Review of Optometry articles from January 2000

Review of Optometry archives from January 2000

Nature's Way of Telling You Something's Wrong.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... A patient's complaint of pain serves as a cornerstone for a diagnostic framework. In this first of a yearlong series, two contributing editors discuss how to differentiate ocular and adnexal pain. FIRST IN A SERIES It has long been an...

Ophthalmic Medications: The New and the Newsworthy.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... A review of recent product launches, new twists on older drugs and a look at what's in the pipeline. Those who research and develop ophthalmic drugs have been pursuing a busy agenda. Each year brings product launches designed to help you...

The Bandage Lens Debate.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... Q Can I use a disposable contact lens to bandage a corneal injury? A Several O.D.s we talked to see advantages to using lenses other than FDA-approved therapeutic bandage lenses. Disposable lenses might be particularly suitable for this...

New Wrinkles in Oculoplastics.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... Q What's new in the area of oculoplastic surgery? A Most advances are in cosmetics, says Steve Anderson, M.D., an oculoplastic surgeon at Park Ridge Hospital in Chattanooga, Tenn. The newest oculoplastic surgeries in the past three years...

UBM Helps Diagnose Iris Cyst.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... Six months ago, we saw a 46-year-old white woman who had developed an iris cyst with concurrent unilateral glaucoma. During the course of management, her condition remained unchanged until recently, when she had an onset of pain in both the...

Transient Haze Brings Patient to the Clinic.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... A 64-year-old black Hispanic female presented complaining of transient haze in her right eye upon awakening. She said her vision in that eye had been reduced for well over a year. But on several occasions recently she woke in the morning with...

How To Break An Acute Angle Closure Attack.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... A 68-year-old white female presents to your office with a 5-day history of increasing pain, redness, photophobia, headache and blurred vision O.D. She awoke this morning with nausea and vomited prior to coming in. Your examination reveals...

Presbyopes get new life.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... Life has a new generation. Rodenstock's Progressiv life 2 progressive addition design builds on the "totally integrated performance" concept of the original life PAL. This new lens has a thinner, flatter profile than its predecessor and...

Avisia Brings Streamlined Approach to Lens Pricing.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... Avisia aims to streamline the lens purchasing experience for your eyeglass-wearing patients with the new Nikon Eyes line of lenses. Avisia, an optical lab in Carrollton, Texas, monitors lens orders online, and is able to fill certain Rx orders...

SunSensors Come Stateside.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... Corning SunSensors plastic photochromic lenses are now available on the mainland after their launch last year in Puerto Rico. The lenses will become available nationwide this year through Corning Connections laboratories and some retail chains....

Crizal: Presbyopes New PAL.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... Your presbyopic patients have a new choice in progressive addition lenses: Crizal in Thin & Lire 1.60 high index. Essilor of America has added the Crizal line beyond the finished single-vision Orma Thin hard resin lens. Crizal lenses are also...

Sunsoft Releases Additions In-Office Fitting Sets.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... Speaking of presbyopes... Sunsoft has begun distributing in-office fitting sets for the Additions progressive addition soft contact lens. Sunsoft has also teamed with Essilor partner Varilux in its marketing efforts. The Additions fitting...

New Twists for ColorBlends.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... Wesley Jessen is making a splash with its ColorBlends contact lenses in a couple different ways. No. 1: It has introduced the 3-1 ColorBlends lens technology into the DuraSoft 3 conventional cosmetic line. DuraSoft 3 ColorBlends are 55%...

Profile Is a European Style.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... Profile is the new series of European-styled furniture from Eye Designs. All Profile display units feature low-voltage lighting and curved accents. Also available are interchangeable base cabinets with casters. EyeDesigns makes its Profile...

A Marriage of Titanium and Flexon.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... Titanium and Flexon come together in TiFlex, the newest entry in Marchon's Flexon line of ophthalmic eyewear. The launch collection features five new frame styles. TiFlex's end pieces, retaining cylinders and nose pads are made of 100%...

Rectangle Frame Is Y2K image Compliant.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... Luxottica Group's 3155 frame features streamlined style that will update your patients' image for the new millennium, the company says. Made of acetate, the 3155 features a shortened rectangular shape and Klixx-5 spring hinges. It's...

For Whom the Ball Takes its Toll.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... A 27-year-old woman presented following blunt trauma that she sustained while playing basketball. Her ocular history was unremarkable for disease, injuries or surgeries. Her systemic history was also noncontributory. All other historical data...

Peter La Haye.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... Peter La Haye, an inventor and entrepreneur who pioneered intraocular lenses for cataract surgery, died in a plane crash flying from Seattle to New Jersey on December 12. Mr. La Haye founded the IOLAB company, and also developed ICAPS...

The American Federation for the Blind.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... The American Federation for the Blind awarded its highest honor--the Migel Medal--to Alfred A. Rosenbloom Jr., O.D., founder and director of the Chicago Lighthouse Low Vision Clinics. Dr. Rosenbloom also served 10 years as president of the...

Franklin Ophthalmic.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... Instruments, of Romeoville, Ill., has gone out of business. Franklin Ophthalmic defaulted on a loan to Harris Bank in April 1999. Unable to repay the loan, the company decided to liquidate in order to pay off its debts. Switzerland became the...

Does LASIK Damage the Nerve Fiber Layer?(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... A recent pilot study in Illinois suggests that the intraocular pressure spike associated with LASIK may cause nerve fiber loss. What makes the study especially interesting is that the use of brimonidine (Alphagan) appeared to prevent such...

New Tactile Alphabet for the Blind May Be Quicker Than Braille.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... A potential replacement for Braille was presented at the recent American Academy of Optometry meeting in Seattle. The ELIA (elementary imprint assistance) alphabet uses a raised, modified form of the standard alphabet. This has several...

Pharmacia & Upjohn.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... Pharmacia & Upjohn, of Peapack, N.J., has submitted a new drug application for its much-anticipated follow-up to Xalatan--it's a fixed combination of latanoprost and timolol.

Vision Service Plan.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... On January 1, Vision Service Plan introduced its Laser Vision Care plan, which allows VSP members to receive vision correction at a discounted fee. Members will pay no more than $1,800 per eye for LASIK, VSP says.

Optometry Payments Increase In New Medicare Fee Schedule.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... Optometry fees will increase overall by 5 percent this year as the new Medicare fee schedule goes into effect. Nationwide, average fees for eye exams for new patients (92004) and established patients (92014) increased 3% and 4%, to $124.49...

Visx Loses First Round of ITC Fight.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... Refractive surgeons who prefer the Nidek EC-5000 excimer laser can breathe a sigh of relief, at least for now. An International Trade Commission (ITC) judge rejected Visx's charge that Nidek infringed on its laser patents. Visx alleged...

OSHA's Ergonomics Proposal OK with O.D.s--For Now.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... Optometrists should support proposed ergonomic workplace standards that the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has published, says at least one authority on computer-related vision disorders. OSHA published the draft in...

Help Build a Great Wall.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... When the odometer of time clicks over to triple zeroes, it's a good opportunity to take stock. Truth is, in the context of a century each of us is as insignificant as a star in the sky. Some shine brighter than others, but take one out,...

The O.D.'s Curse: Don't Leave Home Without It.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... There is an Optometric Curse. This is not Murphy's Law. It's worse than that. Murphy's Law is when you tear your pants and you're already an hour behind. The O.D.'s Curse is when you return rested and calm after a week's vacation only to find...

LETTERS.(Statistical Data Included)(Letter to the Editor)
January 15, 2000... Atropine Won't Cool A 'Hot' Iritis Editor: I enjoyed Dr. Ajamian's article "Put Out the Fire of Iritis" (Comanagement Q & A, October 1999). His points about treating iritis aggressively with Pred Forte were well-taken. I must respectfully...

Jump-Start Your Practice Today And Grow Well Beyond Y2K.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... FIRST OF TWO PARTS. By this time, the millennium hoopla will have died down, empty champagne bottles will have been tossed and (we hope) our fears about the Y2K bug will have been unfounded. You'll also realize that managed care hasn't...

The Entrepreneurial O.D.: Busting the Benchmarks.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... We've all heard the traditional financial benchmarks for optometric practice: Cost of goods around 30% of gross, net around 33%, staff salaries in the 15-17% range, and so on. Comparative data like these provide a good rule of thumb, and...

Taking the Pain and Strain Out of Computer Use.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... These cases illustrate how a thorough exam and the right correction can resolve Computer Vision Syndrome. A male patient comes in complaining of headaches, neck ache and blurry distance vision at night. You ask if he uses a computer, and he...

Upgrades Map New Directions in Topography.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... Do you still think a corneal topographer only belongs in surgical centers? Here are ways to extend its applications in optometric practice. You've probably faced the kind of clinical puzzle optometrist Loretta Szczotka encountered when an...

When Words Mean as Much As Dk and Base Curve.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... Before you can fit a contact lens, you have to talk it up to the patient. These five pearls will help you talk the talk. A young colleague once came to us with a dilemma. He considered himself quite good at fitting contact lenses. Yet he...

Episode 1 e-BUSINESS.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... The Next e-volution of Your Practice In 2010, you'll spend up to a third of your time on the Internet. Here's a sneak preview of what is to come. FIRST IN A SERIES The next decade will witness a revolution in the way we...

Optometry Students Become Optometry's Teachers.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... The winners of our student writing competition share their knowledge with the profession. Some cultures consider everyone to be a teacher and believe that everyone else can learn something from that person. Our annual "Student Case Report...

Sensational Response To New OptiFit(r) [ColorBlends.sup.TM] Lenses.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... Practitioners and patients like what they see with Wesley Jessen's new OptiFit(R) [ColorBrends.sup.TM] lenses for astigmatism. Launched in mid-November, WJ's new OptiFit ColorBlends lenses, the first quarterly replacement colored toric...

Strong Sales Reveal A Surprise.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... It's no surprise that practitioners in three test regions around the country jumped at the opportunity to offer their patients Wesley Jessen's OptiFit(R) [ColorBlends.sup.TM]. The surprise is where the hottest sales came from-the Midwest. ...

Blended Pricing Big Hit.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... Practitioners hail Wesley Jessen's pricing strategy for its expanded family of quarterly replacement soft toric lenses. Whether the prescription is for a -5.75 cylinder or one that's in the heart of the bell curve, WJ's price is the same....

ASK A COLLEAGUE.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... Clinical Answers About OptiFit(r) [ColorBlends.sup.TM] Lenses Carol Barron, O.D., F.A.A.O., Wesley Jessen research optometrist, has been fitting OptiFit(R) [ColorBlends.sup.TM] lenses throughout the company's clinical research phases. Here...

What Your Patients Want To Hear From You.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... David Crum, O.D., of Augusta, KS, follows a two-step formula when introducing today's toric contact lens options to his astigmatic patients, first explaining astigmatism in simple terms and then reviewing the specialty lenses that will correct...

RICH FAMIY HISTORY.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... Wesley Jessen introduced the FreshLook ColorBlends(R) lens in the fall of 1998. This line of spherical opaque lenses offers more natural looking eye color change by combining three distinct color patterns on the lenses. FreshLook ColorBlends...

Springboard To Success.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... New Tone Lenses One-Fit Strategy How's this for a chair time-saving, patient-proof concept? Once you fit your astigmatic patients using the OptiFit(r) toric design, you can fit them in any type of toric contact lens you deem most...

Empirical Fitting Encouraged.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... Practitioners are encouraged to order empirically or use a DuraSoft(R) 3 OptiFit(r) diagnostic set to assess vision and fit. A piano FreshLook ColorBlends(R) spherical lens can be used for color selection. Empirically fitting with the OptiFit...

LET PATIENTS KNOW.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... To increase your patient's awareness of new OptiFit(r) [ColorBlends.sup.TM] and OptiFit(r) UV lenses, call your Wesley Jessen sales representative today for point-of-purchase information for your office.

Recommend What's Best For Patients.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... Rex Ghormley. O.D., of St. Louis, MO, applauds the growth in the toric contact lens market. What's good for patients will also translate into benefits for practitioners, he said. In the past couple of years, he's taken a pro-active approach...

Torics A Hot Ticket, Market Research Says.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... The soft toric lens market is continuing to experience significant growth, according to industry research firm Health Products Research. The latest research shows new fit patient dispensing grew 9% in the first half of 1999, with...

Novel Packaging For New Lenses.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... OptiFit(r) [ColorBlends.sup.TM] lenses are available in 4-vial packages. A full range of parameters is available, including cylinder powers to -5.75D, spherical powers from +4.00 to -8.000, with around-the-clock axes. Colors include gray, blue,...

You Can Leave The AOA Congress A Big Winner.(Statistical Data Included)
January 15, 2000... ... Driving a brand new 2000 luxury car [*] or planning a trip for two to Paris, France. Both of these great prizes will go to lucky doctors of optometry who visit the exhibit hail during the Congress. Your on-site registration packet will...

Are You An E-Doc?
January 15, 2000... You are if you order your optical supplies from www.e-dr.com, the leading e-commerce site for eyecare professionals. JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Here at E-Dr. Network, the 3,000 eye doctors who've discovered the wonderful world o e-commerce are...

What E-Docs Are Saying.
January 15, 2000... "E-Dr. is easy, it's convenient and allows for after hours ordering with overnight delivery. My staff loves the ease of use and assurance of low pricing on all brands." Anthony Cordano, M.S., OD. Spring Hill, Fla. "E-Dr. let me...

Why Will E-Dr. Save Me Time And Money?
January 15, 2000... Before you begin your easy online ordering experience with www.e-dr.com, register your practice (for free, of course) with E-Dr. Network to ensure your privacy and to confirm your professional status. Soon after you submit your online...