributor of the GDx VCC, organised two educational lectures for the scanning laser polarimeter, incorporating...

Siltint offers update on coatings.
February 20, 2004... u A new leaflet available free of charge from Siltint is designed to help opticians keep their patients updated on the latest mirror coatings available from the lens coating specialist. The leaflet features Siltint's new Dichroic Red...

Call for entries.(Grafton Optical sponsors technology award)
February 20, 2004... optician begins a series of articles outlining categories for this year's optician Awards, beginning with the Technology, the Specialist Eyecare and the Start-up practices of the year. The deadline for entries is March 24, with the big night...

ABDO presses Reid on lack of CETfunds.(Association of British Dispensing Opticians)(continuing education and training)
February 20, 2004... ABDO has appealed to the health secretary over the lack of financial support for dispensing opticians' continuing education and training. Its president, James Russell, has written to Dr John Reid after the professional body announced that...

Obituary - Charles AG Cook.(Obituary)
February 20, 2004... u Charles Cook was a prominent figure in the foundation of the College of Optometrists but before that he served as a major in the Royal Army Medical Corps with distinction. He won his two decorations for bravery in 1945 - the Military Cross...

EyeScape is the latest sponsor.(Brief Article)
February 20, 2004... Digital imaging brand EyeScape has joined Paradigm as a Grafton Optical technology partner to support the Technology Practice of the Year category in this year's optician Awards. The first run of entry forms went out with last week's...

OOs urged to reveal fees to laser patients.
February 20, 2004... MPs have been told that optometrists' fees for referring individuals to laser eye clinics must be made known to the prospective patient. The urgent need for transparency was made at a specially convened House of Commons public hearing last...

Laser surgery in the dock.
February 20, 2004... Last week, providers of refractive surgery were called to face MPs following damning media investigations. The Parliamentary forum lifted the lid on the sector. David Challinor reports MPs are suddenly anxious to know what is going on in...

Optom fined by GOC.
February 20, 2004... An optometrist from the north east has been fined [pounds sterling]1,600 after she was found guilty of serious professional misconduct by a GOC disciplinary committee. Alison Hargreaves faced six allegations involving her treatment of 14...

Conlons agrees laser deal with Ultralase.(Conlons)(Brief Article)
February 20, 2004... Conlons, the north west and Scotland opticians chain, has signed a co-management deal with one of Britain's largest laser eye treatment providers. The deal, made with Ultralase, starts from March 1, when all Conlons Opticians will offer...

High-Rx lens vouchers up 10 per cent.(Brief Article)
February 20, 2004... The Government has signalled a 10 per cent rise in the value of optical vouchers C, D, G and H in England. In most cases, other optical vouchers will increase by 2.5 per cent from April 1 2004. The rises were included in a written...

Seborrhoeic keratosis; Basal cell papilloma, keratinocyte hyperplasia.
February 27, 2004... DESCRIPTION Seborrhoeic keratosis occurs due to an epidermal keratinocyte hyperplasia. Foci of keratinising cells form cysts within the lesion. When the cysts coalesce and reach the surface of the skin, there is a discharge of the...

First principles of selling.
February 27, 2004... Michael Green is passing on his sales skills to practices and frame suppliers alike. He spoke to optician about going back to basics, giving the staff pride in their professionalism while satisfying patient needs As a former sales director...

Ocular therapeutics - Part 3; The ocular adnexa.
February 27, 2004... Dr John Lawrenson continues his discussion of the structure of the ocular adnexa with a look at the lacrimal system and the pre-ocular tear film (CET Module C4823c) The lacrimal apparatus provides for the production and maintenance of the...

Reception masterclass.(Lifelearn Eyecare, an optometric education company based at the School of Optometry, University of Waterloo, Canada)(Product/Service Evaluation)
February 27, 2004... Dr Richard Calver reviews a CD-Rom, Essentials of Client Service for the Optometry Office which may prove useful for reception and ancillary staff training Most practice owners will be aware of the benefits that an efficient optometric...

Record-keeping audit in a domiciliary setting.(Healthcall Optical Services )
February 27, 2004... Dawn Roberts and Arif Ladha discuss an audit of clinical records that was carried out at Healthcall Optical Services in the latter part of 2003. With much interest currently concerning quality assurance and clinical governance, such audits are...

Sight and sound.
February 27, 2004... Samantha Dalton examines the potentially profitable link between audiology and optics and discovers that it is a tie-up that can attract additional patients through the door The wearing of hearing aids is by no means restricted to the...

Brand bonanza.
February 27, 2004... Earlier this month, Luxottica unveiled an impressive array of new eyewear with a launch at the trendy St Martins Hotel in central London. optician reports With Prada now firmly established in the Luxottica stable, along with Jil Sander and...

Rodenstock goes east.(Brief Article)
February 27, 2004... Rodenstock has announced it is scaling back production in Germany in favour of cheaper alternatives in the Czech Republic and Thailand. By 2006, 350 of the 800 jobs at the German lens giant's Regen facility in Bavaria will be transferred...

Mixed results at the new year round-up.
February 27, 2004... January benchmarks bounce back from a dull December, but dispensing and eye examinations lag behind last year's results January 2004 showed an improvement over December's results, although eye examinations and dispensing fell against...

Oakley battles counterfeiters.(Oakley )
February 27, 2004... As Oakley reports record seizures of counterfeit product, Rory Brogan finds out the scale of the problem in the UK That counterfeiting of eyewear represents serious money for some and a serious headache for others is vividly demonstrated by...

CLindustry backs plano plans.(Association of Contact Lens Manufacturers )(Brief Article)
February 27, 2004... Contact lens manufacturers have welcomed the news that the Department of Health is to issue a consultation document regarding the regulation of plano contact lenses. As reported last week (News, February 20), the DoH plans to regulate...

Credit where credit's due.
February 27, 2004... If you're buying a new dishwasher or flat-screen TVyou would expect to have the option of paying through some kind of financing, preferably interest-free credit. But how many practices offer credit to patients wishing to buy a premium pair of...

OO struck off for child porn conviction.(Brief Article)
February 27, 2004... An optometrist who was put on the Sex Offenders Register for downloading hundreds of pornographic images of children has been erased from the Opticians Register. While Eric Godfrey was not present for his hearing, the GOC's disciplinary...

Charities message better than cards, says Scrivens.
February 27, 2004... u Optical and hearing care company Scrivens came up with a novel idea to raise money for charity by saving on buying and sending Christmas cards for 2003. Half the [pounds sterling]5,000 has gone to Cancer Research UK and the other half to...

Call for entries.
February 27, 2004... optician continues to outline the categories for the optician Awards 2004, with a look at the Eyecare, Fashion Eyewear and Large High Street practices of the year Eyecare Practice of the Year Understanding how your practice is...

Obituary - Tom Stokes.(Brief Article)(Obituary)
February 27, 2004... Former Bolton practitioner Tom Stokes has died. He was 90. Born in 1913, Thomas John Stokes won a scholarship to study ophthalmology at Manchester College of Technology in 1931. Unable to afford instruments he constructed his own using...

OO readmitted to the Register.(Brief Article)
February 27, 2004... A practitioner who, it was claimed, encouraged his staff to join with him in defrauding the NHS has been readmitted to the Opticians Register. A GOC disciplinary committee heard last week that optometrist Stephen Penrose was a changed man....

Institute wins support from instrument firm.(Institute of Optometry)(Veni Vidi)(Brief Article)
February 27, 2004... The Institute of Optometry has announced that Veni Vidi, the UK distributor of the GDx VCC is to sponsor the Institute's glaucoma co-management courses and the supplementary and Independent Prescribing course. Veni Vidi is the UK...

Robert Frith expands south-west coverage.(Robert Frith Optometrists)(Eyewear House)(Clifford Walker Optometrists)(Brief Article)
February 27, 2004... South-west optical group Robert Frith Optometrists has expanded with the purchase of two practices. It has acquired Chard-based Eyewear House in Somerset and Clifford Walker Optometrists in Sidmouth, Devon. The purchases bring the...

Case of the loose screw ends in court.(Brief Article)
February 27, 2004... An Essex-based dispensing optician is warning all practitioners to be on their guard against litigious customers following an unpleasant experience with the legal system. Anil Kumar Gupta of Aves Opticians in Ilford said his situation...

omenwrites.(Association of British Dispensing Opticians)(Association of Optometrists)(College of Optometrists)(Brief Article)
February 27, 2004... For the public good As we head towards the annual general meetings of the Association of British Dispensing Opticians, the Association of Optometrists and the College of Optometrists, it is worth thinking about the sacrifice made by...

Optical Express starts joint venture scheme.
February 27, 2004... Optical Express, the acquisitive multiple, is to launch a joint venture partnership programme. Four of its outlets will become franchises from April, with another two in the pipeline. David Moulsdale, chief executive of the Scottish-based...

Finance expert renews warning over National Insurance charge.(Brief Article)
February 27, 2004... A specialist financial adviser to the profession has repeated his warning that some practitioners will face 'shock' tax and National Insurance rises following next month's Budget. In December, optician reported that Marc Bennett, partner at...

Beware VATbullies, warns tax specialist.
February 27, 2004... A VAT expert has told opticians to resist Customs officials from extracting unwarranted VAT apportionment sums when visiting their practices. Fred Cowgill, VAT specialist on apportionment and the optical profession, claimed this week that...

Specsavers censured for 2-for-1 'omission'.(Brief Article)
February 27, 2004... Specsavers Optical Group has been told to modify small print in a two-for-one promotion after the Advertising Standards Authority found its current terms and conditions to be 'misleading by omission'. Two members of the public...