News Spectrum
Robert A. Koetting, OD, FAAO, 1925–2011
Robert A. Koetting, OD, FAAO, who went on to become a leading contact lens practitioner, author, and inventor, died Aug. 7 in Bedford, Texas. He was 85 years old.
Dr. Koetting was the third generation of his family to become an eyecare practitioner. His grandfather opened a small optical shop alongside his jewelry store in the 1880s. His father Felix Koetting began his optometric practice in 1921. Dr. Koetting joined him and then opened his own practice in 1961 in St. Louis. He established a practice limited to contact lenses at a time when many practitioners were not even fitting them.
Dr. Koetting excelled in practice management and shared his ideas with others. He authored several books, including Marketing, Managing and Contact Lenses. He was a co-founder of the International Society for Contact Lens Research and for the American Society of Contact Lens Specialists as well as a charter member of the American Optometric Association (AOA) Contact Lens Section. He is the only person to have simultaneously chaired the Cornea and Contact Lens Section of the American Academy of Optometry and the Contact Lens Section of the AOA.
“Bob Koetting was one of a rare group of individuals who elevated our profession to heights it had never seen before. His passion for optometry was unmatched, and he will be missed but not forgotten,” said Carmen F. Castellano, OD, FAAO, who joined The Koetting Associates in 1982 and worked alongside Dr. Koetting until he retired from seeing patients in 1986. Dr. Koetting remained very active in the field for years after, consulting, writing and lecturing.
Dr. Koetting received the Chancellor's Medallion from the University of Missouri St. Louis, the AOA's Distinguished Service Award, and the Eminent Service Award from the American Academy of Optometry.
SynergEyes Launches Duette Multifocal
SynergEyes, Inc. launched its second-generation multifocal hybrid contact lens, Duette Multifocal, nationwide last month. It is the first silicone hydrogel hybrid contact lens specifically designed for patients who have presbyopia.
Approved for marketing by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the Duette Multifocal hybrid contact lens features a revolutionary simultaneous vision design that provides true binocular vision at all distances, according to SynergEyes. The lens also incorporates MultiPro2 Technology, which utilizes a near-center aspheric Add Zone in combination with a distance asphere that is designed to provide real progressive visual correction, according to the company.
SynergEyes began releasing the Duette Multifocal silicone hydrogel hybrid contact lens in August. Eyecare professionals who are interested in prescribing Duette Multifocal should visit www.synergeyes.com to complete an interest form. Additional details on the new lens including parameters will appear in next month's Product Spectrum.
Menicon Launches New GP Care System in the U.S.
Menicon America, Inc. recently introduced in the United States the Menicon Lens Care System, a novel GP lens care system that consists of Menicon Unique pH, Menicon Progent, and Menicon Rewetting Drops. Menicon has acquired the Unique pH brand name and worldwide manufacturing license from Alcon Laboratories Inc. Previously available in the United States for in-office use only, Menicon Progent is now FDA cleared for biweekly cleaning by patients at home. Menicon Rewetting Drops have been rebranded and are now available in a 10mL bottle.
In conjunction with the launch of the Menicon Lens Care System, the company has created the Menicon WebStore, hosted by eyecare professionals for their patients. The company says that all transactions are safe and secure, and shipping to patients is free.
“This new business model enables practitioners to profit from solutions sales without the hassle of physically handling products,” said David Moreira, vice president of Marketing for Menicon America.
B+L Expands Murocel Recall
Bausch + Lomb (B+L) has expanded its voluntary recall of six lots of Murocel Methylcellulose Lubricant Ophthalmic Solution, USP 1%, only available within the United States. Following the voluntary recall, B+L will discontinue the product entirely.
B+L said it chose to discontinue Murocel Methylcellulose Lubricant Ophthalmic Solution because the company currently has products within its portfolio to treat the same symptoms for which Murocel is indicated.
B+L initiated the six-lot recall based on routine stability testing that showed the lots were out of specification for preservative efficacy. There have been no adverse events reported that have been attributed to the product lots being out-of-specification for preservative efficacy. B+L said it recalled the lots in the interest of patient safety.
Retailers and eyecare practitioners were alerted to the recall. B+L is asking consumers who currently have the affected lots to return them to B+L. Consumers should call the customer service center for instructions on returning and reimbursement between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. EST Monday through Friday at (800) 553-5340.
Affected lot numbers and expiration dates are: Lot: 467061, Exp: 09-30-2011; Lot: 487551, Exp: 11-30-2011; Lot: 548051, Exp: 05-31-2012; Lot: 132171, Exp: 08-31-2012; Lot: 136571, Exp: 11-30-2012; Lot: 140181, Exp. 01-31-2013. The UPC Code is 3 24208 28015 7.
| B+L Announces Boston Lab Channel Appointments |
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| Bausch + Lomb (B+L) recently announced two additions to its Boston Lab Channel division. Pat Murphy is now the technical services manager for the Boston Lab Channel in Toronto, Canada. As a mechanical engineer, he will assist the authorized Boston Lab partners throughout the world with production and process improvements. He comes from B+L Waterford, Ireland, where he was employed as a senior mechanical project engineer and has 10 years experience working in high-speed, high-volume cast-mold contact lens manufacturing processes. He also provided technical support to B+L plants worldwide as part of the B+L Global Engineering group. As global marketing manager, Boston Lab Channel in Wilmington, Mass., Claire Venezia will lead the global marketing efforts for Boston materials within the Global Lab Channel. B+L says her background in marketing and market research brings expertise that ensures B+L lab partners and practitioners have the appropriate tools and products to expand the opportunities for patients needing custom visual correction. She has more than two decades of experience in the medical industry with optical expertise that spans both a corporate and consulting career at companies such as Alcon, B+L, CooperVision, FirstVisionMediaGroup, Varilux Corp/Essilor of America, Vistakon, and Visx. |
| Avaira Toric Voluntary Recall |
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| CooperVision recently initiated a voluntary recall on limited lots of Avaira Toric contact lenses. This recall is limited solely to specific lots of Avaira Toric, and no other CooperVision product is involved in this recall. The recall was initiated because of the unintended presence of a residue on certain lenses. The residue was identified after investigating a small number of complaints of temporary hazy vision. The manufacturing issue has been identified and a resolution is in process. CooperVision expects shipments of Avaira to resume shortly and inventory to return to normal levels by Dec. 1. A statement on the company's website said, “We initiated a voluntary recall after investigating a small number of unexpected wearer reports of hazy vision and discomfort. The wearer symptoms were temporary in many cases. This recall involves only a slight percentage of Avaira Toric lenses.” Wearers can visit www.coopervision.com/ recall to see whether their lenses are included. |
| INDUSTRY BRIEFS |
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| ■ A new web-based information source about contact lenses, www.contactlensupdate.com, has recently launched. A collaborative project with input from the Centre for Contact Lens Research and the Brien Holden Vision Institute, this site will include unbiased research commentary in the form of pertinent conference posters, editorials, and conference synopses, all organized in a way that highlights relevance at the clinical level. A resource library will be developed over time. Contact Lens Update is supported through an educational grant from Ciba Vision and Alcon. ■ Maggie Walsh, FCLSA, has joined Alden Optical Inc as a senior product specialist. She will assume a lead role on technical fitting and support for the company's emerging specialty lens portfolio and will be initially responsible for developing a comprehensive technical support package for NovaKone, the company's new product for patients who have keratoconus. Walsh, a trained optician, has more than 25 years' experience in specialty lens fitting. ■ Conforma Contact Lenses has received both ISO 9001:2008 and ISO 13485:2003 certifications, along with Part 1 CMDR SOR 98/282 for its Quality Management System. The ISO certification was made through BSI Management Systems, an accredited registrar that performs assessments of management systems against requirements of national and international standards for quality. ■ WaveForm invites attendees of Vision Expo West to see live demonstrations of its wavefront technology while at the meeting. In partnership with Veatch Ophthalmic Instruments and Huvitz, WaveForm's process acquires individualized wavefront data from each patient, integrates this information into practitioners' refracting process, and then transmits the data for manufacture of eyeglass or wavefront guided contact lenses. To see a demonstration of WaveForm's process, visit the Veatch booth #MS7059 at Vision Expo West. ■ OcuSoft, Inc. recently announced that its Tears Again Advanced Liposome Spray, an adjunct to OcuSoft Lid Scrub Eyelid Cleansers, is now available nationwide at all CVS stores. The company says that recent reports from the International Workshop on Meibomian Gland Dysfunction (MGD) demonstrate an improvement of symptoms associated with evaporative dry eye and Stage 2 MGD when a liposome spray, namely Tears Again Advanced Liposome Spray, was added to treatment plans. ■ The 2010 Census of Optometric Practice, conducted by the American Optometric Association (AOA) Research and Information Center, has recently been published. The census collected information about private and corporate practice as well as other employment situations in which optometrists practiced and focused on practice characteristics such as patient visits, hours worked by optometrists and paraoptometrics, and economic information. Results will be released in three reports; information on purchasing the full Census as well as an Executive Summary of the first report are available through the AOA's website www.aoa.org. |
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