News Now

13 November
B&L VP named 2008 recipient of EFCLIN Award
Dr Joseph Barr, Bausch & Lomb’s vice-president, global clinical and medical affairs and professional services, vision care, has been named 2008 recipient of the EFCLIN (European Federation of the Contact Lens Industry) Award for his contributions to the contact lens industry.

 

12 November
Heavy lifting a risk factor for retinal detachment in myopic patients
For people with myopia, heavy occupational lifting and being overweight appear to be risk factors for retinal detachment, according to a brief report from Italy in the November issue of Epidemiology. Based on this finding, the research team, headed by Dr Stefano Mattioli from Universita di Bologna, concludes that further studies are warranted to determine if heavy lifting and overweight status also increase the risk of retinal detachment in people without myopia
.

11 November
Vision-screening law associated with lower fatality rates in car crashes
A vision screening law targeting Florida, USA, drivers age 80 and older appears to be associated with lower death rates from motor vehicle collisions in this age group, despite little evidence of an association between vision and car crashes, according to a report in the November issue of Archives of Ophthalmology.
“Older drivers represent the fastest-growing segment of the driving population,” the authors write as background information in the article. “As this segment of the population expands, so too have public safety concerns, given older drivers’ increased rate of motor vehicle collision involvement per mile driven. Research has suggested that this increase may be partly attributed to medical, functional and cognitive impairments.”

10 November
New director for Vision Group Holdings
Vision Group Holdings Limited has announced the appointment of Dr David Kitchen as a director of the company.
Company chairman Mr Shane Tanner said Dr Kitchen,44, “brings important attributes to the board .... represents the younger generation of doctors in Vision Group … has operational expertise in establishing and growing practices, having built the Central Queensland business from one doctor partner to its current complement of six doctor partners in just two years.”

6 October
Cambodia awards top medal to Fred Hollows Foundation
The Cambodian Government has awarded The Fred Hollows Foundation with a rare medal of honour, acknowledging the Australian organisation’s contribution to preventing unnecessary blindness in the country.
The National Development Medal was presented to The Fred Hollows Foundation’s CEO, Brian Doolan, at the official opening of a new eye clinic in Prey Veng Province in south western Cambodia on 5 November. The medal has only ever been awarded to a handful of international non-government organisations.

5 October
Retinopathy could mirror cardiac problems: Australian research
Eyes might be the window to the soul but new Australian research shows they're also a way to the heart and clues to how healthy it is, according to results of research published in the British Medical Journal. Researchers in Sydney have discovered that people with the eye abnormality retinopathy are more likely to die from heart disease than those without the vision problem, the researchers found.

3 October
‘ Same bloke. Different hat’ campaign to promote generics
‘ Same bloke. Different hat’ is the theme of a television campaign to promote generic medicines which commenced on 27 October.
The commercials, developed by the National Prescribing Service, aim to get the message across that generic medicines are bioequivalent to their innovator competitors and are an extension of last year’s ‘Generic medicines are an equal choice’ campaign.

31 October
New CEO for Vision Group
Vision Group Holdings, Australia’s largest provider of private ophthalmological services, has appointed a new chief executive officer, Mr Craig Stamp, an optometrist be training.
Mr Stamp, who has been running the Asia-Pacific (excluding India, China and Japan)
commercial operations of Bausch & Lomb, will take up his new position on 8 December

28 October
Luxottica Group’s 3Q sales up 5.3%, net income down 7%
Mr Andrea Guerra, chief executive officer of Luxottica Group on 28 October described the current uncertain worldwide economic period as a time “to stay calm, not to find shortcuts.”
In such a period, Mr Guerra said, “people back off from going to the malls and the stores, and stores start to de-stock” their inventories. To combat that trend, Luxottica will need to “leverage as much as possible on our unbeatable vertical business model.”
In this year’s third quarter, Luxottica’s consolidated net sales rose 5.3 percent at current exchange rates (up 12.8 percent at constant currency rates) to €1,212 million. However, the company’s net income was down 7 percent in the quarter, to €104.6 million.

24 October
Intake of antioxidants may protect eyes from UV: study in UK
Because a combination of low plasma levels of antioxidants and blue light exposure from the sun is associated with certain forms of age-related macular degeneration. increasing intake of antioxidants may protect the eyes, according to the results of a study reported in Archives of Ophthalmology.
“ Animal and laboratory studies have shown that blue light damages the retinal pigment epithelium and choriocapillaris through generation of reactive oxygen species and may be a factor in the pathogenesis of AMD,” the report on the study says.

23 October
Survey in US indicates more eye-care education needed 235
The American Optometric Association’s third-annual Eye-Q survey of consumers’ attitudes toward and awareness of eye-care issues indicates that more education is still needed on the importance of regular eye exams and other vision-related issues. According to the survey, most Americans are unaware that comprehensive eye examinations can detect more than just vision problems.


22 October
Vision Group withdraws resolution and director resigns
Publicly-listed ophthalmology practice company Vision Group Holdings Limited has withdrawn Resolution 5 ‘Approval of issue of ordinary shares to Dr Lawless’ from the agenda for the company’s annual general meeting to be held on 29 October.
Dr Michael Lawless has written to the chairman, Mr Shane Tanner, requesting resolution 5 be withdrawn from the AGM, noting in his letter that the role of medical director is an unpaid position, and performed in addition to his normal clinical duties.
In August the company offered Dr Lawless $50,000 worth of the company’s ordinary shares in recognition of the effort he had put into the role as medical director, but he considers that, given the current share price, the proposed new issue to him is not the correct signal to send to VGH shareholders.


21 October
Big exhibitor pulls out of Silmo
Although a ‘historical’ exhibitor at the annual Silmo exhibition in Paris in October, Bushnell Outdoor Products will not take part in this year’s edition. The decision was made because of the date (30 October-2 November), which the company says is too late for market expectations, but primarily because it coincides with the All-Saints vacation weekend when family gatherings take place throughout most of Europe. 20 October
Two studies link thyroid disorders and glaucoma
The findings of a study in the United States announced on 16 October show a link between thyroid disorders and the risk of glaucoma, backing up the findings of a study in Australia open-angle glaucoma was more common in study participants who used thyroxine and had a history of thyroid surgery.

17 October
Funds warned over premium rises
Private health insurance funds have been warned by the federal heath minister, Ms Nicola Roxon, about increasing their premiums.
Ms Roxon was commenting after the Senate passed compromise-deal legislation on the government’s Medicare tax breaks for middle-income earners.

16 October
493 exhibitors at IOFT
A record 493 exhibitors from 22 countries/regions participated in the 2008 International Optical Trade Fair (IOFT) in Tokyo, Japan, on 1-3 October.
The organisers report a slight increase in visitors from Japan, Asia and other parts of the world. There were 15,811 buyers at the 21st edition of the exhibition, compared to 15,717 last year.

15 October
Generic medicines campaign wins national PR award
The National Prescribing Service has won the Public Relations Institute of Australia’s ‘National Golden Target Award for Health Organisations’ with its multi-audience campaign that focused on better understanding of medicines choices.
The NPS became a national finalist for its Get to know your medicines and Generic medicines are an equal choice campaigns after winning the NSW state competition last month. Earlier this year the campaigns also won the international 2008 International Association of Business Communicators’ Gold Quill Award for Excellence in Communication and are a national finalist in the Australian Marketing Institute’s Awards for Marketing Excellence.

8 October
Warning on topical ophthalmic medications
Topical ophthalmic medications have potential to cause significant side effects and to seriously interact with oral medications, according to three researchers in Sydney, as reported in The Medical Journal of Australia.

3 October
New Specsavers stores average $25,000 a week
New optometry/dispensing stores opened by Specsavers in Australia averaged $25,000 turnover in the week ended 25 September, according to the co-founder of Specsavers, Doug Perkins. Converted stores have had growth in turnover of 40%-plus since they converted. Since February, the company has opened 130 practices, with more to come.

3 October
Eyecare Partners adds 5 for $3.5m, now has 38 optometry practices
Eyecare Partners Limited on 1 October finalised agreements to purchase five optometry practices – one in Western Australia, one in Victoria and three in New South Wales.
The practices in aggregate are expected to add annual revenues in excess of $3.8 million to the group. The acquisitions are expected to be cash-flow and earnings-per-share positive. The total acquisition cost is $3.5 million and was settled in combination of convertible notes and cash.