NEWS spectrum
Fifth GSLS Breaks Record
The fifth Global Specialty Lens Symposium (GSLS) took place from Jan. 26 to 29, 2012 at the Paris Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nev. The number of attendees was record-breaking, with 460 eyecare professionals attending from 31 countries. The exhibit hall featured 42 exhibitors that shared their new insights and technologies with attendees.
As in previous years, the two-and-one-half day meeting was hosted by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, with Contact Lens Spectrum as the exclusive media partner. The educational program focused on the latest in managing ocular conditions using today's specialty lenses. The meeting included information for vision care professionals in all disciplines, with both surgical and non-surgical options, and offered almost 30 hours of COPE, NCLE, and JCAHPO continuing education credits.
The education committee was comprised of Craig Norman, FCLSA; Ed Bennett, OD, MSEd, FAAO; Pat Caroline, FCLSA, FAAO; Jason J. Nichols, OD, MPH, PhD, FAAO; and Eef van der Worp, BSc Optom, PhD, FAAO, who, with a faculty of international experts, covered every aspect of specialty lens practice. Four preconference fundamentals tracks offered information on Contact Lenses for Presbyopia; Contact Lenses for Irregular Astigmatism; GP, Toric Soft, and Custom Soft Lens Fitting; and Scleral Lens Fitting. Popular topics from the main conference included myopia control, contact lens management of irregular corneas, safety issues in contact lens wear, dry eye, corneal surgery, and contact lens comfort. The conference offered numerous CE and non-CE breakout sessions, breakfast seminars from GSLS sponsors, free paper presentations, more than 60 scientific posters, and new this year was a photo contest featuring entries under the anterior segment categories of Contact Lens, Lids, and Cornea/Conjunctiva. Look for the winning photos to appear on a future cover of Contact Lens Spectrum, which will also feature a full report of the GSLS meeting in April. Additional information is also available at www.gslsymposium.com.
Soft Keratoconus Lens Available in United States
KeraSoft IC silicone hydrogel contact lenses, manufactured exclusively in the Definitive (Contamac) material, are now available in the United States. KeraSoft IC lens technology, available to Bausch + Lomb (B+L) through a global licensing agreement with UltraVision CLPL, allows for custom-made silicone hydrogel contact lenses by authorized laboratories for patients who have irregular corneas, including keratoconus.
KeraSoft IC lenses are designed to fit irregular corneas, including keratoconus, post-laser refractive surgery, pellucid marginal degeneration, and other complex cor neal irregularities. KeraSoft IC lenses have been recognized with the United Kingdom's Queen's Award for Enterprise and Innovation.
Practitioners who are interested in KeraSoft IC lenses for their patients should visit www.KeraSofttraining.com and complete the necessary training to enable fitting of KeraSoft IC lenses. Upon completion of the online training, practitioners may contact Art Optical, the first lab channel partner, at (800) 253-9364 [and (800) 566-8001 for consultation] for trial set information and to place KeraSoft IC orders. In the coming months, additional lab channel partners are expected to announce their ability to provide KeraSoft IC lenses, according to B+L.
David Bland, B+L, director, Global GP and Custom Soft Lens Business, said that once practitioners have the opportunity to learn more about KeraSoft IC lenses, he expects them to become an excellent option for helping patients who have irregular corneas.
Remembering Dr. Joe B. Goldberg
Joe B. Goldberg, OD, FAAO, 91, a pioneer in the contact lens industry, died Jan. 9, 2012.
Dr. Goldberg was an early innovator in the development of the contact lens manufacturing industry. His first manufacturing site was Conforma Labs in Norfolk, Va., which later expanded to Columbus, Ohio; Providence, R.I., and Bal timore, Md. He sold Conforma to Dow Corning in 1977, but returned to lens manufacturing in 1983, forming GBF Inc., which he sold in 2003.
Dr. Goldberg was the first president and a founder of the Contact Lens Manufacturers Association (CLMA). He was a past president of the Virginia Optometric Association, a member of the American Optometric Association (AOA), a member of the British Contact Lens Association, a Fellow of the Contact Lens Section of the AOA, and a diplomate in the American Academy of Optometry's Contact Lens Section. He was a member of the American Academy for the Advancement of Science and served on the Board of Trustees at Pennsylvania State College of Optometry.
He wrote hundreds of articles on contact lenses and a textbook titled “Biomicroscopy for Contact Lens Practice,” published in 1970. He lectured at colleges and universities worldwide. Dr. Goldberg was internationally recognized for his development of aspheric contact lenses for patients needing bifocals and keratoconus lenses, and he was among the leaders in the development of GP contact lenses. Dr. Goldberg received numerous prestigious awards, including in 1998 the Pioneer Award from the AOA's Contact Lens and Cornea Section. The only other recipient of this award was the late Dr. Newton K. Wesley. The AOA called Dr. Goldberg a “true leader and pioneer.”
Based on obituary from The Virginian Pilot.
Contamac Announces Grant, Reaches Anniversary
Anew grant in support of the nonprofit Keratoconus Foundation has been established in conjunction with the U.S. launch of the KeraSoft contact lenses for keratoconus. The lenses are now available in the United States by Bausch + Lomb (B+L) through a global licensing agreement with UltraVision CLPL.
KeraSoft contact lenses are manufactured exclusively in Contamac's Definitive silicone hydrogel material. For every prescription KeraSoft lens prescribed in North America, Contamac will donate a portion of the Definitive material sales as an unrestricted grant to the Keratoconus Foundation, according to Marty Dalsing, president, Contamac, US. Only B+L authorized contact lens laboratories will be eligible to fulfill this special offer.
Contamac also announced that it is celebrating its 25th Anniversary in 2012 with a series of special events scheduled throughout the year. The company recently completed expansion and improvements totalling more than £2 million in its facility located in north Essex in the United Kingdom, including more than £400,000 in capital equipment investment.
Contamac was founded in 1987 with a range of contact lens materials, with its first foldable acrylic IOL material added in 1997. Contamac US was established as an affiliate company in 2002, followed by the launch of the full range of Optimum GP materials in 2004. Contamac launched the first latheable silicone hydrogel material Definitive in 2008.
The company launched its Centre of Excellence and the formation of the Specialty Lens Institute in 2011 as well, targeting practitioner education, contact lens training, and optometric school contact lens programs.
| PROSE Now Available at Wilmer Eye Institute |
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| Boston Foundation for Sight's prosthetic replacement of the ocular surface system (PROSE) treatment is now being offered at the Johns Hopkins Wilmer Eye Institute. Boston Foundation for Sight says that its PROSE restores vision, supports healing, reduces symptoms, and improves quality of life using FDAapproved (1994) custom designed and fabricated prosthetic devices to replace or support impaired ocular surface system functions that protect and enable vision. The Ocular Surface Diseases and Dry Eye Clinic at Wilmer Eye Institute will offer PROSE treatment to patients who have conditions including Stevens-Johnson Syndrome, keratoconus, Sjögren's syndrome, and chronic ocular graftversus-host disease (GVHD). “Our relationship with Wilmer Eye Institute at Johns Hopkins Medicine is another step towards our goal to make the BostonSight PROSE treatment available in major population centers across the United States” said Boston Foundation for Sight President and CEO, Eugene A. Bonte. |
| INDUSTRY BRIEFS |
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| ■ The British Contact Lens Association (BCLA) is inviting members to book their place at the 36th Clinical Conference and Exhibition by March 9 to receive up to 45 percent off the full delegate rate as part of a new member loyalty scheme. Anyone (including non-members) who books before March 9 will receive a discount on the full delegate package—but under the new loyalty scheme, the discount rate will be higher for those who have been a BCLA member for two to five years, and even higher for five years plus. This year's BCLA will be held from May 24 to 27 at the ICC Birmingham. ■ Art Optical now offers Intelliwave custom soft lens designs in new easy-to-dispense multipacks. The packaging upgrade coincides with the introduction of a new discounted pricing program meant to make purchasing annual supplies of Intelliwave replacement lenses more economical for patients. Offered in Definitive (Contamac) silicone hydrogel material as a quarterly replacement option, or in traditional hydrogel materials on a semi-annual replacement schedule, Intelliwave lenses are available in two-packs, threepacks, and four-packs. ■ Safigel 1 Day Daily Disposable contact lenses are now also available in sphere powers of –8.50D, –9.00D, –9.50D, and –10.00D. Previously the daily disposables were offered only up to –8.00D. The new powers will be available in both 30- packs and 90-Packs, as are all other plus and minus powers. ■ Dakota Sciences and Laboratorios Lenticon (Lenticon) have entered into an exclusive agreement allowing Lenticon to manufacture and distribute the patented So-Clear Lens Technology throughout Spain, Andorra, and Chile. ■ Practitioners, staff, members, and employees can now follow the latest news for Vision Source through Twitter, view videos on the official Vision Source You Tube Channel, and/or becoming a Fan on the company's Facebook and LinkedIn Pages. Content will be solely focused toward Vision Source news, communications among members, happenings, etc. They will be updated regularly, and will feature the latest comprehensive Partner product offerings and promotions throughout the year. Visit www.visionsource.com for more information. ■ Ophthalmic industry veteran Kim Brazzell, PhD, is the new chief medical officer of Mimetogen Pharmaceuticals. Dr. Brazzell will lead the development of Mimetogen's MIM-D3 pivotal program for treating dry eye. The Company previously announced in June 2011 that MIM-D3, a small molecule TrkA agonist, had successfully completed a 150-patient, multi-center Phase 2 trial for the treatment of dry eye. Dr. Brazzell previously held several executive positions at Inspire Pharmaceuticals. ■ The FDA is alerting pharmacists and healthcare providers of potential injury due to confusion between the FDAapproved eye medicine Durezol (difluprednate ophthalmic emulsion) 0.05% and the unapproved prescription topical wart remover Durasal (salicylic acid) 26%. There has been one report of serious eye injury and several near incidents because of the name similarity. |
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