Been there, done that. Take care of yourselves, docs. These injuries can be prevented. Make sure you participate regularly in physical activity that provides work in all ranges of motion and encourages those ranges of motion. Yoga, pilates, martial arts, well-designed gym programs, swimming, whatever works for you. Straight-up weightlifting, running, cycling, probably isn't going to do the job. 

Source: medscape.com 

QOctober 25, 2011 (Orlando, Florida) — Eye care physicians have a higher prevalence of neck, hand, wrist, and lower back pain than family medicine physicians, according to a study presented during a poster session here at American Academy of Ophthalmology 2011 Annual Meeting.UOTE

http://bit.ly/t0Bpdx

Sounds like an old episode of CSI or something... Walt 

Source: New York Times 

A jury convicted three Brazilian doctors of killing four patients by removing their organs, which prosecutors said were used for transplants at an expensive private clinic. 

http://nyti.ms/nCJ0OR

Just took this pic yesterday at our Office Octoberfest Party. Walt

One in 10 Americans Use Antidepressants, Most Don't See a Therapist - ABC News http://abcn.ws/rb54ba

This is worth looking at. It would be great as a refresher for OD's, or as an excellent resource for staff training, optometry students, etc. Here's an short exerpt from the article linked here: 

Marcello Leucci spent his undergraduate degree years building websites to increase the profile of optometry in the UK but expanded this to include Continuous Educational Traninig for optometrists in Tanazania. Due to its further development it is now used by members from countries all over the globe including Sudan, Kenya and Australia.

http://www.cumbernauld-news.co.uk /  http://bit.ly/o1RSVe
  

Interesting blog. No punches held. Mannen quotes stats that predict massive loss of patients for private practitioners.
Read More:  http://bit.ly/qCsLTT
 

In Ellen Troyer's Friday Pearls posted September 02, 2011 she writes:

We have known for years that lutein can affect macular pigment optical density (MPOD) and visual function; however there is still a lot to learn about its effect. The aim of the study discussed in today’s Pearl was to assess the 1-year changes in MPOD and visual function in response to supplementation containing 6 mg of lutein.

Read More: http://bit.ly/mVGE93

 

An article in yesterday's New York Times cited that many young MD's wish they had chosen another profession. We've all heard that before. The most interesting comment in the article - at least for me - was this:

To be sure, 78 percent of doctors polled in their final year of training said they had at least 50 solicitations from people wanting to offer them a job, Merritt Hawkins said. And nearly half, or 47 percent, said they had 100 or more solicitations. More than 300 doctors were queried in their final year of training, Merritt Hawkins said.

Draw your own conclusions: http://nyti.ms/qCn55Q
 

HollywoodReporter.com reports that Pacific University's College of Optometry and THX are joining forces to launch a facility in Beaverton, OR that will provide diagnosis, treatment and research. THX provided $40,000 worth of equipment for the new clinic. The article states: "The facility will offer binocular and stereopsis vision testing for children and adults, develop further tests and share its research with the entertainment and consumer electronics industries so that they better understand the human response to 3D products."

http://bit.ly/qrtrpL

From MedicalNewsToday.com:

In a paper published in the October 2011 issue of Experimental Biology and Medicine, a team of researchers at Columbia University Medical Center led by Stephen Tsang, MD, Ph.D have achieved temporary functional preservation of photoreceptors in a mouse model for retinitis pigmentosa (RP) using novel bipartite gene therapy. http://bit.ly/rttnKT

Not so sure I agree with this one, either. The sample used is pretty small. From Archives of Pediatric Adolescent Medicine:

In children evaluated for physical abuse who fulfill a set of low-risk criteria, the dilated eye examination should not be a necessary component of the abuse evaluation. Use of these criteria can significantly decrease the number of children who need to undergo a dilated eye examination as part of an evaluation for abusive head trauma.

Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med -- Abstract: Retinal Hemorrhages in Low-Risk Children Evaluated for Physical Abuse, October 2011, Li et al. 165 (10): 913 http://bit.ly/pynEdr
 

Things are constantly changing on the new Optcom, and one very big change is a new way for all of us to share files. I've decided to offer a new File Exchange using Mediafire, an outstanding cloud file storage and sharing service. You'll find it very easy to upload files (any size), tag them, add descriptions (at the time of upload), and to then share them a number of ways through permanent links, etc. All uploaded files will land in the "root" area outside the specific folders, and will be moved to appropriate folders over time. The permanent links do NOT change when the file is moved.

Please share your documents (Rx forms, routing sheets, CL agreements, HIPPA forms, training sheets), slit lamp images, retinal photos, and much more. Some files from the old File Exchange have been moved over, with many more to come.

 

From Ophthalmology Times, as reported by ModernMedicine.com: http://bit.ly/pD0ZIC

Pittsburgh—A second trial of topical cyclosporine ophthalmic emulsion 0.05% (Restasis, Allergan) may provide clinical benefit in patients with chronic dry eye whose treatment failed the first course of the drug. Eighty percent of patients whose treatment failed a first trial were successful in a second trial as a result of proper patient education.
 

Excerpt from http://bit.ly/qfosdW

ScienceDaily (Oct. 5, 2011) — North American babies who acquire toxoplasmosis infections in the womb show much higher rates of brain and eye damage than European infants with the same infection, according to new research from the Stanford University School of Medicine.

Eighty-four percent of the North American infants studied had serious complications of the parasitic infection, including calcium deposits in the brain, water on the brain and eye disease that caused visual impairment or blindness. By contrast, few European infants had these problems -- for instance, about 17 percent of French infants with the infection develop complications.
 

Yes indeed, we really want socialized medicine. Here's an excerpt from an article on http://www.independent.ie / http://bit.ly/nkDOJZ

Pensioners are being forced to wait two years for cataract surgery to help them see properly, a leading eye consultant revealed yesterday.

Professor Colm O'Brien, an ophthalmologist at the Mater Hospital in Dublin, said it felt "difficult and embarrassing" when he was referred elderly patients who had to wait six to 12 months to be seen and then another year for surgery.

"At the age of 75, that is a long time to wait with reduced quality of life," he said.

Seroquel (Quetiapine Fumarate) may be associated with an increased incidence of BRVO. With this drug being frequently used in Parkinson's patients, as well as Schizophrenia and other conditions, it's something to be looking out for. Check out this article in BioMed Central |  http://bit.ly/pQnVIn

For more information about Seroquel, see http://www.rxlist.com/seroquel-drug.htm.

http://techcrunch.com/2011/10/05/steve-jobs-has-passed-away/

Saturday, November 5 · 9:00am - 1:30pm
Southern College of Optometry
1245 MadisonAvenue
Memphis, TN
http://on.fb.me/oHuZF8

The goal for this petition is 1000... they are just over half-way.

From a petition on Change.org... http://chn.ge/rqBhkC

It is with deep anger and embarrassment that we were informed that the U.S. Army would no longer be accepting Doctors of Optometry with licenses that will not allow the practitioners to prescribe therapeutic pharmaceutical agents. The U.S. Army was very clear in stating that: “We do not accept any providers who do not meet the necessary criteria for practicing at the highest level of our profession. It does not matter what license you hold.  If you are not licensed to practice therapeutics, your credentialing in our Military Treatment Facilities is extremely limited and you are not able to perform your duties at the level necessary to carry out the mission in a combat zone or other deployments.” Its is expected that the Navy, Air Force and the rest of the federal medical services will go along with the Army soon.

Again, the government of Puerto Rico, by not allowing Optometrists in Puerto Rico to prescribe, is systematically discriminating against their own citizens and purposely allowing a substandard of care. This is an injustice and discrimination toward the 4.5 million residents of this U.S. Commonwealth, and now to the Doctors of Optometry licensed in Puerto Rico that are now not allowed to serve as officers and healthcare providers in the U.S. Armed Forces.

I love the AOA First Look news bulletin I get each morning. It's one of the AOA services I value the most. They now have an iPhone/iPad app that lets you get the feed on your mobile device everyday. Well worth getting if you're an iOS user. Android users (like me) will just have to do without, at least for now. Hey AOA! Don't ignore the unwashed masses. Oh I forgot... AOA members, only. 

This is too cool. And it really makes me want to bang my head against the wall. Why didn't I think of this? Why didn't YOU think of this? Congrats to Dr. Davis. <sigh> Somebody do the Android version... FAST!

Precision Eye Care - iRead App for iPhone Android smart phones http://bit.ly/r1OXw7

How long before OMD's become fully committed to behavioral vision care, VT, etc.? Will Optometry lose an aspect of itself that is truly unique? Rather than OD's providing the bulk of such care, will we see COT's doing it in OMD offices? 

BioMed Central | An evaluation of clinical treatment of convergence insufficiency for children with reading difficulties http://bit.ly/nrxwJJ

Check it out. Tell your OMD to keep it quiet while he's got that needle in your eye. Hmmm...

(Reuters Health) - If you're getting a drug injection for macular degeneration or another eye condition, a new study suggests you might want to make sure your doctor doesn't talk while doing the procedure.  Researchers found that in just a few minutes of talking over an imaginary patient, unmasked volunteers spewed out bacteria which could potentially land on eyes or injection needles and cause infection.

http://reut.rs/pji4eL

 

 (Reuters) Aug 27 - Scientists have begun using laboratory-made biosynthetic corneas to repair damaged eye tissue. A first study in humans shows sight can be restored offering hope for millions at risk of blindness. Basmah Fahim reports. 

 http://reut.rs/rhBekB

 

Sooo... not so sure about this study.  A lot to digest here. Thanks to Trey Sullins, OD for making me aware of it.

"Researchers who tested more than 4,000 elderly people across Europe found that those who took the drug every day were twice as likely to be diagnosed with late stage age related macular degeneration as those who did not."

- Telegraph http://tgr.ph/r9mecO

SECO International, LLC and Eventsphere have joined together to offer far more official housing options for SECO 2012 than ever before. The Atlanta Marriott Marquis is still the headquarters property, but starting November 1st, 2011 you can book at Congress rates with rooms available at several of Atlanta's best downtown properties. Learn more at SECO2012.com. Look for the Travel menu option.

This one got my attention. The company is from Israel. The software is supposed to train presbyopes to see at near without their glasses as it "enhances the visual system’s image processing capabilities by using the optimal Gabor patches to stimulate the visual cortex." Cost? -  $95 on iOS when released, as reported by MedGadget. 
 

USB Drives? Is beer next? An "A" in Philosophy?

http://gizmo.do/nFjqQb