Optician articles from September 2002

Optician archives from September 2002

Foreign bodies - corneal and conjunctival.(eye care)(Brief Article)
September 6, 2002... Description The eye is relatively protected from contact with foreign bodies by the brow, cheek, eyelashes and eyelid. It is also protected by the action of the lids and Bell's phenomenon acting together to prevent anything but fast moving...

How to set up your contact lens systems.
September 6, 2002... In Part 5 of our series on developing practitioners' contact lens business, Chris Worsman looks at the systems that should be put in place to ensure a smooth running and efficient practice There are few things more infuriating to a contact...

Blood stains lead to arrest of specs thief.(Christopher Poole admits to stealing spectacles from Darlington Opticians)(Brief Article)
September 6, 2002... A burglar who stole 250 spectacles from a South Wales practice was caught after a member of staff noticed a blood stain and alerted police. Christopher Poole, 20, pleaded guilty to stealing [pound]2,500 worth of items from Darlington...

Advanced orthokeratology: ; Part 2: Patient selection and trial lens fitting.
September 6, 2002... John Mountford continues our CET series on orthokeratology by describing suitable patients and the procedure for fitting them with trial lenses (Module C4204b) Unlike routine RGP fitting, where the likely success of the patient can be...

Cataract work reduces risk of car accidents.(cataract surgery)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
September 6, 2002... Cataract surgery can reduce an older motorist's risk of being involved in a car accident by almost half, a new study has found. Researchers at the University of Alabama's Department of Ophthalmology looked at the incidence of car accidents...

A clinical evaluation of the Biomedics Toric.(contact lenses)
September 6, 2002... Guy Whittaker presents a comparative study of Ocular Sciences' Biomedics Toric with other soft disposable toric contact lenses More than one third of the spectacle-wearing population has 0.75D or more of astigmatism, and 27.5 per cent of...

Seeking the answers.(handling patients' questions about refractive surgery)(Brief Article)
September 6, 2002... As more patients express interest in refractive surgery, optometrists must be prepared to allay any fears. A forthcoming OEL lecture series can help Refractive surgery is without doubt one of the areas of clinical practice that is...

RGP refresher - Part 2; The fitting of toric rigid gas-permeable contact lenses.
September 6, 2002... In part two of a three-part CET series, A J Elder Smith discusses the fitting procedures for toric RGP lenses and offers a practical approach that can be applied in a busy practice (CET Module C4205b) The fitting of rigid gas-permeable...

Looking for a new job? Look online.(optician revises employment website)(Brief Article)
September 6, 2002... optician has revamped the jobs area of its website www.optom etryonline.net to help both those looking to fill vacancies and those seeking new challenges. Hosted at www.optician jobs.net, the jobs area has been designed to help people in...

Silmo is 5% ahead for October.(Brief Article)
September 6, 2002... The director of next month's Silmo trade show in Paris claims the event has shrugged off an 'international economic slowdown' to increase stand space by almost 5 per cent. Eric Lenoir admitted that all trade events had suffered from the...

Frequency 55 on the crest of a wave.(windsurfer Helen Cartwright endorses contact lenses from CooperVision)(Brief Article)
September 6, 2002... u Highly ranked windsurfer Helen Cartwright is wearing CooperVision's Frequency 55 aspheric lenses as her first choice, on and off the water. Now aged 23 and ranked third in the UK, Ms Cartwright said that CooperVision's Frequency 55...

CL marketing drive heads north.
September 6, 2002... The Association of Contact Lens Manufacturers is to host its third one-day training course later this month. The September 23 event in Leeds is aimed at helping practitioners grow the contact lens market by targeting patients who are...

College offers health care plan.(Brief Article)
September 6, 2002... The College of Optometrists has announced a new comprehensive medical health insurance scheme for its members. The deal was made with Western Provident Association (WPA). The College said this week that negotiations had resulted in an...

Profession to discuss role in diabetes care.(eye care professionals)(Brief Article)
September 6, 2002... A national conference which aims to help eye care professionals play a greater role in the DoH's latest blueprint for diabetes care has been scheduled for November. It is hoped that the day-long meeting will provide a forum for delegates...

nemowrites.(normal time of sight tests)(Brief Article)
September 6, 2002... Time factor Asda's expectation that its ophthalmic opticians undertake around 18 sight tests a day (optician, 30 August), interesting per se, raises a pertinent general question. It is not so much the theoretical one of how long a sight...

Multiple encouraged by profitability boost.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
September 6, 2002... Sales at Vision Express, the UK and Ireland multiple, were 'disappointing' for the first half of 2002, its French parent has announced. GrandVision, which has optical outlets in a dozen European countries, reported sales had increased by 6...

Will Surrey adopt AOP plan for extra charges?(Surrey, England)(Brief Article)
September 6, 2002... Surrey-based optometrists may be the next group of practitioners to adopt the AOP's controversial extended eye exam protocol. If agreed, it would mean up to 170 practitioners charging for what are considered extra procedures. However,...

Going Dutch.(Fielmann, Specsavers in price competition in Holland)(Brief Article)
September 6, 2002... Optometrists in the UK are enjoying a chuckle at the expense of their Dutch counterparts. This comes courtesy of the a price war between Fielmann and Specsavers which has seen the cost of complete pairs of spectacles spiral down to practically...

OO part of trio of hole-in-ones.
September 6, 2002... Optometrist Austin Roberts was the first of three friends to score consecutive hole-in-one shots within 15 minutes of each other at a Swansea golf course last week. Mr Roberts is club champion at the Langland Bay Golf Course, where the...

California puts a stop to the one-stop shop.(Brief Article)
September 6, 2002... California's attorney general Bill Lockyer is challenging the common practice of performing eye examinations and dispensing eyewear from the same premises, reports VisionMonday.com. A rarely-enforced state law prohibiting 'one-stop...

Protocol is 'fraught with danger'.(Brief Article)
September 6, 2002... Efforts to supplement GOS remuneration by asking patients to pay fees for extra assessments have been criticised for possibly leading practitioners into a legal minefield. Although the AOP claims the idea is catching on following its June...

OOs can help cut cost of falls among elderly.(Brief Article)
September 6, 2002... A Newcastle professor, who led research which found a falls day case facility for elderly people saves the NHS [pound]2.5m annually, has said optometrists are important to deliver further savings. The message comes as the National Institute...

Atkins sets his sights on refractive surgery.(Advance VisionCare hies Nick Atkins as general manager)(Brief Article)
September 6, 2002... Former head of marketing at Bausch & Lomb UK Nick Atkins has been appointed general manager of Advance VisionCare, a new refractive surgery business, based in the south east. Mr Atkins, who is a dispensing and contact lens optician, will be...

Electronic agency targets optics.(Pro-Reach)(Brief Article)
September 6, 2002... A founder of one of Britain's first contact-lenses-by-post companies is starting a new business aimed at helping optical companies utilise electronic communications more profitably. Robin Kennedy, who was one of the directors of Direct...

Fuch's endothelial dystrophy.(corneal disease)(Brief Article)
September 13, 2002... Description Fuch's endothelial dystrophy is a hereditary, often autosomal dominant disorder. It has variable penetrance and affects women more than men at a proportion of approximately 5:1. It primarily affects the corneal endothelial...

Disease and normality - a subtle dividing line.(eye diseases)(Brief Article)
September 13, 2002... In the final part of OEL's September roadshow, 'Dabbling in the Dark?', Dr Jennifer Craig and Professor Charles McGhee will be addressing the optometrist's dilemma 'Is it a disease or is it normal?' to produce an interactive presentation...

moneowrites.(Eyecare Trust)(Brief Article)
September 13, 2002... Eye care message The other day I was with a patient who was telling me the sad tale of a friend who had just been told that she had glaucoma and that it was quite far advanced. I sensed from the way that the conversation was going that she...

Back to basics.(Essential Contact Lens Practice by Jane Veys, John Meyler and Ian Davies)
September 13, 2002... Judith Morris reviews Essential Contact Lens Practice by Jane Veys, John Meyler and Ian Davies The concept of putting already written and published articles into book form is fast becoming the norm for our trade journals. Often the...

On the move.(Siltint Industries)(Brief Article)
September 13, 2002... Over the past nine months, lens coating specialist Siltint Industries has been settling into its new premises in a former bakery. Managing director Gerry Biggs talks to Rob Moss about the move Moving house is well recognised as one of...

All eyes on Las Vegas as Expo West returns.(Vision Expo West)(Brief Article)
September 13, 2002... The US launch of the first 30-day continuous wear RGP lens and the announcement of a new annual optics fair were the highlights of American show Vision Expo West this week. Hopes were high that the Las Vegas conference - which closes after...

Free NetLectures will be worth six CET credits.
September 13, 2002... A handful of places are available for this Sunday's free NetLectures Live conference in Egham, Surrey. Attendance is worth six CET credits (four contact lens-related) for the September 15 event. Lectures include Ananth Visanathan (Institute...

AMD lecture kicks off Bristol Society season.
September 13, 2002... The Bristol Society of Opticians 2002-2003 programme of meetings begins next Wednesday (September 18) with a discussion on AMD and nutritional supplements. The event is being held at the city's Hilton Hotel, Bradley Stoke. However, the...

Dunelm expands Bianchi, Retro and Beaumont ranges.(Dunelm, Casio, CooperVision product introductions)(Brief Article)(Product Announcement)
September 13, 2002... u Dunelm has released new models in its French-manufactured Carlo Bianchi range which enjoys continued popularity with the older woman. The smart and contemporary frames, which all feature jewel-like details on the sides, are still deep enough...

Top-up approach.(optometrists divided on top-up fees)(Brief Article)
September 13, 2002... Could there possibly be a topic as well designed as top-up fees to divide the profession and its warring associations? As Surrey ponders whether to adopt the AOP's extended eye exam protocol (News, September 6) the increasing polarisation of...

Clulow celebrates with Ray-Ban limited edition.(David Clulow Opticians)(Brief Article)
September 13, 2002... David Clulow Opticians has opened its second outlet in Manchester's city-centre Selfridges department store, and marked the expansion with a limited edition gold Ray-Ban collection. The company, which already had two departments in...

Scrivens seeks new recruits.(since acquiring Melson Wingate)(Brief Article)
September 13, 2002... Scrivens, the Midlands-based optical group which acquired Melson Wingate two months ago, has launched a recruitment drive to find professional cover at some of its new practices. The deal, first reported in optician (News, July 19), added...

French stores offer savings on eyewear, says Which?(consumer magazine "Which?")(Brief Article)
September 13, 2002... Consumer magazine Which? has this month reported that in addition to the well-known savings that can be made on alcohol, Britons can save 30 to 40 per cent on many other products including eyewear. Consumers' Association researchers crossed...

College sets strategy for structural change.(College of Optometrists )(Brief Article)
September 13, 2002... Significant structural change within the College of Optometrists will result from its future strategy programme which drew to a close last week. The final meeting in the College's future strategy process, designed to gather views from...

Multiples to join LOCs by year end.(local optometric committees)(Brief Article)
September 13, 2002... Lawyers at the Department of Health are considering a draft model constitution that looks set to allow multiples to be represented on local optometric committees by the end of this year. The Association of British Dispensing Opticians, the...

Electronic forms move closer but still no date.(forms for administering opthalmic claims)(Brief Article)
September 13, 2002... Substantial progress has been made by the optical profession in the development of an electronic centralised system for administering NHS ophthalmic claims, but no implementation date has yet been set. optician reported earlier this year...

Fuch's heterochromic iridocyclitis; (Fuch's uveitis syndrome).(Brief Article)
September 20, 2002... Description Although the features of Fuch's heterochromic cyclitis are unique, it is often misdiagnosed. It is a chronic, recurrent, non-granulomatous anterior uveitis of unknown cause. It differs significantly from other forms of anterior...

Turning researchinto clinical pearls.(Interview)
September 20, 2002... Nathan Efron is one of the UK's best known commentators on contact lenses, but he very nearly didn't enter the profession at all. Chris Bennett caught up with him at the BCLA conference to discover the man behind the books Chris Bennett:...

UK refractive practices.(findings of the second British Society for Refractive Surgery survey)(Panel Discussion)(Statistical Data Included)
September 20, 2002... Vinod Kumar, Shehzad Naroo and Sunil Shah present the results of the second British Society for Refractive Surgery survey into the practice styles and preferences of refractive surgeons in the UK This is the second year of the survey of the...

Vision in epilepsy:triggers and symptoms.(Statistical Data Included)
September 20, 2002... Emma Roff Hilton, Sarah Hosking and Tim Betts look at the visual triggers that can precipitate seizures in photosensitive epilepsy In a previous article (optician, May 31, 2002) the effects of anti-epileptic drug therapy on visual...

Unusual tests - Part 3:The Eger Macular Stressometer.
September 20, 2002... Dr Frank Eperjesi continues his five-part series on less mainstream assessment methods by describing the Eger Macular Stressometer The Eger Macular Stressometer (EMS), developed by US company Gulden Ophthalmics, is a battery-powered...

ABDO realigns registration and exam offices.(Association of British Dispensing Opticians, multiple appointments)(Brief Article)
September 20, 2002... u The Association of British Dispensing Opticians has reorganised its registration and examination departments in anticipation of the retirement of registrar Derek Baker at the end of next March. The changes reflect the separation of...

Get your facts right!
September 20, 2002... Reliable facts and figures are crucial for any sensible decision making process but optics has a distinct lack of decent numbers. Bizarrely for a profession with so much red tape, regulation and control there is no single recording point of the...

'Compulsory CET essential,' says BCLA president.(continuing education and training, British Contact Lens Association)(Brief Article)
September 20, 2002... British Contact Lens Association president Graeme Young has added his voice to calls for compulsory continuing education and training for eye care practitioners. Delivering his presidential address to the association in London last week...

New York brand plans major campaign in UK.(Kenneth Cole looks for UK distributor)(Brief Article)
September 20, 2002... New York brand Kenneth Cole is looking for a UK distributor for its fashion frames in a high profile entry into the British optical market. In addition, its sunglasses are to be sold via two stand-alone outlets in London and from nearly two...

Show date set for Windy City.
September 20, 2002... Plans to launch a new North American professional optical event in Chicago next year were revealed at the Las Vegas Vision Expo West exhibition last week. The new annual trade show and conference is, in effect, a merger between two...

College wins [pounds sterling]10,000 docet funding boost.(College of Optometrists )(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
September 20, 2002... The Department of Health has increased the amount of money allocated to the profession's continuing professional development scheme (DOCET) for 2002/03 by [pound]10,000, a rise of 2.4 per cent. It follows efforts by the College of...

MPs to see results of drivers' vision survey.(Brief Article)(Polling Data)(Statistical Data Included)
September 20, 2002... National Eye Week will begin on Monday (September 23) with the release of the final details of major research on drivers' vision. After its campaign was featured on national television last month, the Eyecare Trust will hope the results -...

'Melson Wingate' to go as Scrivens rebrands.(optical and hearing aid retailer redevelops stores)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
September 20, 2002... Scrivens, the Midlands-based optical and hearing care retailer, is to spend [pound]2.5m on redeveloping and rebranding its new Melson Wingate stores. Scrivens acquired the Dorset-based group in July (News, July 19) and earlier this month...

OO who lost judicial review to face GOC.(optometrist Carol Le Bosquet)(Brief Article)
September 20, 2002... An optometrist who attempted to prevent her disciplinary case from going ahead because of an alleged breach of 'natural justice' will face a GOC disciplinary committee in a fortnight. Carol Le Bosquet, a Beckenham practitioner, will finally...

Kiwi tour: last few tickets left.
September 20, 2002... Limited places remain on Optometric Educators' latest roadshow, 'Dabbling in the Dark?', which starts in Dublin on Monday (September 23). Professor Charles McGhee and Dr Jennifer Craig have flown over from Auckland especially to take part....

Health Clinic shares suspended.(at request of company)(Brief Article)
September 20, 2002... Shares in the beleaguered Health Clinic group have been suspended on the London Stock Exchange at the company's own request, pending clarification of its financial position. The Newcastle-based company also said that it was expecting a...

Fungal keratitis; (Keratomycosis).(Brief Article)
September 27, 2002... Description Of the four classes of organism that can infect the cornea - bacteria, viruses, fungi and protozoa - fungi are one of the most destructive and most difficult to treat. Two types of fungi infect the cornea, septate filamentous...

Progressive and popular.(Statistical Data Included)
September 27, 2002... Progressive lenses provide a boost for dispensing as new contact lens fits continue their revival August saw a positive move for most benchmarks, although dispensing only showed growth over last year because of the increasing popularity of...

Visionaries in academia.
September 27, 2002... Essilor is forging ever closer links with education establishments as it works to boost brand awareness of its latest products. Rory Brogan reports from the company's University and Colleges Symposium It was clear from the latest Essilor...

Ptosis: When to worry, when to treat and what can be done.
September 27, 2002... Tristan Reuser describes how to spot the complications when a patient presents with ptosis and explains when you should treat and the accepted best methods of treatment a 49-year-old woman presents to her optician with some vague...

Contour tees off its 20th birthday.(Contour Fine Tooling)(Brief Article)
September 27, 2002... u Contour Fine Tooling held a golf day for staff and customers at Stevenage Golf Club earlier this month to mark its 20th year. A tournament was held on the championship 18-hole course with players from all parts of the UK and guests from...

Adidas launches Youngstar range in steel alloy.(Adidas Sports Eyewear)(Brief Article)
September 27, 2002... u Adidas Sports Eyewear has launched four frames in its Performance Kids prescription range featuring a new material, which manufacturer Silhouette says has never been used before. The stainless steel alloy, which was originally developed...

Rewarding work.(Brief Article)
September 27, 2002... Nigel Gibson Horrocks reports on a recent trip to Zambia on behalf of Vision Aid Overseas Our Vision Aid Overseas team arrived in Zambia after the maize and sorghum crops had failed. We saw the villages where dried crop stalks were the...

Eyecare 3000.
September 27, 2002... Dr Scott Mackie previews the Scottish CET extravaganza Eyecare 3000, a sister course on paediatrics and a trade fair, which run back to back in Glasgow in January A major exhibition with over 30 exhibitors combined with an extensive...

Vitreous detachments and retinal holes.
September 27, 2002... In the first of an occasional series William Jones looks at retinal breaks tears and detachments and their differentiation posterior vitreous detachment (PVD) A PVD results from the separation of the posterior cortical vitreous from...

The making of a modern practice.(Brief Article)
September 27, 2002... Rob Moss returns to Cambridge to discuss optometrist Andrea Clamp's plans for the layout and feel of the Jackson Cox practice With contractors submitting their final tenders and the plans all drawn up, the coming months are likely to be...

Research update.(Brief Article)
September 27, 2002... Bill Harvey provides the latest in our occasional reviews of research of interest to eye-care practitioners The debate about the extent and influence of a plastic period in ocular development has raged for many years. Strong evidence...

omenwrites.(Brief Article)
September 27, 2002... Dutch auction Europe is not a subject that normally generates a great deal of interest in the optical world, but a number of recent news items are pointers to the influence that the European Union can have on the political and commercial...

GPs ignorant of low vision help for AMD. (general practitioners, age-related macular degeneration).(Brief Article)
September 27, 2002... Many GPs have little knowledge of age-related macular degeneration and are unaware that the lives of thousands of patients with AMD can be helped by low vision devices and rehabilitation. This is the conclusion of a survey conducted by...

Showtime in Las Vegas.
September 27, 2002... Those who thought that deciding to open the US Vision Expo West exhibition on the first anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks would lead to a subdued show were proved wrong earlier this month. On the second morning there was...

Essilor drives up sales by 7.3%. (Essilor International, first half of 2002).(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
September 27, 2002... Essilor International posted a 7.3 per cent increase in sales for the first six months of 2002 on a like-for-like basis. The results, slightly higher than the 7 per cent rise forecast in July, were driven by expansion in all geographic...

Antwerp gears up for contact lens congress.
September 27, 2002... Belgium's annual contact lens show, scheduled for November, claims it will offer essential information on the sector. The 30th EFCLIN Congress, will be held in Antwerp from November 14-17. As well as 22 suppliers exhibiting at the...

Care staff to receive training in eye care. (Healthcall Optical Services).(Brief Article)
September 27, 2002... Provider of domiciliary services Healthcall Optical Services has launched an eye-care training programme for care home staff. The training will be made available to staff in residential care establishments, such as nursing and residential...

Want to own a piece of British TV history?(comedian Ronnie Barker's glasses auctioned)(Brief Article)
September 27, 2002... Dozens of items - including these spectacles donated by comedian Ronnie Barker - will be auctioned at Banbury Town Hall tomorrow night (Saturday, September 28). Mr Barker, who came out of retirement this year to act in the Emmy-award...

Eye Week campaign highlights paediatrics.(Brief Article)
September 27, 2002... An anguished mother whose two-year-old is now partially blind advised other parents to take advantage of free NHS eye examinations for children on national television this week. The breakfast time feature included two-year-old Max...

College conference's CET credits revealed.
September 27, 2002... Details of dispensing optician Continuing Education and Training (CET) credits for the College of Optometrists' 2002 conference, to be staged in November, have been announced. Approval for 15 CET credits by ABDO have been made for the...

Nice will cave in on PDT, says RNIB. (UK National Institute for Clinical Excellence, photodynamic therapy for aged-related macular degeneration, Royal National Institute for the Blind).(Brief Article)
September 27, 2002... Charities involved in the row over whether photodynamic therapy (PDT) for 'wet' AMD sufferers should be available on the NHS were this week predicting victory in the New Year. The Royal National Institute for the Blind and other groups have...

Group grows to five in Fife. (Ferrier and MacKinnon Optometrists, Scotland).(Brief Article)
September 27, 2002... Scottish practice group Ferrier & MacKinnon Optometrists has opened its fifth outlet in the Fife region following the acquisition of a practice in Newport-on-Tay from A C Scott. The outlet has a patient base of around 6,000 which the new...

Transmission of vCJD via CLs is a possibility. (variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, contact lenses).(Brief Article)
September 27, 2002... A new paper which has studied the possibility of transmission of vCJD (variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease) via contact lenses and other ophthalmic devices, claims that cross-infection is possible. The study, co-authored by contact lens...

Ultralase supports overseas aid.(Vision Aid Overseas)(Brief Article)
September 27, 2002... Laser eye treatment provider Ultralase has teamed up with optical charity Vision Aid Overseas in launching an appeal during National Eye Week. The Lasik specialist is asking the public to bring their old spectacles to their nearest...