EyeWorld Asia-Pacific March 2011 Issue

March 2011 10 EW FEATURE would do it, would you?” he said. “Well, why would you do drainage surgery without infusion? It’s the same principle.” The perpetual battle “When we fight any battles, we must make sure that it’s worth fighting for,” said Ho Ching Lin, MD (Singapore). Tube shunt surgery, she said, has one of longest complications lists in glaucoma surgery. The stakes also tend to be higher; tube shunts generally come into consideration when a case necessitates surgical intervention. Case selection therefore plays an important role in minimizing complications with tube shunt surgery; however, in some cases, tube shunts really do present the best option, despite the risks. Dr. Ho, who is also specialized in pediatrics, was once called upon to manage intraocular pressure in a 10 year old boy. The boy had a recurrent pigment epithelial cyst with both anterior and posterior chamber components. The boy’s eye eventually developed an epithelial ingrowth, which obstructed the trabecular meshwork, resulting in medically uncontrollable IOP. Although the possibility of re-epithelial invasion is not completely eliminated with tube surgery, Dr. Ho and her colleagues decided that the tube was their best option. The surgery itself went smoothly and, at the time of Dr. Ho’s presentation, the patient Minefields continued from page 9 had good IOP control, with visual acuity at 6/6. However, she said, due to the generally relentless progression of epithelial ingrowth, the long-term prognosis for this patient is “very guarded”. At this time, “the child has improved his odds, but I think it’s likely that blindness will eventually result if the disease progresses,” she said. “For now, we believe we’re winning this battle, but we don’t know for sure in the future.” Going to war In his approach to the symposium, said Dr. Yeoh, Dr. Khaw had arrived at the essence of the exercise. In thinking about complex ophthalmology cases as minefields and battles, his intention had been to take the structural metaphor to its logical conclusion: An emphasis on prevention. After all, what civilized person would, in the presence of alternatives, choose to go to war? In addition to these lectures, “Minefields & Battles” featured lectures on medical retina from Ian Yeo, MD (Singapore), and Richard Spaide, MD (USA); neuro-ophthalmology cases from Sharon Tow, MD (Singapore), and Neil R. Miller, MD (USA); oculoplastic surgery from Choo Chai Teck, MD (Singapore), and Jack Rootman, MD (USA); uveitis from Dr. Chee and James T. Rosenbaum, MD (USA); glaucoma from Ho Ching Lin, MD (Singapore); and surgical retina from Doric Wong, MD (Singapore), and Mark S. Blumenkranz, MD (USA). The session was chaired by Dr. Yeoh, together with Drs. Chee and Barrett, and was held at the Resorts World Convention Centre, Sentosa, Singapore, on 23 January 2011. EW Editors’ note: None of the doctors had direct financial interests in the topics presented at the symposium. ONE SINGLE SYSTEM THAT PERFORMS ALL-LASER CATARACT AND REFRACTIVE PROCEDURES all-laser cataract and refractive surgery platform Only Technolas Perfect Vision offers you this level of versatility with one system THE SMART COMBINATION REFRACTIVE AND CATARACT SURGEONS WANT Someoftheproductsand/orspecificfeaturesaswellastheproceduresfeaturedinthisdocumentmaynotbeapprovedinyourcountryandthusmaynotbeavailablethere.Designandspecificationsaresubjecttochangewithoutpriornoticeasaresultofongoingtechnicaldevelopment. INTRACOR,SUPRACOR,CUSTOMLENSandCUSTOMSHAPEareNOTapprovedforuseintheUS.INTRACOR,CUSTOMLENS,SUPRACORandCUSTOMSHAPEarenotapprovedinallcountries.CUSTOMLENSwillbeavailablesooninselectedmarkets.Pleasecontactourregionalrepresentativeregarding individualavailabilityinyourrespectivemarket.Thetrademarks(™and®)andlogosusedinthisdocumentarethepropertyofTechnolasPerfectVisionGmbHortherespectiveowner.Designbykbcomunicacion.Ref.TPV-009/01-2011 ©2011TechnolasPerfectVisionGmbH.Allrightsreserved. Technolas Singapore Pte Ltd 101 Thomson Road #27-03A, United Square, Singapore 307591. Tel. + 65-6592-0792 Fax + 65-6250-1060 www.technolaspv.com