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STRATEGIES INCLUDE USING EXAMPLES AND PRESENTING STYLISH OPTIONS

Increase protective sports eyewear compliance

By Zack Tertel, Senior Editor

As student athletes start their fall sports seasons, many will unfortunately suffer eye injuries on the field. Each year, an estimated 100,000 people are hurt by sports-related eye injuries, although wearing protective eyewear can prevent an estimated 90% of these injuries.^1,2

Even for patients who own protective eyewear, getting them to wear it is easier said than done, says Mitchell S. Fineman, MD. “We all know that eye protection reduces the risk of sports-related injuries, but the problem is that in real life there is a lot of peer pressure and societal pressure — it’s not done a lot,” says Dr. Fineman, who serves as an attending surgeon on the Retina Service of Wills Eye Hospital in Philadelphia.

While Dr. Fineman says that some sports, such as hockey, have instituted regulations to require eye protection, not all athletes are protected by mandatory legislation. “It’s easy to say, ‘You should wear eye protection,’ and leave it at that, but you have to provide patients with practical tips,” Dr. Fineman says.

To help prevent eye injuries, use this advice.

1. Determine whether they play sports. Not all student-athletes will come to your office and ask about eye protection, so it’s important to inquire about their after-school activities, says Sunir J. Garg, MD, FACS. “When first meeting a person I will ask them questions such as, ‘What kinds of things do you do for fun? What sports are you involved in,’” says Dr. Garg, associate professor of Ophthalmology at Wills Eye Hospital, Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia.

2. Show stylish options. After you establish a rapport with the patient, convince them to wear protective glasses by breaking their preconceived notions. With modern, stylish options, athletes can strike a balance between form and function.

“When I was younger, I went by the book and suggested durable, really strong safety glasses. However, these were usually so dorky that no one wore them,” Dr. Garg says. “They kept them in a drawer. So as I’ve gotten older, I realized I’d rather them have something they’re going to wear that’s reasonably strong. If the safety glasses are in a drawer, I don’t care if they’re made of titanium, they’re not going to do you any good.”

3. Target those with even greater need. Patients with two healthy eyes need eye protection, but Dr. Fineman stresses its importance even more with patients who have functional vision in only one eye due to previous trauma or other medical issues. “You don’t want to repeat that. Much like repetitive concussions, cumulative eye trauma may damage the health of the eye, whether it relates to cataract or glaucoma, and it can interfere with one’s ability to perform at a high level.”

“When someone comes in with an injury to an eye related to an activity or a sport, they’re a captive audience,” adds Dr. Garg.

4. Use professional athlete examples. Dr. Fineman says that stories of pro athletes’ injuries often hit home. Dr. Fineman tells patients about the NBA’s Amare Stoudemire, who suffered a partially torn iris after he was poked in the eye. After failing to wear eye protection, he was poked in the same eye four months later and missed the remainder of the season with a partially detached retina.

“Patients can relate to that,” says Dr. Garg. “They see on ESPN or see on the news that some guy who makes $10 million a year gets injured and they realize, that’s actually something that can happen and can mess up his livelihood.”

REFERENCES:

SOME MEMBERS REPORT SURVEYORS REQUESTED THEM TO STOP

ASCRS defends diluted solution, eyedrop practices

By Robert Stoneback, Contributing Editor

The American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery (ASCRS) is defending the use of diluted povidone-iodine solution for topical infection prophylaxis and the use of multidose topical eye drops on multiple patients, which are both common presurgical practice.

“Some members reported that surveyors have arbitrarily proscribed these well-established and common practices, without any evidence that they pose greater risk,” said David F. Chang, MD, past president and Cataract Clinical Committee member of ASCRS, via press release.

No published directive banned the use of the 5% povidone-iodine solution despite some members reporting that surveryors questioned or cited its use, said Dr. Chang. The solution is created by diluting 10% iodine solution (Betadine) with saline solution. Literature strongly supports preoperative povidone-iodine solution use for cataract surgery antisepsis and endophthalmitis prevention, according to the ASCRS’ position statement, adding that the practice has been used almost universally in ophthalmic surgery for decades, particularly 5% povidone-iodine solution to treat endophthalmitis prophylaxis in the conjunctival sac.

Despite the labeling “do not use in the eye” on containers of 10% povidone solutions, a 5% povidone treatment has been shown to be safe and effective, according to the ASCRS. While the 5% solution is usually prepared by diluting the commercially available 10% iodine solution, 5% povidone-iodine preparations have recently gone to market, but at a significant cost.

Another questioned practice, using multidose eye drops on multiple patients, has long been recognized in clinical and surgical settings as a safe and cost-effective practice, particularly when following safety guidelines for them. These guidelines include proper disposal techniques, an expiration date of 28 days after initial use and discarding any bottle with suspected tip contamination. When physicians follow proper protocols, the ASCRS Cataract Clinical Committee strongly supports the use of multidose eye drops on multiple patients.

“The Cataract Clinical Committee is not recommending or suggesting that there is only one best practice,” Dr. Chang said via press release. “Rather, we want to defend those facilities that choose to use multi-use bottles or dilute 10% Betadine, based on the best medical judgment of their clinical staff.” OP

BSM Consulting builds a new foundation

BSM Consulting, founded in 1978 by Bruce Maller, broke ground on a new office facility in Incline Village, NV, which has been home to BSM Consulting since 1987. The 6,200-square-foot, two-story building is expected to be finished in fall 2016 and will be home to most of BSM’s 34 employees. “We’ve been looking to take this step for many years,” said Mr. Maller, Ophthalmic Professional’s co-editor-in-chief. “We are thrilled to finally be on our way to building a beautiful workplace for the BSM team and to have a facility capable of hosting our valued customers and partners.”

COURTESY: ALLAN WALKER