Eyeworld

11 EW NEWS & OPINION Headline byline goes here plus fade August 2015 T wo organizations are hon- oring the American Society of Ophthalmic Administra- tor's (ASOA) Administrative Eyecare magazine: Associ- ation Media & Publishing (AM&P) and Communications Concepts. AM&P presented the EXCEL Awards Bronze Award to Administrative Eyecare for the magazine's redesign. Communications Concepts present- ed the APEX (Awards for Publication Excellence) in the following cate- gories: Health & Medical Writing ("Addressing the Dawn of the Blue Light" by Rebecca L. Johnson, COT, CPOT, COE); Magazine, Journals & Tabloids (Most Improved – Ad- ministrative Eyecare Redesign); and Writing – Departments & Columns ("Employee Texting While Driving— Could the Practice be Liable?" by Laura Capik McGuire, JD, and Mark E. Kropiewnicki, JD, LLM). Reaching more than 2,900 ophthalmic personnel worldwide, Administrative Eyecare is the premier publication focusing on the business of ophthalmology. The publication's editor-in-chief is Laureen Rowland, and its editor is Joanna Lozar Glenn. Published 6 times annually, each issue addresses topics including spe- cialties, business operations, human resources, information technology, marketing, coding and reimburse- ment, and legislative and regulatory updates. Administrative Eyecare has won APEX awards from 2013 to 2015. Administrative Eyecare launched in the spring of 1992 as a quarter- ly publication, under the name of Administrative Ophthalmology with then-publisher and now-ASCRS executive director David A. Karcher and editor Lucy Santiago. The now full-color publication began as a black and white publication with a color exterior cover and contained articles like "Health Care Reform: Rx for Change" and "Evaluating the Ophthalmic Practice Administrator." Administrative Eyecare is an exclusive member benefit of ASOA membership. Other ASOA member benefits include: the Administra- tor Beginner's Circle (ABC), the ASCRS•ASOA 365 Mobile App, the ASOA Bookstore, paid access to the ASOA Learning Center, the upgraded ASOA MediaCenter, ASOA on Tour regional meetings, discounts on the Certified Patient Service Specialist (CPSS) program, EyeMail, the redesigned Consultant and Vendor Directory, Mentor Match, Washington Replay, and product and service discounts. Learn more at ASOA.org. EW Contact information Elliott: aelliott@ascrs.org In the journal . . . Femtosecond-assisted laser in situ keratomileusis for consecutive hyperopia after radial keratotomy Antonio Leccisotti, MD, PhD, Stefania V. Fields, AO What can you do for prior radial keratotomy (RK) patients who experience hyperopic shift? Investigators in this prospective case series considered how such patients would fare with the use of femtosecond-assisted LASIK to treat hyperopic shift ranging from 1 D to 4 D. Using the Ziemer LDV Z2 femto- second laser (Ziemer Ophthalmic Systems, Port, Switzerland) they created 130 micron flaps in the 18 eyes, which were then dissected along previous RK cuts in centrifugal fashion. This was followed by refractive ablation with an excimer laser. While preoperatively patients had a mean defocus of 3.13 D and a corrected distance visual acuity of 0.09 D, at the 9-month postoper- ative mark investigators found that the mean corrected distance acuity was 0.04 D with 72% of eyes having less than 0.50 D of defocus and 89% having less than 1 D of defocus equivalent. A mean uncorrected distance acuity of 0.11 D was likewise attained. No one lost any lines of CDVA or required any retreatments. Investigators also determined that there were few flap compli- cations with one self-limiting case of epithelial ingrowth and 3 cases of RK incisions opening larger than 2 mm. They concluded that treating post-RK hyperopia with low energy femtosecond-assisted LASIK was safe and effec- tive, with no relevant inflammation resulting. New posterior chamber phakic intraocular lens for high myopia: Three-year results Laura Gasser, MD, Julia Biermann, MD, Thomas Reinhard, MD The aim in this prospective case series was to consider the 3-year safety and efficacy results of the posterior chamber phakic IOL, the Epi.Lens. Investiga- tors implanted the lens in 30 highly myopic eyes of 16 consecutive patients. They determined that after 3 years the mean corrected distance visual acuity improved from 20/21 to 20/18. When it came to the postoperative uncor- rected distance visual acuity, the mean remained close, improving from 20/21 to 20/20. Investigators found that 94% of those with good visual potential attained 20/20 uncorrected distance visual acuity or better. In one case, a slight subcapsular lens opacification resulted when the posterior chamber phakic IOL contacted the crystalline lens. Still, 20/20 corrected distance acuity was attained here. The conclusion was that good safety and efficacy was achieved at 3 years with the posterior chamber phakic IOL. Mechanical epithelial removal followed by corneal collagen crosslinking in progressive keratoconus Nurullah Cagil, MD, Ozge Sarac, MD, Hasan Basri Cakmak, MD, Gamze Can, MD, Erol Can, MD This study compared complications arising from epithelial removal with the mechanical approach versus transepithelial phototherapeutic keratecto- my (PTK) in keratoconus patients undergoing collagen crosslinking. At the 3-month mark investigators found that for 15% of those who underwent the transepithelial PTK there was delayed epithelial healing versus just 3.5% of those who underwent mechanical debridement. Meanwhile, in 24.8% of eyes undergoing the transepithelial PTK there was epithelial hypertrophy compared with just 3.5% of eyes where the mechanical approach was used. Those undergoing PTK also experienced Salzmann-like epithelial nodules in 2.6% of cases. Meanwhile, epithelial herpetic keratitis occurred in 1.9% of cases, as did anterior uveitis and elevated intraocular pressure. Both the mechanical and the PTK groups experienced similar rates of stromal edema and peripheral sterile infiltrates. Those that underwent PTK had significantly high grade 2+ and 3+ haze, while for those that had the mechanical debride- ment this was significant for grade 1+ haze. Investigators concluded that the most common early crosslinking complication was ocular surface healing disorders. They also determined that with the mechanical debridement approach, short-term complications were lower. August 2015 Administrative Eyecare wins prestigious awards by Abbie B. Elliott ASCRS•ASOA Manager of Communications ASCRS update

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