DEADLINES APPROACHING FOR AAO 2005, SAN DIEGO. The American Academy of Optometry (AAO) is holding its annual meeting from December 8 to 11, 2005, at the Convention Center in San Diego. Deadline for awards nominations is May 16; the Call for Abstracts dates are June 15 to August 1. Meeting registration begins on July 6, 2005 and applications for AAO Student Travel Fellowships must be submitted by October 1. To learn more about Academy 2005, go to www.aaopt.org/meetings/meeting5.

AMO TO ACQUIRE QUEST VISION TECHNOLOGIES. Advanced Medical Optics, Inc. (AMO) has exercised its option to acquire Quest Vision Technologies, Inc. Financial terms were not disclosed. The companies entered into a one-year research and evaluation licensing agreement in May 2004 to develop accommodating intraocular lens (IOL) technologies and designs to address presbyopia. At the time, AMO was given the option to acquire Quest Vision after one year. The accommodating IOL being designed through an AMO and Quest Vision collaboration provides accommodation by altering the shape of the optic with or without axial movement. AMO’s acquisition gives it access to novel accommodating IOL technologies that the company hopes will add breadth to its growing refractive IOL offering, which currently includes the ReZoom multifocal lens, which gained FDA approval in March 2005; the Verisyse phakic IOL; and the Tecnis multifocal IOL. ReZoom and Tecnis multifocal IOLs have CE Mark approval in Europe for treatment of presbyopia. For more information, go to www.amo-inc.com.

TWO-YEAR CLINICAL TRIAL DATA RELEASED FOR B&L’S RETISERT FOR POSTERIOR UVEITIS. The results of a two-year Phase IIb/III clinical trial of Bausch & Lomb’s Retisert (fluocinolone acetonide intravitreal implant) for the treatment of chronic, noninfectious uveitis affecting the posterior segment of the eye have been released. The trial, conducted at 26 centers in the United States and one center in Singapore, included 278 people with noninfectious posterior uveitis randomized to receive either a 0.59-mg or 2.1-mg implant in the affected eye, or in bilateral cases, in the more severely afflicted eye; the fellow eye was implant free. Results showed a statistically significant lower rate of disease recurrence in eyes with Retisert (11.2 percent) after two years, compared to the recurrence rate in the year prior to enrollment (59.7 percent) and compared to the rate in the fellow eyes (50.0 percent) after two years. There were also statistically significant decreases in systemic use of immunomodulatory therapy and in periocular corticosteroid injections after implantation. In the eyes with Retisert, a statistically significant improvement in visual acuity occurred after two years as well. The most common adverse events included cataract progression and increased IOP, which were anticipated given the nature of the disease and the type of drug used. They were managed by conventional means, including cataract surgery and the use of eye drops or filtering surgery to lower IOP. Patients in the study will be followed for an additional year. Bausch & Lomb aims to make Retisert available in mid-2005.

FOR ODS SPECIALIZING IN GERIATRIC EYECARE: WHITE HOUSE HOLDS CONFERENCE ON AGING. Optometrists with an interest in geriatric eyecare are invited to attend the 2005 White House Conference on Aging (WHCoA), October 23 to 26, 2005, at the Hyatt Regency Washington on Capitol Hill. The theme of the conference is "The Booming Dynamics of Aging: From Awareness to Action." The conference will include gerontology scholars, leading advocates from senior organizations and key healthcare providers--including doctors of optometry--to focus on aging issues. Their common mission is to help shape national policy that better meets the needs of current and future senior citizens. About 1,200 WHCoA delegates are expected to make recommendations to President George W. Bush and the U.S. Congress aimed at improving the physical and psychological health of aging individuals and enhancing their social and economic security. Interested optometrists can seek to be appointed a delegate to the convention by their state governor or state’s U.S. senators or representative, or they may seek appointment by a national organization interested in aging issues. They might also participate in state "listening sessions" or organize and host their own WHCoA-approved and designated event. Additional, provisional conference attendee slots will be available via an online application/nomination process. For more information, go to www.whcoa.gov.