Eyeworld

start getting into the groove of look- ing into the angle," he said. EW Editors' note: Dr. Rhee has financial in- terests with Alcon (Fort Worth, Texas), Allergan (Irvine, Calif.), AqueSys (Aliso Viejo, Calif.), Johnson and Johnson Vision Care (Jacksonville, Fla.), Merck (Whitehouse Station, N.J.), and Santen Pharmaceutical (Osaka, Japan). Contact information Rhee: douglas_rhee@meei.harvard.edu cannula in the eye. He recommend- ed surgeons tilt the microscope for MIGS procedures by about 45 degrees. "Instead of patients looking up, turn their head so the angle of the eye and microscope are roughly at 90 degrees," he said. "It looks like the way the second-generation MIGS devices and procedures are going, all [are] angle-based," he said. So goniosco- py skills will become increasingly important for surgeons. "We need to 'Vast majority' lack knowledge of global eye health J ust over 40% of people in the U.S. are unaware that most cases of visual impairment can be prevented or treated, according to a global survey. Orbis (New York) also found that the majority of adults in the U.S. underestimate the prevalence of global visual impairment, with only 23% aware that there are more than 200 million people living in the world today who are visually impaired. "This survey exposes a major disconnect in the understanding of eye health on a global level among the American public and reveals an opportunity to educate people about visual impairment around the world, the solution, and ultimately how they can help to make a difference," Jennifer Gregoire, chief marketing and strategic communications officer for Orbis, said in a press release. "285 million people in the world are visually impaired, but the good news is that 80% of these cases are avoidable or curable, and that's why we work on the prevention and treatment of the leading causes of avoidable blindness." The survey did reveal that there is an understanding among the American public about the importance of eye health in relation to quality of life. Approximately two-thirds of respondents (69%) in the U.S. said that visual impairment or the inability to see would have the greatest negative impact on their daily lives when compared to other health conditions such as the inability to walk, hear, smell, and taste. ORC International conducted the survey online from July 28–30, 2014, in a group that was a demographically representative U.S. sample of 1,014 adults. Of those, 508 were men and 506 were women aged 18 and older. "Approximately 90% of visually impaired people live in developing countries, and only 18% of U.S. adults polled were aware of this fact," the release from Orbis said. "Blindness has a direct correlation to the economy as the unemployment rate among the blind has been estimated to be as high as 90%. Eye health must be part of a comprehensive approach to addressing global poverty." "Eye health is also a women and children's health issue," the release continued. "In fact, women account for almost two-thirds of all cases of blindness around the world. The survey revealed that there is extremely low awareness (12% of adults in the U.S.) that blindness and visual impairment are more prevalent among women than men." For more information about Orbis and the survey, visit www.orbis.org/get-smarter-give-smarter. EW

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