Unilens Vision Inc. has announced the launch of the all new C-VUE(R) Advanced(TM) Custom Toric. The  product will be sold directly to independent eye care professionals and features a revolutionary trial program, an advanced hydration material and exceptional deliverability. The C-VUE Advanced Custom Toric is available in new convenient blister packaging with hioxifilcon D. The new product offering and hassle free trial/no returns necessary program will provide independent practitioners with an additional specialty C-VUE contact lens option. This contributes to patient retention and practice profitability.

The U.S. food and Drug Administration has approved safety labeling revisions for Bausch & Lomb, Inc.’s  Retisert (a fluocinolone acetonide intravitreal implant). The new labeling includes warnings based on the now available 3-year clinical reports. Use of the product can cause cataracts which require surgical removal in all phakic eyes within an average 3-year period. About 77% of patients will need drugs to lower intraocular pressure (IOP) within this period, and around 37% of patients may require filtering procedures for controlling elevated IOP.

Findings from a study conducted by optometrists from the Nova Southeastern University have concluded that a combination of in-office therapy and at-home treatment can be the most effective solution to treat a common childhood eye problem, convergence insufficiency. Children in this condition can not point their eyes together accurately. This causes eye strain. Patients see double. Traditional treatment of this condition has been home-based only. This study emphasizes that if a trained therapist provides office-based treatment along with at-home therapy, results will be better.

Researchers at the University of Montreal and St. Justine Hospital have identified a new receptor called GPR91 that can cure a number of eye diseases in diabetics, premature babies and the elderly by activating growth of blood vessels. The study is the first of its kind to show how ganglion cells that need oxygen to nourish produce blood vessels to feed themselves. Doctors have expressed their concern about the uncontrolled growth of blood vessels that can eventually cut the retina off the back of the eye causing vision loss. They are, now, working on various aspects of the study such as the receptor’s ability to drive the formation of blood networks and blocking GPR91 to stop tumor growth.

Indian scientists, in a recently conducted research, have found that the turmeric spice (obtained from the rhizome of the Curcuma longa plant) can prove beneficial in the blockage of a biological pathway which leads to the progression of diabetic retinopathy, a complication that can cause blindness, if not treated at the right stage. A study showing that the incidence of diabetic retinopathy was much lower in Indians as compared to Europeans made the researchers curious about the ingredients of Indian diet that were helpful in preventing the disease. Curcumin’s anti-angiogenic effects against cancer, the scientists guessed, may also curb the growth of new blood vessels in the retina.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has given the pre-market approval to Advanced Medical Optics, Inc.’s Healon D®. To be used as a surgical aid in procedures such as corneal transplant, cataract extraction, glaucoma filtration and implantation of intraocular lens (IOL), the ophthalmic visco-surgical device (OVD) offers incomparable clarity in the field of surgery and protects corneal cells well. Its molecular weight being low, Healon D® stays in place for the entire process of surgery. It ensures safer environment for doctors and patients as it is latex free.

Three recent studies conducted to examine the role of Takeda Pharmaceutical’s candesartan, the angiotensin receptor blocker (ARB) in the prevention and treatment of diabetic retinopathy have concluded that candesartan is one of the useful treatment options available for the disorder. The research found it to be the first pharmaceutical agent to have improved the patient’s condition in early retinopathy. Candesartan lowered the incidence of retinopathy in both type 1 diabetics (who had not developed it) and improved the condition in type 2 diabetes patients (who had it already).

Australian researchers at the Moorfields Eye Hospital in London have conducted a study which reveals that the rate of corneal infection related to contact lens is 4.2 per 10,000 wearers per year. The scientists, in the first study of its kind, seek to describe the incidence of infection associated with the two new kinds of lenses introduced with the expectation of reducing the risk of infection — daily disposable soft lenses (launched in 1995), and silicone hydrogel lenses (launched in 1999). Planned replacement soft lens is better and safe for the eyes. The new age soft lens, Silicone hydrogel lens users who kept their lenses in overnight had the greatest disease incidence. But, proper use of daily disposable lenses made them the one with the lowest risk of a severe form of disorder as elimination of storage reduced the probability of contamination.

Researchers at the Oklahoma Health Sciences Center have developed the first ever genetic model of a microscopic part of the eye, the absence of which causes blindness. The study, aimed at knowing the effects of diabetes, focuses on the functioning of receptors work and the role of proteins and insulin in it. The doctors hope to find an effective treatment of diabetic retinopathy through the model. Various drugs and therapies will be tested on the model to find ways for enhancing the life of receptor cells and prevent blindness.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has given 510(k) clearance to the company’s SOLX 790 for use in Titanium: Sapphire laser trabeculoplasty (TLT). The clearance followed the results of a multi-center clinical trial which established the equivalence of TLT to ALT in its ability to reduce intraocular pressure (IOP) in patients suffering from primary open angle glaucoma and poorly controlled IOP. The laser emits pulses of energy at a wavelength of 790 nm that loosens particles in the trabecular meshwork. The penetration of this energy into the tissue is deeper than other currently used trabeculoplasty lasers. The treatment is long-lasting and less damaging.