FEBRUARY 2011 - National Eyecare Group

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NEG directors Mike Wheeler (left) and Michael Daunt brave the cold to welcome delegates to the conference In temperatures struggling to reach above freezing, more than 100 NEG members from as far away as Guernsey gathered at the beautiful and historic home of the 11th Duke and Duchess of Marlborough in Oxfordshire on Monday 29 November for the Group’s first-ever conference and exhibition. The conference, entitled ‘Building for Success’, offered delegates a full day of clinical and business presentations, the chance to catch up with friends and review some of the very latest product innovations from the industry’s leading suppliers. Delegates were able to gain up to five CET points, including via a poster trail organised by Sauflon. Thanks to the generosity of title sponsor, the CIBA Vision Academy for Eyecare Excellence, and headline sponsors, Bausch + Lomb, CooperVision, David Thomas Contact Lenses and Hoya Lens UK, there was no attendance cost for members. Product innovations After a welcome by Michael Daunt, NEG managing director, the day began with a presentation by Dr Katharine Evans of the University of Cardiff on contact lens solutions, entitled ‘Thinking inside the box’. Dr Evans talked about the latest solutions to come onto the market, including AMO’s RevitaLens and Bausch + Lomb’s BioTrue, and the benefits they offered patients in terms of comfort. Biocompatibility and being preservative-free were important factors to consider when recommending solutions, and many of the newer solutions offered these. Cleaning and disinfecting efficacy were also being improved with the introduction of dual disinfecting solutions, such as Alcon’s Opti-Free Replenish, which were bringing new standards of cleaning efficacy. Dr Evans went on to look at stand-alone and regimen testing for bacteria such as MRSA and acanthamoeba keratitis (AK) and said it was important that solutions did not promote cyst formation, as this was associated with NEG CONFERENCE REPORT 21 AK. Moving onto compliance issues, Dr Evans told delegates that the US Food and Drug Administration had recently (August 2010) recommended that manufacturers remove the ‘no rub’ label from their products, with ‘rinse and rub’ being the ideal lens cleaning procedure. She finished by urging delegates to look at the new solutions on the market to optimise patient comfort and promote success with contact lens wear. Next to the podium was selfconfessed freeform ‘geek’, Paul Bullock, head of professional services at Hoya Lens UK. Paul talked about the development of freeform manufacturing technology, how it worked and the benefits of freeform lenses. He said freeform took out the middle man by cutting out a number of steps used in traditional lens surfacing, meaning manufacturers could Listening to some interesting lectures be more intricate with their lens designs. When deciding which freeform lens to recommend, Paul suggested that delegates ask themselves the following: 1) what have I started with (i.e. a complete blank or a semi-finished progressive)?; 2) what part of the lens has been directly surfaced?; and 3) what are the patient’s requirements? Paul concluded by looking at the benefits of freeform lenses, which included them being dual surface designs with an inherent pantoscopic tilt. They also offered balanced view control to reduce peripheral aberration, and gave the patient optimal performance for their individual prescription. Patient management techniques Presentations took place in the Palace’s stunning Marlborough Room Breaking for a coffee and a chat A warm welcome ON A FREEZING DAY By Nicky Collinson, Vision Now Editor If there’s one thing the inaugural National Eyecare Group (NEG) Conference at Blenheim Palace demonstrated, it’s that the Group’s members and industry partners are a hardy bunch. After a coffee break in the Orangery and some time to view the exhibition, optometrist and UltraVision keratoconus consultant, Lynn White, took delegates through the modern methods of dealing with the irregular cornea, such as corneal cross-linking, and who to refer keratoconic patients to if not managing them in your practice. Lynn warned delegates that keratoconus was on the increase and was particularly prevalent in patients of Middle Eastern origin. This was having an impact on
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Page 5 and 6: All-round protection: Solitaire ®
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FEBRUARY 2011 - National Eyecare Group

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