Review of Optometry articles from August 2002

Review of Optometry archives from August 2002

Puerto Rico O.D.s Waging 'civil war': independent doctors feud with corporate O.D.s after Code of Ethics is voided. (News Review).
August 15, 2002... There is a "civil war" among the 475 optometrists in Puerto Rico, according to one optometrist. And in this war, patients are the victims. It's a war fought by private-practice optometrists against those who work for corporations, such as...

Pfizer announced it will acquire Pharmacia in a stock trade valued at $60 billion. (In the News).
August 15, 2002... Pfizer announced it will acquire Pharmacia in a stock trade valued at $60 billion. Pfizer, known for Viagra and the arthritis drug Celebrex, says the addition of Pharmacia--with product lines in oncology, ophthalmology and endocrinology--would...

A federal appeals court ruled in favor of CIBA Vision, and denied Bausch & Lomb's request for a permanent stay of an injunction. (In the News).
August 15, 2002... A federal appeals court ruled in favor of CIBA Vision, and denied Bausch & Lomb's request for a permanent stay of an injunction. B&L must now discontinue the sale of PureVision contact lenses in the United States. The lower court ruled that...

Contact Lens Manufacturers Association. (In the News).
August 15, 2002... "GP oxygen permeable," or so says the Contact Lens Manufacturers Association. The CLMA states that consumers have been befuddled by the term "rigid" in RGPs. So, such lenses, shall simply be called "GPs" or "oxygen permeable lenses."

Judge throws out J&J's block on 1-800 Contacts. (News Review).
August 15, 2002... A federal appeals court has thrown out the injunction that had blocked 1-800 Contacts from advertising Acuvue contact lenses. Vistakon--Johnson & Johnson Visioncare Inc. filed the suit last October after 1-800 Contacts sent letters to...

AOA Congress report: improve patients' overall health. (News Review).
August 15, 2002... An initiative to help patients overcome preventable illness and improve public access to eye care took center stage at this year's AOA Congress in New Orleans. The initiative also encourages eye exams for all children. The association's...

AMO executives lay out vision for big, new player in eye care. (News Review).
August 15, 2002... Executives of Advanced Medical Optics (AMO) say optometrists gained a large and powerful ally on July 1. That's the day AMO officially began operating as a separate company from Allergan, which is now a specialty pharmaceutical company. ...

Do drugs to decrease IOP increase cataracts in blacks? (News Review).
August 15, 2002... Medications used to lower intraocular pressure may increase the risk of nuclear opacities in blacks, a study published in the July issue of Ophthalmology indicates. Other risk factors the study identifies for cataracts in patients on...

Can't anybody here play this game? (Editor's Page).
August 15, 2002... When I was a kid, Jimmy Breslin wrote a book about the inglorious 1962 New York Mets titled "Can't Anybody Here Play This Game?" If Casey Stengel, the manger of the first-year Mets quoted in the book's title, ever watched the goings-on (or...

Churls gone wild: our first trip this summer included a near-death experience--and free drinks! (Chairside).
August 15, 2002... The West Virginia and the North Carolina O.D. associations recently held their meeting, of course, in South Carolina. WV&NCODSNSC. Seemed perfectly logical at the time. You historians will recall that West Virginia and North Carolina were...

Is this subjective refraction better? does the Epic 2100 go way beyond automated refracting? Users sound off. (Ophthalmic Test Drive).
August 15, 2002... You've heard about O.D.s who made the big investment in the Epic 2100 System from Marco Technologies. It refracts subjectively, plus interfaces with an auto-refractor and other automated instruments, and office software. Marco claims the Epic...

Why fit generation Y? Fitting today's adolescent patients with contact lenses presents a new set of challenges to practitioners. Here's some advice from a veteran. (Contact Lenses).
August 15, 2002... Adolescents are ideal candidates for the visual benefits that contact lenses offer. Contact lenses can also help their self-esteem since teens are so aware of their appearance. I am a bit of an expert in fitting teens, not because of what I do...

How gene therapy can restore vision: in the past year, geneticists have restored vision in animal models. Human gene therapy trials may be next. Here's how it all works. (Genomics and the Eye: Part 3).
August 15, 2002... Scientists can now find and copy tiny fragments of DNA, and use them to manipulate genes to change the body's function, yet they still can't clobber the common cold. Oddly enough, scientists perform gene therapy by using a virus associated...

Targeting IOP: low goals necessary to save sight.
August 15, 2002... Controlling elevated intraocular pressure (IOP) has long been the mainstay of glaucoma therapy. While scientists work to better understand glaucoma itself--an understanding that could lead to a cure--eye care professionals manage the disease...

Allergy: A comanagement consideration: some allergy medications can compromise surgical outcomes. It's essential that comanaging O.D.s replace medications that exacerbate dry eye with those that don't. (Alcon Challenge Series).
August 15, 2002... Over the past few years, we have become more intimately involved in both preoperative and postoperative care of refractive and cataract surgery patients than ever before. As a result, patient satisfaction now falls largely on our shoulders,...

When generic drugs are not the right rx: generic 'equivalents' are not always equivalent. Remember corneal melts associated with generic diclofenac? (Therapeutics).
August 15, 2002... The advantage of generic drugs is that they can reduce prescription costs to patients (and Medicare carriers) by perhaps 25% or more compared with brand-name drugs. That's usually fine as long as the generic drug is as safe and effective as its...

O.D. technology moves beyond the basics: more of your colleagues are embracing new generation technology. (25th Annual Diagnostic Technology Report).
August 15, 2002... In the past year more optometrists have purchased more new generation diagnostic equipment than ever before. And, electronic software is gaining popularity in the practice. New optometric technologies are gaining favor, but many O.D.s have...

Take topography up a notch: new indices and elevation maps can help you more readily differentiate corneal irregularities. (25th Annual Diagnostic Technology Report).
August 15, 2002... Corneal topography maps provide a great deal of information. Certainly, they let you know if a patient has an irregular cornea. And, the numerical, or statistical, indices that this technology generates as well as the elevation maps that some...

Perfecting indirect ophthalmoscopy. (Special Advertising Feature).
August 15, 2002... There's a reason why Keeler has long enjoyed the reputation of its indirect ophthalmoscopes. Here your colleagues explain why this company does it better and how its helped them in everyday practice. Since 1917, when 41-year-old...

Turn up the light on your diagnosis: these cases illustrate how easy it is to get more from your slit lamp and BIO exams. (24 the Annual Diagnostic Technology Report: Part 1).
August 15, 2002... During an eye examination, there are typically four instances when I'm using the slit lamp or binocular indirect ophthalmoscope when I must "turn up the light." Otherwise, I will miss significant findings that may result in an incorrect...

New horizons in anti-infective therapy: clinical grand rounds.
August 15, 2002... Optometrists have been prescribing topical antibiotics for more than a quarter century. In most cases, clinicians have preserved vision, prevented complications and adverse effects, and helped patients return to work or school quickly. Our...

Neurological screening in the O.D.'s practice: how to work-up patient who presents with neurological signs or symptoms. (Optometric Study Center).
August 15, 2002... Neurological diseases may cause a decrease in visual acuity as well as defects in color vision and visual fields. (1) These changes can motivate patients with neuro-ophthalmic symptoms to see you for an exam. By performing a thorough...

Delivering drugs within the eye: sustained-release systems may be an effective alternative for treating chronic or posterior segment disease. (Research Review).
August 15, 2002... When it comes to treating chronic diseases or pathology of the posterior segment, topical medications have been relatively unsuccessful. Injections pose risks, including globe puncture, and do not appeal to patients as a treatment for their...

Is the cornea truly clear? microcystic edema in 'clear cornea' cataract patients is fairly common. (Comanagement Q&A).
August 15, 2002... Q I have noticed there is often a microcystic edema around the corneal incision in my clear cornea cataract patients. Is this normal? A "Microcystic edema over the wound site and over the paracentesis site in clear cornea cataract surgery...

Your back-to-school opportunity: contact lens sales often swell in Q3. (Centered on your Practice Success).
August 15, 2002... July through September, also known as the back-to-school period, is the season of peak demand for all optical products, including color cosmetic contact lenses. Patient traffic historically averages 15 percent higher during this period than...

Making the grade with back-to-school: one-third in contacts; 60 percent also get back-up eyeglasses. (Centered on your Practice Success).
August 15, 2002... The five-office practice of Tropical Optical in Chicago owes a lot of its success to back-to-school season and cosmetic color lenses. The two go hand-in-hand, says owner Dan Arce, an optician. "It's the best period of the year for our cosmetic...

Study the student market. (Centered on your Practice Success).
August 15, 2002... Have Baby Boomers been good to you? Then Generation Y should be better still. First of all, there are more of them. There are currently about 78 million youngsters in the age bracket--from kindergarten to freshly-minted college grads. In the...

Teach by example: staff involvement drives sales. (Centered on your Practice Success).
August 15, 2002... Offer it and they will come. That's the basis on which the Tyler, TX, practice of Bennett, Lee & Haddon has built its success. "It," in this case, is color contacts. Make it easy for patients to try on FreshLook ColorBlends[R] lenses and eight...

POP Quiz. (Centered on your Practice Success).
August 15, 2002... Q. What's the Back-to-School Bonus Program about? A. Extraordinary value. When patients buy six boxes of color lenses, they get two free. Q. How long does it run? A. July 1 through December 31,2002. Q. Are new marketing...

Study finds patients prefer ColorBlends. (Centered on your Practice Success).
August 15, 2002... By two-to-one margin, patients prefer the cosmetic look of the top-selling FreshLook ColorBlends lens colors--blue, green and gray--over the look of Acuvue[R] 2 Colours[TM] blue, green and gray lenses. This is according to a recent,...

Economics 101: eye care and fashion intertwined. (Centered on your Practice Success).
August 15, 2002... If eye care professionals truly felt that providing people with the proper refraction was the only thing that mattered, "we'd all hand out black plastic frames with the right Rx and send patients on their way," says Robert H. Zoellner, O.D.,...

Graduate to higher profits: Back-to-School Bonus Program offers patient incentives.
August 15, 2002... The Back-to-School Bonus Program, running now through December 31,2002, is sure to drive patient traffic into your practice. The program is being featured in all FreshLook[R] advertising this fall. Patients receive two free boxes on a...

The three RS: refresh, revitalize and reap; half of this O.D.'s contact lens patients buy color lenses. (Centered on your Practice Success).
August 15, 2002... Andrew Chong, O.D., La Puente, CA, has two theories about promoting FreshLook cosmetic lenses: Every lens color is a good color, and every promotion is a good promotion. That's because every new color and every new promotion piques patient...

Learn from the competition: corporate optometry prepares for the opportunity. (Centered on your Practice Success).
August 15, 2002... For major optical retailers, back-to-school is one of the most important sales events during the year because of the increased consumer traffic in their stores. Even before Memorial Day, major retailers start analyzing back-to-school trends....

Patient is a little red in the face: here are some tips on how to treat the symptoms of ocular rosacea. (Cornea & Contact Lens Q&A).
August 15, 2002... Q I have a patient with severe rosacea and a progressive pannus with inferior corneal thinning at the limbus. She's using basic lid hygiene and taking a maintenance dose of 100mg doxycycline. Is this the best management plan? A Rosacea...

A troublesome trio of complaints: why is this patient experiencing blur, distortion and flashes in her left eye? (Retina Quiz).
August 15, 2002... A 69-year-old white female presented complaining of blurred vision and distortion O.S. for the past six months and intermittent flashes of light in that eye for more than a year. Her medical history was significant for rheumatoid arthritis and...

The blind and painful eye: here are some tips to help you help your patient with this emotional issue. (Therapeutic Forum).
August 15, 2002... Few things are as challenging for an optometrist as treating and managing a blind and painful eye. Because this subject is so fraught with emotional issues for both doctor and patient, our natural tendency is to avoid dealing with the problem...

New OTC lubricant. (Therapeutics).
August 15, 2002... Refresh Endura is the first over-the-counter lubricant drop for dry eye that treats all three layers of the tear film, says Allergan Inc., manufacturer and distributor of the new drops. Droplets of organic or "polar" oil are suspended in the...

Expressions in brown. (Contact Lenses).
August 15, 2002... Brown is the color of the new Expression opaque contact lens from CooperVision. This new 14.4mm diameter lens is made of methafilcon A (55% water), and features a three-layer tinting process. It is available in a single base curve of 8.7mm....

Braille reader for PCs, laptops. (Low Vision).
August 15, 2002... The Braille Voyager 44 and the Braille Voyager 70 from Optelec give vision-impaired individuals access to e-mail and word processing. The programs use a series of Braille displays. The Braille display sits in front of the computer keyboard or...

Cynacon/OcuSoft. (What's Nnew on the Web).
August 15, 2002... Cynacon/OcuSoft has recently remodeled its Web site. The new design features improved navigation and on-line shopping. Dilating drops, anesthetics, optical supplies and contact lens accessories are available for on-line purchase. Go to...

CIBA Vision. (What's New on the Web).
August 15, 2002... CIBA Vision also redesigned its Web site. The goal is to educate tennis players about ProSoft contact lenses. It offers virtual interactive demonstrations of the lenses, and lists O.D.s who fit ProSoft lenses by region. Go to...

Fitovers Eyewear. (What's New on the Web).
August 15, 2002... A new Fitovers Eyewear Web site features the company's brand of polarized sunglasses. Users can view the entire 2002 Fitovers Eyewear product catalog at the site, and obtain product profiles, company history, warranty registration, information...

Merchandising Beene. (Merchandising).
August 15, 2002... Purchase any six Geoffrey Beene frames and you will receive one Geoffrey Beene "Eyewear 2002" merchandising kit while supplies last. This kit includes two black and white boxes with five bright green circle cut outs for in-store displays. ...

Software upgrades. (Office Equipment).
August 15, 2002... MediNotes Corporation has upgraded its Charting Plus software. The 4.2 version lets you design custom layouts for referral letters, store images in documents, write scripts and sort data based on custom queries. You may also export data to...

Please hold for more messages. (Office Equipment).
August 15, 2002... TraxMaster, a CD-based system of on-hold messages that you plug into your phone, is now available from Applied Media Technologies Corporation. The system includes some 75 topics, such as conjunctivitis, lazy eye and anterior uveitis. Each...

Ophthalmic frame board.
August 15, 2002... Persol 2660-V This new Luxottica style features a plastic frame in a modified geometric shape. It is available in sizes 48/17-135 and 50/17-135. Colors include teal, pink, blue and sand. The temples are clear plastic. Call 1-800-422-2020,...

Meetings & Conferences.
August 15, 2002... October * 2-3. Indiana Optometric Association's fall seminar, Bloomington, Ind. Contact Ronald Wuensch, IOA, Suite 1920, 201 N. Illinois St., Indianapolis, IN 46244; call (317) 237-3564; fax (317) 237-3564; e-mail rwuensc@attglobal.net; go...

Is a kidney bean in the patient's eye? (Diagnostic Quiz).
August 15, 2002... History A 59-year-old white male presented with a chief complaint of glare and diplopia O.S. He said that he first noticed these symptoms some six or seven months earlier, and that they had slowly worsened. He also noticed that the vision...