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Contact Lens Spectrum

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NEWS SPECTRUM

Contact Lens Spectrum October 1, 2020 Vol 35, Issue October 2020 Page(s): 3, 5, 7, 25

AAOF ANNOUNCES ANNUAL AWARD RECIPIENTS

The American Academy of Optometry Foundation (AAOF) announced that Charlotte Yiyi Wang, OD, is this year’s recipient of the Hopkins Comprehensive Eye Care Award. Dr. Wang is a graduate of the University of California, Berkeley School of Optometry and is the primary care/community health resident at the Meredith W. Morgan University Eye Center. The award is intended to promote the practice and development of comprehensive eye care by providing incentive and support to talented optometric residents who demonstrate a passion and commitment to further clinical experience, research, and education.

The AAOF also announced that Carolyn N. Chakuroff, OD, MS, was named this year’s recipient of the Alfred A. Rosenbloom, Jr., Low Vision Residency Award. Dr. Chakuroff is a graduate of The Ohio State University College of Optometry and is an ocular disease/low vision rehabilitation resident at the Kansas City VA Medical Center. This award is intended to promote the practice and development of the field of low vision by providing incentive and support to sustain talented optometric residents who demonstrate a passion and commitment to practice, research, and education.

AAOF announced that Kimberly Weisenberger, OD, MS, is this year’s recipient of the Bert C. and Lydia M. Corwin Contact Lens Residency award. This award is intended to promote the practice and development of the field of contact lenses by providing incentive and support to talented optometric residents who demonstrate a passion and commitment to practice, research, and education. Dr. Weisenberger is a resident cornea and contact lens advanced practice fellow at The Ohio State University College of Optometry.

Additionally, AAOF announced the recipients of the 2020 Johnson & Johnson Vision Residency Awards. The recipient of the Sheldon Wechsler Contact Lens Residency Award is Rosa Yawen Yang, OD, of the University of Waterloo School of Optometry and Vision Science. The recipients of the George W. Mertz Contact Lens Residency Awards are Mari Fujimoto, OD, of Pacific University College of Optometry; and Stephanie Gee, OD, MPH, of Indiana University School of Optometry. These residency awards support post-graduate advanced training in optometric clinical care, education, and research methods specific to the fields of children’s vision and contact lenses. Each recipient will receive $2,000 toward their graduate education.

Finally, the American Academy of Optometry recognized distinguished individuals who have made countless important contributions to advancing the profession of optometry. The 2020 award recipients: Karla Zadnik, OD, PhD, Charles F. Prentice Medal and Lecture Award; Donald T. Miller, PhD, Glenn A. Fry Award and Lecture (AAOF Award); Abraham Bromberg, OD, MS, AAO-Essilor Award for Outstanding International Contributions to Optometry; Roanne E. Flom, OD, William Feinbloom Award; Greg Pearl, OD, Brien Holden Humanitarian Award; Zhichao Wu, BAppSc(Optom), PhD, Irvin M. and Beatrice Borish Award; Raymond A. Applegate, OD, PhD, Carel C. Koch Memorial Medal Award; Sarah Wilting, Julius F. Neumueller Award in Optics (AAOF Award); Gay Tokumaru, OD, (posthumously) Vincent Ellerbrock Clinician Educator Award; Jun-Kang Si, MD; Kai Tang, MD; Hong-Sheng Bi, MD; Da-Dong Guo, PhD; Jun-Guo Guo, MD; Xing-Rong Wang, MD, Garland W. Clay Award; Clifford W. Brooks Jr., OD, Michael G. Harris Family Award for Excellence in Optometric Education (AAOF Award); and Brett G. Bence, OD, Eminent Service Award.

Awards of the Section on Cornea, Contact Lenses & Refractive Technologies: Jeffrey J. Walline, OD, PhD, Max Schapero Memorial Lecture Award; and Michael G. Harris, OD, JD, Founders’ Award.

Award of the Public Health and Environmental Vision Section: Gregory W. Good, OD, PhD, Henry B. Peters Award for Public Health and Environmental Vision (AAOF Award). ■

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IMEC AND GHENT UNIVERSITY PRESENT A SMART CONTACT LENS MIMICKING THE HUMAN IRIS TO COMBAT EYE DEFICIENCIES

Imec, a research and innovation hub in nanoelectronics and digital technologies, and CMST (an Imec-affiliated research group at Ghent University [Belgium]), together with their partners the Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria Fundación Jiménez Díaz (Madrid, Spain) and Holst Centre (an open innovation initiative from Imec and TNO, the Netherlands) presented an artificial iris embedded in a smart contact lens.

The iris aperture is tunable through concentric rings on an integrated liquid crystal display (LCD). The smart contact lens is designed to operate for an entire day thanks to an ultra-low-power design, offering a practical solution for people who have human eye iris deficiencies such as aniridia, higher-order aberrations such as keratoconus, and light sensitivity or photophobia.

The prototype will be further developed into a medical device within the framework of the spin-off incubation initiative Azalea Vision, from Imec and Ghent University. Currently, the Azalea Vision team is focused on validating this device with patients and volunteers under clinical investigations to provide a functional, robust, and safe device for diverse eye disorders with light sensitivity and lack of visual sharpness. ■

TRUFORM OPTICS ACQUIRES DREAMLENS ORTHOKERATOLOGY LENS

TruForm Optics has acquired DreamLens for managing myopia through overnight orthokeratology. With this acquisition, licensed eyecare professionals worldwide have the opportunity to expand the options of managing myopia using DreamLens, manufactured in Boston Equalens II (Bausch + Lomb) material, once successful online certification is achieved.

DreamLens is a reverse geometry lens based on a dual compression concept, and TruForm says that each parameter of DreamLens has been clinically validated to provide a high first-fit success rate. Eyecare professionals can choose to design their DreamLens order online at dreamlens.com using topographical information, K readings, and spectacle refraction, or they can discuss the order with a TruForm Optics consultant. ■

IN MEMORIAM

Harry I. Zeltzer

Harry Zeltzer, OD, died Aug. 12, 2020 at the age of 91. He was a visionary and a true renaissance man who had a big heart, and he was an inventor, webmaster, artist, fisherman, and sailor who loved to dance.

He practiced optometry in Waltham, MA for 35 years, during which time he invented and patented a contact lens named X-Chrom for treating color deficiency. He also was a consultant to Helen Keller International in its development of “Childsight” and served at Natick Lab as a lieutenant colonel in the Army Reserves in the psychology department, studying the effects of military stress on the visual system. And, in 1986, he joined Volunteer Services for Humanity International, offering eye care in developing countries. In time, he became the president and executive director of the parent organization.

Dr. Zeltzer was the Essilor-UNESCO Humanitarian in 2003. He was awarded the Honorary Doctor of Ocular Science from New England College of Optometry (NECO) in 2004, from which he had graduated magna cum laude in 1952. In 2008, he was awarded the VOSH/International Lifetime Achievement Award. The award, now in his name, is conferred to other humanitarians.

He was also the adjunct professor of optometry in the Department of Specialty and Advanced Care at NECO, where he lectured and published articles on color deficiency that are referenced in the Revised X-Chrom manual for faculty and students.

Memorial contributions in his name can be made to VOSH/International or to NECO. ■

COOPERVISION LAUNCHES CONSUMER CAMPAIGN TO DRIVE AWARENESS OF DIGITAL EYE STRAIN

Recent research from the Vision Council noted that with an unprecedented number of people continuing to work from home and students beginning the next school year, time spent using digital devices has soared. To help educate the public about the impact of extended screen time on the eyes—and how its Biofinity Energys contact lenses are designed to help—CooperVision has launched a new digital campaign targeting consumers.

The campaign features a series of social media and banner ads appealing to those who have busy lifestyles and increased screen time. Clicking through will take visitors to BiofinityEnergys.com , where they can learn more about the prevalence of digital eye strain as well as the symptoms and ways to combat them. In addition, CooperVision aims to help drive consumers to nearby eyecare practices by providing a form that can be filled out for free trial lenses.

To complement the ads, CooperVision has partnered with Jessica Naziri, a digital lifestyle and technology expert, writer, and speaker, who will develop and share a series of blog posts, videos, and social media content about eye tiredness and dryness associated with digital device use.

CooperVision is also conducting nationwide research to further examine trends in digital device use relative to eye health during the COVID-19 pandemic. ■

ALCON LAUNCHES GLOBAL SOCIAL MEDIA CAMPAIGN

Alcon kicked off a global social media campaign, “Reasons to Love Lenses,” during Contact Lens Health Week, which took place Aug. 17 to 21. According to Alcon, the new campaign raises consumer awareness of the benefits of contact lens wear including freedom and flexibility to enjoy even the small moments in life. The campaign also reiterates the value of prescribing contact lenses for eyecare professionals (ECPs) and encourages consumers to visit eyecare practices that are re-opening after the COVID-19 pandemic. The campaign, which features light-hearted lifestyle imagery and everyday situations, rolled out globally on Alcon’s social media during Contact Lens Health Week. ■

INDUSTRY BRIEFS

  • Alcon announced broader U.S. availability of its Marlo digital platform, which allows patients to conveniently order, reorder, and track their Alcon contact lens order online and have their lenses shipped right to their doorstep while keeping the relationship and revenue with their existing eyecare practitioner (ECP). To use Marlo, ECPs simply introduce Marlo to their patients either during their annual eye exam or through a unique practice link sent to their patients through email or text. Patients will receive reorder and exam reminders. In addition to online and text ordering, the platform also enables practices to capture and fulfill patient contact lens orders over the phone and to ship the contact lenses directly to patients. Alcon also introduced MeetMarlo.com , which provides more information about the Marlo platform.
  • Bausch + Lomb has received approval from Australia’s Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) for the supply of Bausch + Lomb Ultra One Day daily disposable silicone hydrogel contact lenses. Bausch + Lomb anticipates that the lenses will be available to selected practitioners in Australia beginning in the fourth quarter of 2020, with a national launch in early 2021.
  • CooperVision announced that Melissa Kiewe has been appointed vice president, North America Marketing. She is responsible for overseeing all regional marketing strategies and demand creation initiatives, including product launches, programs, and promotions. Ms. Kiewe joined CooperVision in 2016 as senior director, Customer Marketing, for which she led the development of multifaceted marketing programs, marketing communications initiatives, and national and customer brand product launches. Prior to joining CooperVision, she held positions at Bausch + Lomb, Johnson & Johnson, and Pfizer. She succeeds Simon Seshadri, who was promoted to the position of senior vice president, Global Marketing in June.
    In other news, CooperVision announced that U.S. television actress, producer, and entrepreneur Sarah Michelle Gellar will be the spokesperson for its Brilliant Futures Myopia Management Program, which is built around the company’s MiSight 1 Day soft contact lens. This new multichannel direct-to-consumer advertising campaign featuring Ms. Gellar will highlight the importance of annual comprehensive eye exams in monitoring the progression of myopia in children. The campaign will include national and regional broadcast segments, content across digital and social media, and influencers who will be sharing their personal experiences with myopia.
  • Michael A. Johnson, director of Consultation Services at Art Optical Contact Lens, Inc., has announced his plan to retire after 35 years with the company and nearly 45 years in the contact lens industry. Before joining the Art Optical team in 1985, Mr. Johnson spent eight years as a senior consultant for Dow Corning, where he was involved in the early design and application of GP and silicone elastomer lenses. He has also been instrumental in the design of Art Optical’s key signature lens brands, has acted as the company’s HIPAA Privacy Officer and U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Representative, and has served as the lead technical specialist at regional, national, and international meetings.
  • Treehouse Eyes announced the addition of three corporate leaders. Rachel Slack has been appointed to lead Training and Implementation, Rachel Falbaum will manage Design Services, and David Turk joins the company to lead Marketing. Ms. Slack will be working closely with Gary Gerber, OD, to train new licensee partner practices in the Treehouse Eyes model. Ms. Falbaum will work with licensee practices to implement the Treehouse Eyes design into its practices. Mr. Turk will be responsible for implementing marketing plans across the United States to drive consumer interest in myopia management services and to ensure that those consumers visit a Treehouse Eyes center.
  • The Asia Optometric Congress (AOC) will be hosting eAOC2020 on Nov. 18 and 19, 2020 from 9:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Singapore time. There will be presentations from 12 Asian countries and eight invited speakers by the industry sponsors. Registration is free. To register, visit https://asiaoptometriccongress.com/eaoc-2020-registration .
  • CooperVision has developed a three-part webinar to provide eyecare professionals with deeper insight into the Biofinity toric multifocal contact lens technology, how to best ensure successful fitting, and initial feedback from some of the first prescribers. The webinar is available to view on demand at onlybiofinity.com . For convenience, it is divided into three 10- to 15-minute chapters focused on the following: Behind the Scenes with R&D, presented by Lee Hall, BSc, PhD., MCOptom, lead clinical scientist and manager of clinical operations in CooperVision Research and Development; Fitting Guidance, presented by Steve Rosinski, OD, senior manager, North America Professional and Academic Affairs, CooperVision; and Insights from Early Adopters of the Lens, featuring Aaron Werner, OD, who practices at Werner Optometry in El Cajon, CA, and Josh Rajasansi, OD, who practices at Experts on Sight in Gilbert, AZ.
  • IDOC has announced the launch of its new corporate website, www.idoc.net . A new addition to the site is the IDOC Resource Center, a centralized hub for industry-focused content that includes videos, podcasts, blog posts, case studies, and other materials. The Resource Center will feature contributions from IDOC consultants on a weekly basis. IDOC also announced the launch of IDOC Social Media, which provides customized weekly posts that reflect the activities, voice, and culture of each participating practice. The IDOC Social Media Marketing Service is available to alliance members for a monthly fee of $299.
  • Plano Pte Ltd., a Singapore-based health technology startup, and Yoozoo, a provider of interactive entertainment, have inked a Memorandum of Understanding to address the global burden of myopia in Singapore, the region, and beyond. Through this partnership, they aim to address and combat the myopia epidemic by sharing both companies’ technical and professional expertise with the common vision of improving the quality of life and providing a myopia-safe environment for families worldwide.

COVID-19 BRIEFS

  • IDOC announced that its National Conference, The Connection, will take place as an interactive online event from Feb. 3 to 5, 2021. Hosted on the Communique Conferencing platform, the virtual experience is designed to replicate a live, in-person experience for attendees, featuring real-time presentations and keynote sessions, role-specific education tracks, public and private networking, vendor interactions, and special attendee-only rewards and incentives. New for 2021 will be a wellness track, featuring holistic self-care strategies—content that IDOC believes serves to complement business-focused learning. The new virtual Connection format will include expanded content for the entire practice, allowing for greater participation on the part of office managers, opticians, and all staff. To learn more about the event, contact IDOC at (203) 853-3333 or sign up to be notified when registration opens in November at IDOC.net/VirtualConnection .
  • Widespread use of face masks has been determined essential to combat COVID-19’s spread, yet it is giving rise to a new phenomenon: increased reports of dry, uncomfortable eyes. Experts from the Centre for Ocular Research & Education (CORE) are advising eyecare professionals (ECPs) on how to recognize mask-associated dry eye (MADE) and on methods to mitigate the condition. According to CORE, in addition to worsening symptoms in patients who have pre-existing dry eye disease, MADE can affect a wide spectrum of others: the elderly, who typically have a poorer-quality tear film, contact lens wearers, and masked people working for extended hours in air-conditioned settings and/or while using digital screens. Beyond discomfort, MADE may encourage people to rub their eyes for temporary relief—raising the possibility of unwashed hands being brought to the face. In turn, this increases the likelihood of coronavirus infection through the mouth, nose, and, to a lesser extent, the eye. To help practitioners, CORE has made available an infographic that details various causes and solutions for MADE. The infographic is available for download at COVIDEyeFacts.org .
  • The World Council of Optometry (WCO) has announced that the 4th World Congress of Optometry (WCO4), originally planned to be held alongside 0=MEGA21 in Melbourne, Australia in 2021, will now be postponed to Sept. 8 to 10, 2023. The partnership with Optometry Victoria South Australia (OV/SA) and the Optical Distributors and Manufacturers Association of Australia (ODMA) will continue.

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