Eyeworld Daily News

65 EW SHOW DAILY ASCRS•ASOA Symposium & Congress, New Orleans 2016 Indication LOTEMAX ® GEL (loteprednol etabonate ophthalmic gel) 0.5% is indicated for the treatment of post-operative infl ammation and pain following ocular surgery. Important Safety Information about LOTEMAX ® GEL • LOTEMAX ® GEL is contraindicated in most viral diseases of the cornea and conjunctiva including epithelial herpes simplex keratitis (dendritic keratitis), vaccinia, and varicella, and also in mycobacterial infection of the eye and fungal diseases of ocular structures. • Prolonged use of corticosteroids may result in glaucoma with damage to the optic nerve, defects in visual acuity and fields of vision. If this product is used for 10 days or longer, IOP should be monitored. • Use of corticosteroids may result in posterior subcapsular cataract formation. • Use of steroids after cataract surgery may delay healing and increase the incidence of bleb formation and occurrence of perforations in those with diseases causing corneal and scleral thinning. The initial prescription and renewal of the medication order should be made by a physician only after examination of the patient with the aid of magnification, and where appropriate, fluorescein staining. • Prolonged use of corticosteroids may suppress the host response and thus increase the hazard of secondary ocular infection. In acute purulent conditions, steroids may mask infection or enhance existing infection. • Use of a corticosteroid medication in the treatment of patients with a history of herpes simplex requires great caution. Use of ocular steroids may prolong the course and exacerbate the severity of many viral infections of the eye (including herpes simplex). • Fungal infections of the cornea are particularly prone to develop coincidentally with long-term local steroid application. Fungus invasion must be considered in any persistent corneal ulceration where a steroid has been used or is in use. • Patients should not wear contact lenses when using LOTEMAX ® GEL. • The most common ocular adverse drug reactions reported were anterior chamber inflammation (5%), eye pain (2%) and foreign body sensation (2%). Please see brief summary of Prescribing Information on adjacent page. ®/™ are trademarks of Bausch & Lomb Incorporated or its a liates. © 2015 Bausch & Lomb Incorporated. All rights reserved. Printed in USA. US/LGX/15/0041(1) Down, Boy. Help Tame Postoperative Ocular Inflammation and Pain With LOTEMAX ® GEL by Liz Hillman EyeWorld Staff Writer It's time to "make glaucoma treatment great again" continued on page 66 R eay Brown, MD, Atlanta, kicked off an EyeWorld CME Educational Sympo- sium on Friday morning admitting that glaucoma treatment options in the past have not been the most favorable. But recent advances and new options still coming down the pipeline are going to "make glaucoma treatment great again," Dr. Brown said, using a play on words of a presidential candidate's slogan. "We need to be proud of glauco- ma treatment. We need to do what we can to bring it into the modern day and make it something where we're helping our patients more," he said. The catalysis of this educational event—"The Role of Diagnostics, Pharmaceuticals, and Surgical Choices in the Pursuit of Advanced Glaucoma Treatment"—were find- ings from the 2015 ASCRS Clinical Survey. The event was supported by educational grants from Aerie Pharmaceuticals (Bedminster, New Jersey), Alcon (Fort Worth, Texas), Allergan (Dublin), and Bausch + Lomb (Bridgewater, New Jersey). In the 2015 ASCRS Clinical Sur- vey, about 50% of respondents said they either were already performing microinvasive glaucoma surgery (MIGS) or planned to start conduct- ing these procedures for glaucoma patients within the next year. "This is actually an amazing rate of adoption," Dr. Brown said. "The telephone took 50 years to reach 50%. The smartphone took 8 years to reach 50%, and if we start the clock ticking for MIGS with the approval of the iStent [Glaukos, Laguna Hills, California] in 2012, that means [it took] only 4 to 5 years to reach 50%." Richard Lewis, MD, Sacramen- to, California, said it was "probably the most exciting time ever" in his 30-plus years of practicing glau- coma. Dr. Lewis went on to speak about the state of new diagnostic tools and how to enhance patient compliance. Among some of the newer tools he highlighted was the Triggerfish contact lens (Sensimed, Lausanne, Switzerland), which correlates a change in corneal cur- vature to a change in IOP. He also called progression analysis "one of the most valuable tools" he has to track the management of a patient's disease. Non-mydriatic photography is a piece of equipment Dr. Lewis is particularly excited about. "I can show patients what their optic nerve looks like and their retina," he said. "It's a very good teaching example to get patients motivated to comply with their medication." Another good teaching diagnos- tic tool is OCT imaging, according to Dr. Lewis. While OCT can be used to help diagnose glaucoma, define

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