Therapeutics News

It is a condition once considered relatively rare, but has now been diagnosed in upwards of 30 million Americans, with as many as 30 million more affected. It is a condition once thought to involve only the elderly or those with severe autoimmune disease (Sjögren’s), but is now recognized among a much wider demographic. It is a condition once considered more of a “nuisance,” but is now viewed as a chronically debilitating disease with huge quality of life implications.

As part of Primary Care Optometry News’ 20th anniversary celebration, in each issue throughout 2015 we will profile a “Pioneer in Optometry” as chosen by the PCON Editorial Board.

Allergan announced it has submitted a Prior Approval Supplement for Restasis 0.05% to obtain marketing clearance for a multidose preservative-free formulation.

Researchers found that oral pilocarpine is effective in treating dry eye in patients with Sjögren’s syndrome who were resistant to traditional treatment, according to Kawakita and colleagues in the Asia-Pacific Journal of Ophthalmology.

Overall antibiotic resistance rates have not increased in the last 5 years, but resistance is high for some Staphylococcus aureus and coagulase-negative staphylococci isolates, according to a study.

For most patients with newly prescribed glaucoma medications, adherence patterns during the first year of treatment indicated adherence patterns over the next 3 years, according to Paula Anne Newman-Casey, MD, MS, and colleagues from the journal Ophthalmology.

Loteprednol etabonate ophthalmic gel 0.5% significantly improves the signs and symptoms associated with evaporative dry eye resulting from meibomian gland dysfunction, according to a poster presented at the American Academy of Optometry meeting in New Orleans.

NEW ORLEANS – A patient with a pressure of 21 mm Hg would have a 12%, 4% or 30% risk of visual field loss according to the Collaborative Normal Tension Glaucoma study, Collaborative Initial Glaucoma Treatment Study and Early Management Glaucoma Trial results, respectively, said a presenter here at the Optometric Glaucoma Society meeting.

As knowledge progresses in eye care, we sometimes find that commonly used medications are useful for off-label treatment.

The latest results from the Antibiotic Resistance Monitoring in Ocular Microorganisms surveillance study indicate that non-susceptibility is increasing, according to a presentation this spring at the annual Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology meeting.