Newark, NJ Oct. 20, 2007
NJ Lions who attended the 7th Open House sponsored by the Lions Eye Research Foundation and the UMDNJ were greeted by Dr. Marco Zarbin, MD, PhD, Professor and Chair, Dept. of Ophthalmology of the The Institute of Ophthalmology and Visual Science (IO&VS). Three members of the West Windsor Lions Club attended this session.

Dr. Zarbin summarized the importance of Lions' support of the research programs and introduced his colleagues Dr. David Chu, M.D. and Dr. Suqin Guo, M.D. who are Assistant Professors of Ophthalmology on the staff of IO&VS:

• Dr. David Chu, M.D. presented: "Outbreak of Fusarium Keratitis Associated with Contact Lens Use since 2006".
  Dr. Chu's diligence and follow though of observations made early in March 2006 during patient care were heralded in a New York Times Business Section article of May 18, 2006 by Barnaby J. Feder.

  Dr. Chu's teenage patient presented with an eye infection and the cause had to be determined. His work and coordination with CDC and others was instrumental in identifying that a fungal infection introduce by patients in the process of contact lens procedures was new to the mid-Atlantic region and was ultimately traced to applications of contact lens cleaning solution from certain manufactures.

  Dr. Chu explained the processes of his research and collaboration with CDC in April 2006 and work by others confirmed his findings. The exact process of developing the infection required substantial additional investigations, and along with other investigators, it was established that patients and eye care practitioners must carefully review protocols for contact cleaning, selection of solution with appropriate shelf life and quality considerations, to protect against future outbreaks of this type.
  
  

• Dr. Suqin Guo, M.D. presented: "What's New in Cataract Surgery".
  [Below is contemporaneous notes from the lecture, and presented here without the benefit of Dr. Guo's review.]

  Dr. Guo's presentation discussed Age Related Macular Disease (AMD). She compared the advanced technology in current practice, in which computer based robotic machines are used by eye surgeons to install, in less time, a safer and more efficacious lens. The results often amazes patients with the visual benefits of a modern cataract operation.

  She reflected upon the most primitive methods employed in 800 BC and, unfortunately, are still in use today in parts of the world. Also she noted the technology, that was available until relatively modern times, was much more intrusive and exposed the patient to more risk and offered less benefit. The robot machine and related apparatus, permits micro incisions and methods, with controlled pulse technology, to minimize undesired heat dissipation, to safely extract the patients cloudy lens.

  Today, doctors aided by the latest magnification technology, make precision measurements and input these and other data into the robotic machine. The robot machine fashions a replacement lens with aspheric correction, UV and blue light filters, and astigmatism correction to compensate, with at toric optical zone, about the measured axis for desired correction. The surgeon uses the machine to precisely insert the lens to complete the process.
  

  Lastly, Dr. Guo discussed presbyopia. [Presbyopia is not a disease as such, but a condition that affects everyone at a certain age. The most widely held theory is that it arises from the loss of elasticity of the crystalline lens, although changes in the lens's curvature from continual growth and loss of power of the ciliary muscles (the muscles that bend and straighten the lens) have also been postulated as its cause. (Wikipedia 10/22/2007)]

  More recently patients are seeking new technology to address presbyopia. Advances have introduces new crystal lens with features enabling the patient to muscularly control to adjust the lens position for correction to permit focal adjust by the patient, thus avoiding the necessity to wear bifocal eye glasses.

Both presentations were extremely interesting and Lions were grateful for the opportunity to participate. It was noted that funds denoted by Lions in the earlier years enable the UMDNJ to purchase electron microscopes to visualize the areas of research, that opened the door to many innovations and basic understandings.

The event was held on Saturday, Oct. 20, 2007 at the School of Dentistry in the Doctors' Office building on 90 Bergen Street, Newark, NJ .

To learn more about the Lions, LERF and UMDNJ, view Project Background.