Here are what the editors at HealthDay consider to be the most important developments in Ophthalmology for July 2009. This roundup includes the latest research news from journal articles, as well as the FDA approvals and regulatory changes that are the most likely to affect clinical practice.
UV Tanning Beds Classified as Human Carcinogen
FRIDAY, July 31 (HealthDay News) -- Ultraviolet (UV) tanning beds should be considered carcinogenic, according to a World Health Organization working group writing in the August issue of The Lancet Oncology.
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Laboratory Worker Infected With Vaccinia Virus
FRIDAY, July 31 (HealthDay News) -- A laboratory worker in Virginia became infected with the vaccinia virus, leading to severe eye and ear infection, and the tracing of 102 potential contacts, according to a study published in the July 31 issue of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.
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Electronic Disease Surveillance Systems Vary Widely
FRIDAY, July 31 (HealthDay News) -- Electronic disease surveillance systems vary widely from state to state and the lack of homogeneity will raise the cost of data sharing, according to a study published in the July 31 issue of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.
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U.S. Health Data Network a Powerful Tool for Quality
FRIDAY, July 31 (HealthDay News) -- The U.S. health care system is on the verge of a new era in which distributed health data networks will assure local control of sensitive individual patient data, while providing medical researchers and policy makers access to powerful aggregate data on millions of patients, according to a pair of articles in the September 1 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine.
Abstract - Maro
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MRI Can Help Determine Glaucoma Severity
THURSDAY, July 30 (HealthDay News) -- Magnetic resonance imaging of the optic nerve and optic radiations of the brain may offer a new diagnostic tool to evaluate severity of glaucoma, according to a study in the August issue of Radiology.
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Type 1 Diabetes Complications Becoming Less Common
WEDNESDAY, July 29 (HealthDay News) -- Intensive therapy to treat type 1 diabetes mellitus reduces the frequency of serious complications over the long term, according to a study published in the July 27 issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine.
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Methods to Determine Health Care Priorities Questioned
FRIDAY, July 23 (HealthDay News) -- Evaluating health care priorities based on the attitudes of patients (direct method) or the attitudes of the general public (indirect method) can produce different results, complicating decisions on the allocation of health care resources, according to two papers published July 22 in BMJ.
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Camera Phones Can Help Doctors Make Rare Diagnoses
FRIDAY, July 24 (HealthDay News) -- A pregnant patient with an uncommon nipple condition captured images of the transient changes to her nipples and gave them to her doctor, enabling an accurate diagnosis, according to an article published online July 22 in BMJ.
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Antihypertensive Drugs Associated With Cataracts
THURSDAY, July 23 (HealthDay News) -- Patients treated with beta blockers for hypertension are more likely than their counterparts not using the drugs to develop cataracts and require cataract surgery, according to a study published online July 23 in the British Journal of Ophthalmology.
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Obesity Rates Highest Among African-American Population
FRIDAY, July 17 (HealthDay News) -- The prevalence of obesity is far higher among African-Americans than Caucasians in America, and Hispanics also have significantly higher obesity rates, according to a study published in the July 17 issue of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.
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Posterior Chamber Lens Shows Years of Benefit in Myopia
WEDNESDAY, July 15 (HealthDay News) -- Implantable Collamer lenses appear safe, efficacious and stable for treating moderate to high myopia over four years of follow-up, according to research published in the July issue of the Archives of Ophthalmology.
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Glaucoma Surgeries Increasing in Recent Years
WEDNESDAY, July 15 (HealthDay News) -- Surgical treatments for glaucoma appear to be increasing in number since the late 1990s, despite decreasing Medicare payments, according to research published in the July issue of the Archives of Ophthalmology.
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Obesity Rates for American Adults Still Going Up
THURSDAY, July 9 (HealthDay News) -- At least 25 percent of the adult population in 32 states is now obese, and national prevalence of obesity has risen from 25.6 percent in 2007 to 26.1 percent in 2008, according to a July 8 report by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
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Inflammation Is Linked to Corneal Transplant Rejection
WEDNESDAY, July 8 (HealthDay News) -- For patients receiving a corneal transplant for herpes simplex virus keratitis, signs of inflammation in excised corneal tissue detected in a histopathologic examination indicate increased risk for allograft rejection, according to a study in the July issue of Ophthalmology.
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Brain Infarct Increases Risk of Visual Field Loss in Glaucoma
MONDAY, July 6 (HealthDay News) -- Silent cerebral infarct (SCI) increases the risk for visual field progression in patients with normal-tension glaucoma, according to a study reported in the July issue of Ophthalmology.
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Losartan, Enalapril May Not Slow Diabetic Nephropathy
WEDNESDAY, July 1 (HealthDay News) -- Drugs that blockade the renin-angiotensin system may not reduce progression of nephropathy in patients with type 1 diabetes, but they do slow the progression of retinopathy, according to a study published in the July 2 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.
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Priorities Set for Comparative Effectiveness Research
WEDNESDAY, July 1 (HealthDay News) -- The extent to which large-scale public investment in comparative effectiveness research can achieve its goals of better decision making and improved uptake of new knowledge depends on engaging the medical profession and patients, according to recommendations by the Institute of Medicine published online June 30 in the Annals of Internal Medicine.
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Editorial - Luce
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