EyeWorld is the official news magazine of the American Society of Cataract & Refractive Surgery.
Issue link: https://digital.eyeworld.org/i/511377
EW MEETING REPORTER 80 May 2015 Reporting from the 2015 ASCRS•ASOA Symposium & Congress, April 17–21, 2015 San Diego Reporting from the 2015 ASCRS•ASOA Symposium Glaucoma Day: New treatment possibilities on the horizon for glaucoma Ophthalmologists will soon ben- efit from new classes of glaucoma medications, new surgeries, and new drug delivery devices, said John R. Samples, MD, Olympia, Wash., at ASCRS Glaucoma Day. While current glaucoma medi- cations aim to lower IOP, there are drugs on the horizon that will take different approaches. These include measuring the loss of retinal gan- glion cells and treating underlying molecular abnormalities, Dr. Samples said. Although there are various drugs under investigation, the one that is furthest along is Rhopressa (Aerie Pharmaceuticals, Bedminster, N.J.), a ROCK/NET inhibitor that is currently in phase 3 trials, Dr. Samples said. Some of the slated new drugs are part of drug classes not previously used within glaucoma. There are also evolutions for drug delivery devices within glauco- ma, such as punctal plugs, contact lens-style reservoirs, and reservoir insertions, Dr. Samples added. These updated delivery devices can help overcome compliance challenges, he said. Additionally, the development of future glaucoma surgeries will be a game changer, he said, refer- ring to a new trabecular meshwork treatment (Eye Sonix, Long Beach, Calif.), a new pars plana treatment that may improve outflow (Iridex, Mountain View, Calif.), procedures that go beyond microinvasive glau- coma surgery, and gene therapy. An avant-garde leader for early lens extraction for primary angle closure glaucoma, Clement C.Y. Tham, BM BCh (Oxon), Hong Kong, said that this approach can deepen the anterior chamber and widen the drainage angle. An ideal window for lens extraction is 3 to 4 weeks after IOP control and iridoto- my, he said. Douglas J. Rhee, MD, Cleve- land, discussed the diagnosis and treatment of uveitis-glaucoma-hy- phema (UGH) syndrome, which he said in recent times has been more associated with poorly positioned posterior chamber IOLs. Ophthal- mologists should suspect UGH if the patient has a history of a spiked IOP, a low grade anterior chamber reac- tion, or a darkly pigmented trabec- ular meshwork. Ultrasound biomi- croscopy can be helpful for imaging in this group of patients, Dr. Rhee said. The typical treatment involves pilocarpine, palliative care, lasers, and a surgical approach with IOL rotation or exchange. "The surgical approach is what you want to do to fix the issue, but if it s been more than 6 to 12 months, I recommend Dr. Lewis transfers the ASCRS presidency to Dr. Cionni. Supported by