JAN 04, 2019
By Anni Griswold
Cataract/Anterior Segment, Comprehensive Ophthalmology, Glaucoma, Pediatric Ophth/Strabismus
A weekly roundup of ophthalmic news from around the web.
A brawl gone bad left an Indian man with such severe head trauma that his doctor saw stars--a stellate cataract, to be exact. The 36-year-old says his vision began to deteriorate 6 hours after an assailant’s fist connected with his left temple. He underwent surgery to remove the cataract from his left eye and recovered full vision 1 week later. BMJ Case Reports
The FDA has expanded the fine print for fluoroquinolone antibiotics, adding aortic aneurysms to an adverse effects list that already includes mental health issues, low blood sugar, musculoskeletal effects and peripheral neuropathy. Fluoroquinolones such as ciprofloxacin (Cipro) should be reserved for complicated infections, the agency says. U.S. Food and Drug Administration
The medical marijuana movement hit a wee’d bit of a setback when Indiana researchers announced that a component of cannabis may worsen glaucoma. Working in mice, the team found that eyedrops containing marijuana’s non-psychoactive ingredient, cannabidiol, raised IOP by 18% for at least 4 hours after use. But there were encouraging findings, too: Eyedrops containing only the psychoactive component, THC, decreased IOP by up to 30% within 8 hours. The findings may help tailor glaucoma treatment. Investigative Ophthalmology and Visual Science
“From light perception to 20/400.” That’s how far a patient with Leber congenital amaurosis progressed after 4 months’ worth of injections with the RNA therapy QR-110. The experimental drug repairs genetic glitches caused by CEP290 mutations, paving the way for fully functional photoreceptor cells. According to a recent report in Nature Medicine, this “exceptional responder” and 9 other patients have shown visual gains with no adverse events in an ongoing phase 1/2 trial. University College London
Alkahest’s oral tablet for wet AMD is breezing through clinical trials with promising results. The drug, AKST4290, is designed to block an inflammatory protein called eotaxin in patients with newly diagnosed or treatment-refractory disease. The company says participants in a pair of phase 2a trials showed BCVA improvements with no adverse events. Alkahest