What happened in optometry this week: December 2 - December 6
Catch up on what happened in optometry during the week of December 2-December 6.
Catch up with what Optometry Times shared this week:
You and Eye: Vision training research in eSports - with Tiffany Tsoi, OD, FAAO
By Miriam Korik, OD; Tiffany Tsoi, OD; and Emily Kaiser Maharjan, Assistant Managing Editor
Tiffany Tsoi, OD, FAAO, has always been a video game enthusiast, and when she began optometry school, she began to wonder about how best to care for the eyes in an eSports environment. Now a vision rehabilitation resident, Dr. Tsoi shares some of the details about her research on increasing visual comfort and improving visual performance for athletes.
BMI, tobacco, and alcohol: Roles in glaucoma progression examined in study
By Lynda Charters
A newly published study1 found that use of tobacco and alcohol did not significantly affect the rate of change of the retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL), while a high body mass index (BMI) was associated with slower structural changes in the visual fields, according to Asmaa A. Youssif, MD, from the Duke Eye Center, Duke University, Durham, NC, and the Department of Ophthalmology, Assiut University Faculty of Medicine, Assiut, Egypt.
Youssif and colleagues explained that while studies of obesity and tobacco and alcohol consumption showed that many chronic diseases are affected by the factors being studied, none had mentioned an effect on glaucoma progression.
The vitreous—remember me?
By Jim Williamson, OD, FAAO, FORS
At the Great Western Council of Optometry meeting in 2022, Leo Semes, OD, FAAO—an optometric retina pioneer and frequent contributor to this journal—gave a lecture called “I Care About the Vitreous and You Should, Too.” His talk made sense; there is no disputing that everyone has a vitreous, which is guaranteed to go through degenerative changes and possibly lead to patient complaints of flashes or floaters, or visual sequelae from vitreomacular interface abnormalities through the evolution of a posterior vitreous detachment (PVD). This brings a lot of people into our offices and emphasizes Semes’ lecture title; we should pay attention to the vitreous.
Is there a relationship between keratoconus and diabetes?
By A. Paul Chous, MA, OD, FAAO
Diabetes is known to induce multiple effects on the cornea, including keratopathy, neuropathy, inflammation, alterations in collagen fibrils, and endothelial cell loss.1 Most, but not all, studies have suggested that diabetes is inversely associated with the risk of keratoconus, suggesting a protective role against the development and/or severity of corneal ectasia.2-4 Some other studies contrast these findings, having reported either a positive association between prevalence and severity of keratoconus in patients with diabetes5 or no significant association between the 2 diseases.6 This discrepancy may be a consequence of varying sample sizes, differing inclusion and exclusion criteria, and specific populations being analyzed.
Does lifitegrast improve dry eye symptoms for contact lens wearers?
By Marc-Matthias Schulze, PhD, Dipl Ing; Emily Kaiser Maharjan, Assistant Managing Editor; and Jordana Joy, Associate Editor
A recent study found that lifitegrast helps improve symptoms of discomfort and dryness in symptomatic contact lens wearers. Marc-Matthias Schulze, PhD, Dipl Ing, worked alongside Sarah Guthrie, PhD, MSc, Jill Woods, MSc, MCOptom, and Lyndon Jones, DSc, PhD, FRSC, FCAH, on the study and presented their poster on its findings during the American Academy of Optometry meeting in Indianpolis, Indiana.
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