Comanagement News

Ryan Heckman, president and CEO of ICON Eyecare, was raised in Colorado on the Western Slope, where he grew up skiing.

NEW YORK – An effective way to combat disruptive technology from outside sources is to take advantage of your brick-and-mortar location within the community and offer special services such as vision therapy, school screenings or sports vision, according to Quy Nguyen, OD, here at Vision Expo East.

NEW YORK – The three available minimally invasive glaucoma procedures have unique features that are suited for mild through severe glaucoma, Justin Schweitzer, OD, said here at Vision Expo East.

NEW YORK – Home monitoring with preferential hyperacuity perimetry can help detect age-related macular degeneration sooner, allowing for earlier treatment and better outcomes, Jeffrey Gerson, OD, said here at Vision Expo East. Gerson shared results of a study that compared the ForeseeHome monitoring program from Notal Vision with the Amsler grid.

In a June 2016 webcast, the American Journal of Managed Care convened a group of endocrinologists to discuss our country’s diabetes crisis. As of 2015, the American Diabetes Association reported that 30 million Americans have diabetes, another 1.5 million new cases are diagnosed annually, and a staggering additional 84 million adults have prediabetes. The cost to society is unfathomable, with diabetes being the seventh leading cause of mortality, contributing to some 250,000 deaths each year.

Optometrists who interact with other providers more than once a year on behalf of patients with diabetes were more satisfied with their health care role and more likely to believe that team-based care makes a difference in patient outcomes, according to survey results from Kierstyn Napier-Dovorany, OD, FAAO, associate professor at the College of Optometry at Western University of Health Sciences, and her team.

It is estimated that 3.6 million cataract surgeries will be performed in the U.S. this year. Current estimates suggest more than 3 million Americans have glaucoma, and it is estimated this will double to 6 million in the next few decades.

ATLANTA – Today’s technology allows optometrists to be proactive when managing and referring patients with diabetic retinopathy, Jay M. Haynie, OD, said in a presentation here at SECO.

ATLANTA – Murray Fingeret, OD, speaking here at SECO, urged clinicians to be more aggressive in monitoring glaucoma patients for change, noting that compliance with medication regimens is a big issue.

ATLANTA – “A new era of glaucoma management has arrived,” J. James Thimons, OD, said here at SECO. Thimons discussed how Rhopressa (netarsudil ophthalmic solution 0.02%, Aerie Pharmaceuticals) relaxes the trabeculum and may provide some form of trabecular regeneration. He said Vyzulta (latanoprostene bunod ophthalmic solution 0.024%, Bausch + Lomb) has an additive effect to latanoprost acid by increasing vascular permeability and flow in and around the trabecular meshwork.