Optometry Advisor

20/03/2025

Doctors at Northwell Health in New York used stem cell therapy Lyfgenia to cure sickle cell anemia for the first time.

For 21 years, Sebastien Beauzile lived with the chronic pain of sickle cell anemia.

Now, thanks to a groundbreaking genetic treatment, he is the first person in New York to be cured of the disease.

“Sickle cell was like a blockade for me, but now it’s just like a wall that I just jumped over,” Beauzile said in a report published by CBS News.

The hospital used an advanced therapy called Lyfgenia, which modifies a patient’s own bone marrow to produce healthy red blood cells.

Read here: https://bit.ly/4iqN96c

20/03/2025

Glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonists (GLP-1 RAs) significantly reduce the risk of nonexudative age-related macular degeneration (AMD), exudative AMD, and primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) compared with other medications such as metformin, insulin, statins, and aspirin in older patients with long-term follow-up, according to study results published in Ophthalmology (American Academy of Ophthalmology).

Read more: https://bit.ly/4bFDyFT

20/03/2025

Multifocal and monovision contact lens fits for individuals with presbyopia have more than doubled since 2000, according to a multinational study published in Contact Lens & Anterior Eye.

However, a significant number of these patients are still not being fit with presbyopia-correcting contact lenses specifically, according to the report.

Read here: https://bit.ly/3FFgOde

19/03/2025

Brittany Wright, OD, MS, FAAO, (University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus) highlights the benefits of minimally invasive glaucoma surgeries and how, in mild-to-moderate disease, they may offer a better alternative to drops and more invasive procedures.

Optometrists have a plethora of eye drop therapies that can effectively lower intraocular pressure (IOP) in patients with glaucoma and, in some states, they can treat glaucoma using selective laser trabeculoplasty (SLT) or laser peripheral iridotomy (LPI).

With more than 60 million patients affected by the disease worldwide, collaborative eye care efforts are necessary as these numbers are only expected to double by 2050.1

In the US, nearly 4 million individuals have glaucoma and, among these, 1.49 million are estimated to progress to more advanced disease that will affect their vision.1,2

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Minimally invasive glaucoma surgeries offer an alternative to glaucoma drops, which, in some cases, do not adequately lower IOP and show poor compliance.

19/03/2025

Femtosecond laser–assisted in situ keratomileusis (FS-LASIK) with Q-value–guided optimized monovision scheme (Custom-Q) improves near vision in patients with myopia and presbyopia, according to research published in the American Journal of Ophthalmology.

Read here: https://bit.ly/3RhceUV

18/03/2025

Young adults who undergo atropine treatment for myopia are less likely to experience visual performance disruptions when treated with 0.01% atropine compared with a 0.05% concentration, according to a crossover study published in Ophthalmic and Physiological Optics (College of Optometrists).

These findings suggest that clinicians consider using the lower concentration while treating individuals in this age group, particularly those who are students.

Read more: https://bit.ly/4hirN9G

18/03/2025

A previously developed Kalman filtering (PKF) model is effective in predicting glaucoma progression, according to study results published in the American Journal of Ophthalmology.

Read more: https://bit.ly/3E0VCxH

18/03/2025

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) routinely evaluates the safety and efficacy of new drugs and devices relevant to the care of patients in optometry. This month, the agency has offered updates on a genetic therapy delivery device, an epi-on corneal crosslinking platform, and an AI-powered retinal imaging technology.

Collected here are these and other recent eye care-related findings, approvals, and other notifications from the FDA.

Read here:

An FDA optometry roundup discusses changes in drug approvals and devices used by optometric eye care professionals.

17/03/2025

There is a significant association between sleep quantity and quality in the first week postconcussion and youth recovery outcomes, according to a study published online Feb. 26 in the British Journal of Sports Medicine (BJSM).

Read here: https://bit.ly/4is7RSS

16/03/2025

Elevated corneal biometric parameters, which include axial length, anterior chamber depth, and axial length/curvature radius, can signal a decline in physiological hyperopia regression, according to research published in Optometry and Vision Science Journal.

Since these parameters may better predict future myopia than refraction alone, clinicians should begin monitoring these parameters early to delay myopia onset, the report suggests.

Read more: https://bit.ly/3Dx8pI6

16/03/2025

Practicing optometrists are more likely to report trusting myopia-related information disseminated by a chatbot than optometry students, according to findings published in Ophthalmic and Physiologic Optics (College of Optometrists).

The differences in favorably toward the artificial intelligence (AI)-generated responses are most pronounced for questions pertaining to contact lens and atropine management strategies, the report shows.

Read here: https://bit.ly/43xrog6

15/03/2025

Individuals with more severe symptoms, poorer meibum quality, milder telangiectasia, and less meibomian gland obstruction are most likely to demonstrate a favorable response to intense pulsed light (IPL) therapy, according to a retrospective study published in Cornea : The Journal of Cornea and External Disease.

Read here: https://bit.ly/3FnAVMO

15/03/2025

Oxidative contact lens care solutions and use of the rub-and-rinse regimen with nonoxidative solutions show antiviral activity against human adenovirus on contact lens surfaces, according to research published in Optometry and Vision Science Journal.

Solutions containing povidone iodine show higher disinfection efficacy than others, according to the report.

Read more: https://bit.ly/3FnxFRA

14/03/2025

Patients at high risk for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) appear to have a higher likelihood of also having normal tension glaucoma (NTG), according to research published in Eye Journal.

Read more: https://bit.ly/3FmMaVJ

14/03/2025

Introduction of the United States Soccer Federation (USSF) header ban for athletes aged 10 years and younger in 2015 was associated with a reduction in the number of concussions as a percentage of all soccer-related injuries, according to a study presented at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, held from March 10 to 14 in San Diego.

Read more: https://bit.ly/3Fuv1JS

14/03/2025

Using Generative Pretrained Transformer 4 (GPT-4) to translate discharge summary notes into plain language improved patient comprehension, according to results of a study published in The New England Journal of Medicine AI.

Read here: https://bit.ly/3FnCM4n

13/03/2025

Patients in hospital rehabilitation units can benefit from a screening tool designed to identify reduced habitual vision (visual acuity >0.3 logarithm of the minimum angle of resolution [logMAR], contrast sensitivity

13/03/2025

A majority of Americans want to be informed about the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in patient care, according to a recent study published in JAMA Network Open.

Read more: https://bit.ly/4bNfqB9