Decorative Contact Lenses Test Positive for Chlorine and Other Chemicals

A recent study by the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) shows that several varities of costume contact lenses tested positive for chlorine and other harmful chemicals. 

The research found chlorine in three types of non-prescription costume contact lenses. Iron was found on four pairs of lenses. The chemicals may come from colorants used to tint and create playful patterns on the lenses. One pair seeped chlorine after a routine rinse, prompting concern from researchers about toxicity to the eye. The study also noted that colorants printed or pressed onto some decorative lenses create an uneven texture. Those rough surfaces could scratch the eyes, potentially allowing in bacteria that can cause infection and even blindness. 

Four of the five lenses in the study are not available legally in the United States the FDA (Food & Drug Administration) has not approved them. Contact lenses not approved by the FDA may be made with materials that can harm the eyes, causing corneal ulcers or keratitis. Both of these conditions can result in scarring that impairs vision or causes blindness. For this reason, the Academy advises against wearing decorative lenses without a prescription. Even so, consumers can buy these and many other decorative potentially dangerous lenses online. Around Halloween, they often crop up for sale at beauty parlors or even gas stations.  

Guidelines to Pass Onto Your Patients

To safely wear decorative contact lenses this Halloween or any time of year, the AAO recommends following these guidelines:

• Only buy decorative contact lenses from retailers who require a prescription and sell FDA-approved products.
• Obtain a valid prescription and eye exam from an ophthalmologist or optometrist.
• Even those with good vision need an examine so the lenses fit properly. Ill-fitting lenses can scratch the surface of the eye, creating an opening for infection.
• Redness, swelling, excessive discharge, pain or discomfort can signal eye infection. If you have these symptoms, immediately see an ophthalmologist. Eye infections can cause blindness if left untreated.
• For more information on costume contact lenses, visit the Academy's public information website, www.geteyesmart.org.

AAO Workshop Hopes to Prevent Acanthamoeba Keratitis

“The American Academy of Ophthalmology today announced a contact lens microbiology workshop on Sept. 12 aimed at preventing Acanthamoeba keratitis, a rare infection among contact lens wearers that causes severe eye pain, redness, light sensitivity and potential vision loss,” writes News-Medical. “The event is jointly sponsored by the Academy, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the Contact Lens Association of Ophthalmologists, the American Academy of Optometry and the American Optometric Association.” Read more.

April Is Sports Eye Safety Month

"As millions take to the playing field this spring, the world's largest association of eye physicians and surgeons warns the public that thousands of people are blinded by sports-related eye injuries," reports Medical News Today. "In support of Sports Eye Safety Month this April, the American Academy of Ophthalmology reminds coaches, parents and athletes of the importance of wearing eye protection - whether for Little League or the Majors. Of the 100,000 eye injuries resulting from sports each year, an estimated 42,000 people are treated in the emergency room, and 13,500 end up legally blind. In fact, according to a January 2014 study of consumer product related injuries requiring emergency room treatment, sports equipment - including balls, bats, and rackets - was responsible for the following:

• "41 percent of emergency room visits for children age 10 to 14.
• 25 percent of emergency room visits for people age 15 to 24.
• 20 percent of emergency room visits for children age 5 to 9.

"In addition to injuries from sports equipment, many also suffer eye injuries caused by another player's errant finger or elbow to the eye."Read more.

ABO/NCLE certified speaker Linda Conlin will present on this topic this Sunday at OpticalCEUs Annual Spring Continuing Education Seminar for Opticians at  Foxwoods Resort and Casino. Linda breaks down the benefits of contact lenses over spectacles for the casual and serious athlete, fitting considerations based on various types of sports, safety in the work place, and patient management for athletes. The seminar features five other courses giving opticians the opportunity to earn three ABO and four NCLE continuing education credits.

AAO Creates Repository of Disease Info on National Database

The American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) has launched the IRIS Registry, or Intelligent Research in Sight, a repository that aggregates patient data from electronic health records (EHRs) and statistically analyzes the data, according to Medical News Today. “Already, 2,300 physicians in 47 states nationwide are participating in the IRIS Registry, having signed up during a limited rollout, which began in 2013. The ophthalmology registry currently holds more than 5 million patient records and is expected to ultimately house more than 20 million in two years.” Read more.

AAO Launches New PSA Campaign about Decorative CLs

As the use of dangerous, non-prescription decorative contact lenses continues to increase in popularity, the American Academy of Ophthalmology's campaign to caution consumers of the health risks associated with these illegal devices has been recognized by leading media relations trade publication Bulldog Reporter with the Gold-Level Bulldog Award for the Best Not-for-Profit/Association/Government Campaign. The Bulldog Awards honor the best media relations campaigns in the industry as judged by journalists, bloggers and public relations critics.

Despite a 2005 federal law that classifies all contact lenses as medical devices and restricts their distribution to licensed eye care professionals, decorative contacts remain widely available on the Internet and in stores. As a result, consumers – particularly teens and young adults – continue to sustain serious, sight-stealing eye injuries and infections due to improper fit and care of these illicit products. To raise awareness of these risks, the Academy's public relations team developed and executed a Halloween-themed campaign called, "Want Scary Eyes? The Dangers of Decorative Contact Lenses."  You can access the video at this link.

Here’s the scary thing. The AAO’s informative video is competing with public relations efforts by manufacturers of decorative contact lenses. For example, on the YouTube page where the AAO’s video appears, there is a column of videos about contacts on the right side. Guess what we found. A how-to video. The producer calls it “How to: Put [sic] in Colored Contacts.” It could have been subtitled “How to Injure Your Eyes.” What is more enticing to a teenager?

Sound and Fury: Leaders in Eye Health Field Come Out and Say Nothing about the Supreme Court Health Care Reform Ruling

David Parke II, M.D. and ceo of the American Academy of Ophthalmology, issued this statement  for the AAO in response to U.S. Supreme Court ruling on the constitutionality of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act: 

The American Academy of Ophthalmology is committed to working with Congress on solutions to expand coverage for the more than 40 million uninsured individuals in the United States, and simultaneously push for key changes in the health care law that protect patients' access to quality vision care. The Supreme Court's ruling that the health care law is constitutional is just one chapter in a book that is still being authored. The outcome of the November elections will be another important chapter. Ophthalmology and the medical community look forward to continuing to play a key role in ensuring the highest quality of care for all Americans.

Said Dori Carlson, OD and president of the American Optometric Association; and Ronald L. Hopping, OD and president-elect of the American Optometric Association:

 Battling organized medicine, insurers, and others with an anti-optometry agenda, AOA fought for and won a valued seat at the Washington, D.C. table as the debate over health reform intensified. And, as key health reform decisions are made in the nation’s capital and in statehouses across the country in the coming weeks and months, AOA will continue working to advance pro-access, pro-patient solutions aimed at ensuring that doctors of optometry and their patients are treated fairly under health reform and that policymakers and others fully understand the central role that optometrists play in enhanced care delivery and improved health outcomes.

Said Staurat Thomas, OD, chairman of the board of VSP:

We remain steadfast in our belief that stand-alone vision plans – which cover over 100 million Americans – should have the opportunity to participate directly in the Exchanges, and we will continue to advocate strongly for independent doctors and their patients towards this goal. 

Least you forgot your Shakespearean studies: To-morrow, and to-morrow, and to-morrow, / Creeps in this petty pace from day to day, / To the last syllable of recorded time; / And all our yesterdays have lighted fools / The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle! / Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player, / That struts and frets his hour upon the stage, / And then is heard no more. It is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, / Signifying nothing.--Macbeth Act 5, scene 5, 19–28.

AAO Increasing Awareness about Treatments for AMD

In recognition of Age-related Macular Degeneration Awareness Month, the American Academy of Ophthalmology seeks to increase awareness of AMD and the latest clinical advances and prevention measures. The most exciting new approaches for dry AMD, the most common form, include:

• Medicine-secreting implants that protect dying cells,
• New drugs that aim to prevent damage to the retina,
• Clinical trials of medicines intended to slow the progression of dry AMD, and
• A prosthesis system, known as Second Sight, which attaches to the outside surface of the eye and connects to an electrode placed in the retina. A camera mounted on a pair of glasses communicates with the implant. This device is in clinical trials in the United States and is already in use in Europe.

New, highly effective injectable medications are dramatically reducing damage from wet AMD, which affects about 10 percent of Americans, such as:

• Avastin and Lucentis, which have been shown to reduce visual acuity loss in most patients and improves vision in some patients, and,
• A new injectable drug, Eylea, which received FDA-approval in late 2011.

AAO Opposes MedPAC's Medicare Proposal

The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC), independent Congressional advisory committee for the Medicare program, late last week introduced a proposal to fix the formula used to establish Medicare physician pay that includes an 18 percent cut in reimbursement for specialists (5.9 percent for three years), followed by a seven-year freeze at the reduced level. Over the past decade, freezes in Medicare reimbursement have already meant physician fees have lagged inflation by about 16 percent, according to a press release from the American Academy of Ophthalmology. While the American Academy of Ophthalmology is encouraged that MedPAC recognizes the critical need for a new Medicare pay formula for physicians that protects patients' access to quality medical care, the Academy strongly opposes the MedPAC proposal.Read more.

From the Ghost of Optics Past

"If the ghost of a Florentine monk who died in 1317 had appeared in Chicago last week, it could have pointed a spectral finger at 59 men and one woman, members of the American Academy of Optometrists, and intoned: 'Your means of livelihood you owe mostly to me.' In a Vienna museum stands a statue of this medieval monk, with a pair of glasses in one hand and bearing this inscription: Here lies Salvina D'Armato degli Armati of Florence, the inventor of spectacles. May God forgive his sins," according to a post from a 1936 issue of Time.

AAO with New Eye Apps

The American Academy of Ophthalmology is collaborating "with Cloud Nine Development, LLC, to enhance its free iPhone application, the Eye Handbook. The application, created for ophthalmologists by ophthalmologists, offers ophthalmic calculators, clinical videos, study tools and more. Through the partnership, the Eye Handbook now features select Academy Summary Benchmarks for Preferred Practice Pattern® Guidelines, patient education videos and a link to the Academy's latest online clinical offering, the EyeWiki," according to a post on MedicalNewsToday.