63 global eye care organizations and more than 25,700 practitioners have accepted the World Council of Optometry (WCO) Myopia Management Standard of Care Pledge challenge. WCO and myopia management category leader CooperVision issued the challenge for eye care professionals worldwide to adopt myopia management as the standard of care.

Learn more and take the pledge.

WCO President-elect Dr. Sandra Block said, “The response in just over a month since we launched the challenge has been impressive. Myopia has reached epidemic levels and we know that myopia can lead to eye health issues that reveal themselves in adults.  It is our hope that early diagnosis of myopia and management can help reduce the long-term eye health complications. Taking the pledge sends a clear message that organizations and eye care professionals understand the seriousness of myopia as a public health threat and that they are taking active measures to manage that threat.”

The World Council of Optometry and CooperVision introduced the myopia management standard of care resolution in April 2021, defining an evidence-based standard of care comprised of three main components:

• Mitigation — Optometrists educating and counseling parents and children, during early and regular eye exams, on lifestyle, dietary, and other factors to prevent or delay the onset of myopia.
• Measurement — Optometrists evaluating the status of a patient during regular comprehensive vision and eye health exams, such as measuring refractive error and axial length whenever possible.
• Management — Optometrists addressing patients’ needs of today by correcting myopia, while also providing evidence-based interventions (e.g., contact lenses, spectacles, pharmaceuticals) that slow the progression of myopia, for improved quality of life and better eye health today and into the future.

The World Council of Optometry has a myopia management online resource featuring the standard of care resolution, pledge signup page, and practical tools and information for optometrists available at https://myopia.worldcouncilofoptometry.info/.

WCO is holding its second global virtual event on myopia management, “Advancing the Standard of Care,” on February 16, 2023. Hear directly from patients and eye care professionals working in research and clinical practice on how they have integrated myopia management into their practices. Sessions are planned in different time zones to suit your schedule. Register at https://bit.ly/WCOMyopiaEvent223.  

Click HERE for the full press release.

Fighting Blindness Canada (FBC) is marking Age-Related Macular Degeneration (AMD) Awareness Month with activities to inform and educate Canadians about the leading cause of vision loss in people over the age of 55, impacting approximately 2.5 million Canadians.

“Many research groups are working to develop new treatments for AMD, including those to reduce vision loss or even restore vision when it has already been lost,” said Dr. Larissa Moniz, Director of Research and Mission Programs at Fighting Blindness Canada.

As part of AMD Awareness Month, Fighting Blindness Canada is inviting Canadians to participate in the following:

• Attend FBC’s View Point webinar. “The Age-Related Macular Degeneration (AMD) Clinical Trial Landscape” on Tuesday, February 21, 4 pm EST. Dr. Tom Sheidow from the University of Western Ontario will discuss and answer audience questions about the current state of therapies for dry and wet AMD.
• Visit FBC’s AMD Resource Page to learn about AMD, how it impacts the retina, and risk factors.
• Download an Amsler Grid to do an at-home check for any eyesight changes.
• Sign the petition to support Bill C-284 that calls for a National Eye Care Strategy; eensuring timely diagnosis and access to new treatments for people with AMD.

Click HERE for the full press release.

IRIS Mundial announces that, for a 16^th year, the organization will benefit from an annual fundraising campaign organized by IRIS, The Visual Group, its main partner.

The campaign will be held throughout the month of February in IRIS stores across Canada. For each pair of glasses sold during the month, $10 will be donated to the organization. The IRIS Ophthalmology Clinic also agreed to donate $25 per eye surgery performed. IRIS Mundial also appeals to the public by giving them the chance to give a second life to their glasses; IRIS stores will give every pair of used glassed they receive from the public to IRIS Mundial. These efforts will enable disadvantaged individuals to obtain eye exams, eyeglasses and ocular surgeries. Since 2008, IRIS stores, with the participation of the IRIS Ophthalmology Clinic, have donated more than $1,311,900 to IRIS Mundial, including $92,160 in 2022. The goal for 2023 is to reach $95,000.

“Thanks to the constant support of the public and IRIS The Visual Group, we can continue to offer quality visual care to the most disadvantaged through our projects. Thank you so much for helping to change their lives!”, says Johanne de Champlain, chairwoman of IRIS Mundial.

The donations collected to date have resulted in the establishment of three Programs for the Prevention and Fight against Blindness (PPFB) in Haiti and in Senegal. For several years, these initiatives have enabled adults and children in the targeted areas to have access to a comprehensive quality eye care system. IRIS Mundial’s support to its partners takes many forms, from the construction or rehabilitation of community eye clinics, to financial and equipment support, as well as continuing education in the field of eye care.

In addition to its three permanent programs, IRIS Mundial has completed 24 one-time projects around the world. Typically, some 30 Canadian volunteers (optometrists, opticians, ophthalmologists and others) participate in these one-time projects and work with local professionals to provide visual care to 2,000 people. The purpose of these projects is to identify the most common oculovisual problems, as well as to assess the needs and also the possibility of implementing a permanent program at these sites in the future.

Click HERE for the full press release.