The Contact Lens Institute^™ (CLI) today published “The Culture Calculation: Data-Backed Behaviors for Contact Lens Success” in collaboration with The Vision Council. The in-depth guide, the latest in CLI’s “See Tomorrow” research series, is designed to help eye care practices enhance their contact lens cultures, in turn increasing patient satisfaction and practice business outcomes. It can be read or downloaded for no cost in the resources section of ContactLensInstitute.org.

The 19-page, infographic-rich report blends new quantitative research with practical insights and recommendations from forward-thinking optometrists, opticians, and technicians. Its release was timed to the 2023 American Academy of Optometry annual meeting in New Orleans.

“We previewed portions of our culture data at Vision Expo West to tremendous response. Emphasizing the upside potential for speaking with more patients about contact lenses and holistically measuring their value to a practice really struck a chord,” said Stan Rogaski, executive director of the Contact Lens Institute. “The full report goes considerably further, identifying what factors have the most potential to drive a positive contact lens culture both today and over the next three years. Paired with our other See Tomorrow projects and consumer data, it offers a customizable roadmap for eye care practices of all sizes.”

When asked which of 21 culture-building factors could make the greatest difference if given more attention or resources, responses were spread across several possibilities. After accounting for product availability, as well as new products and treatments, members of the eye care community focused on items under their direct control: education and training, in-office advocacy, and the emotional and professional benefits of prescribing contact lenses.

Advancements in contact lens products and treatments likewise ranked high among factors that will have the greatest impact through 2026. Profitability as a driver of contact culture is also on the radar for the next three years, identified by 21% of the eye care community as having significant potential.

“CLI members appreciate the strong enthusiasm for continued contact lens access and innovation—something the industry has done for decades, with more to come as manufacturers make sizable investments in R&D and production,” said Rogaski. “We are also excited to see the focus on practice management-related culture drivers in the near future. Our findings indicate considerable potential to rethink how contact lens profitability is structured and calculated, and the report offers guidance and perspectives from highly successful colleagues.”

The research also saw respondents overwhelmingly state that online retail presented the greatest perceived threat to contact lens culture. In addition to presenting several components to help practices improve their digital commerce competitiveness, the report includes evidence-based commentary from Alysse Henkel, senior director of Market Research and Analytics for The Vision Council.

She says the organization’s consumer research indicates potential disruption may not be as potent as anticipated: convenience is the primary reason for online contact lens purchases (52%), which is well ahead of price (39%). With online buyers reporting similar spending to in-person buyers, there’s considerable room for confident practices to market their convenience advantages to patients.

Additional guest columns were contributed by several 2023 Contact Lens Institute Visionaries, including Shelby Brogdon, OD, McFarland Eye Care, Little Rock, Ark.; Andrew Bruce, LDO, ABOM, NCLE-AC, ASB Opticianry Education Services, Vancouver, Wash.; Ariel Cerenzie, OD, FAAO, FSLS, Charlotte Contact Lens Institute^*, Charlotte, N.C.; Sabrina Gaan, OD, Eyes on Plainville, Plainville, Mass.; Lisa Hornick, OD, FAAO, Stanford Ranch Optometry, Rocklin, Calif.; Jennifer Lyerly, OD, TrueVision Eye Care, Raleigh, N.C.; Diana Mejia, Bellaire Family Eye Care, Houston, Texas; and Mark Schaeffer, OD, MyEyeDr, Birmingham, Ala.

Data was garnered through a custom-designed survey to The Vision Council’s U.S. Eye Care Provider Panel in August 2023. 173 qualified responses reflected a mix of optometrists (51%), opticians (35%), and ophthalmologists (5%), with practice managers and owners also included. The survey had a sampling error margin of +/- 6.5% and a 95% confidence rate.

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Findings from three SightGlass Vision Diffusion Optics Technology^™ (DOT 0.2) spectacle lenses studies will take center stage at the American Academy of Optometry 2023 Annual Meeting, which opens this week in New Orleans.

Individually and collectively, they reinforce the robust performance of the company’s flagship myopia control intervention, which uses thousands of light scattering elements called dots to mimic more natural contrast on the retina—a unique mechanism of action to slow myopia progression in children.*

In-depth data from Control of Myopia Using Diffusion Optics Technology Spectacle Lenses: 4-Year Results (CYPRESS) are being presented by Dr. Debbie Laughton on October 11, demonstrating statistically significant slowing of axial length (AL) progression and cycloplegic spherical equivalent refraction (cSER). Expanding on top line findings shared last month from the rigorous, multi-site study, researchers report that children wearing their DOT 0.2 spectacles full-time continue to show substantial clinical benefit over 48 months.

Among the additional data reported at Academy ’23 is visual performance among CYPRESS participants over the four-year span. Mean binocular high contrast LogMAR visual acuity (VA) measurements were clinically stable and similar between groups at distance (test -0.09 ± 0.08, control -0.07 ± 0.06) and near (test -0.03 ± 0.14, control -0.04 ± 0.10). Mean monocular low contrast (10%) distance VA showed an improvement over the course of the study (mean change from baseline: test 0.05 ± 0.12, control 0.07 ± 0.11), and mean peripheral VA improved or remained similar in all quadrants, with no significant differences between treatment groups.

The CYPRESS paper has been selected by the Academy as one of the six most newsworthy presentations scheduled for New Orleans. Dr. Laughton will summarize the work during the Academy-hosted Innovations in Vision and Eye Care event on Wednesday, October 11.    

A companion study co-developed by esteemed researcher and Professor James Wolffsohn of Aston University assessed the Visual Impact of Diffusion Optics Technology Lenses for Myopia Control. Children (12.2±1.3 years old, range 10-14, 51% female) were randomly assigned to wear DOT 0.2 spectacle lenses (n=27) or single vision lenses (n=24) for 3.5 years across six North American sites. Investigators determined that the DOT 0.2 lens provides an equivalent visual experience to a standard single vision lens, as evaluated through binocular high and low contrast distance visual acuities, near visual acuity, reading speed, contrast sensitivity, stereoacuity and glare measures.

Presented by Dr. Kylvin Ho of C U Vision Optometrists (Vancouver), Real-World Effectiveness of Diffusion Optics Technology (DOT) Spectacle Lenses for Myopia Control in Chinese Canadian Children identified 39 patients who were prescribed the intervention as a monotherapy between October 2020 to December 2022 in an independent practice. After 12 months, mean progression was -0.28 ± 0.32 D in SER (n=39) and 0.15 ± 0.17 mm in AL (n=36). SER progression was limited to -0.25 D or less in 56% of children during the time frame.

Compared to Singapore Cohort Study of the Risk Factors for Myopia (SCORM) data, DOT 0.2 lenses slowed AL progression by 62% (0.24 mm). The 12-month AL elongation was similar to 0.14 mm SCORM-predicted, age-matched emmetropic eye growth (physiological eye growth). The Canadian practice data also aligned with CYPRESS study 12-month outcomes of 0.15 mm AL progression.

“Myopia progression is one of the greatest health epidemics of our time, deserving of attention and resources from researchers, educators, and policy makers. The evidence-based efficacy and impact of Diffusion Optics Technology^™ spectacle lenses, clearly and convincingly demonstrated across multiple dimensions at Academy ’23, shows their substantial potential to change the lives of children around the world,” said Andrew Sedgwick, CEO of SightGlass Vision.

Click HERE for the full press release.

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CooperVision teams around the world are organizing fundraising activities for Optometry Giving Sight’s World Sight Day Challenge. For example, members of the company’s R&D team in Pleasanton, Calif., hosted a “Strikes for Sight” bowling event, during which participants pledged to make donations ranging from $0.25 to $1 per strike. Ultimately, 102 strikes were bowled in the two-hour period, with each employee donating between $25.50 and $102. The total funds raised by CooperVision will be announced later this year.

United Nations Photo Exhibition. As a Global Patron of the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness, CooperVision joined forces with the organization for the 2030 IN SIGHT photo exhibition at the United Nations headquarters in New York from October 9-20. Submissions, including one from CooperVison and Vision Action from their work screening children in Ghana, challenge viewers to consider the impact of eye health on sustainable development outcomes. You can preview the exhibition, including a submission, by visiting the exhibit website or through the attached booklet.

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The Centre for Ocular Research & Education (CORE) has announced a multifaceted series of scientific presentations, lectures, and posters for the American Academy of Optometry (AAO) 2023 Annual Meeting, scheduled from October 11-14. The diverse lineup represents the breadth of the organization’s expertise and impact across the optometric world.

Among CORE’s offerings are sessions on tear film stability, Meibomian Gland Dysfunction and dry eye, sustained drug delivery devices for the eye, presbyopia-correcting multifocal contact lens fitting, a new tool to assist orthokeratology fit success, and the impact of myopia control lenses on vision.

“Our work has evolved to consistently span a broad range of clinically relevant pharmaceuticals, devices, and practices, and we’re privileged to share some of our latest findings and insights during Academy ‘23. After thirty-five years—including the last six under the CORE brand—our industry collaborations continue to grow, with more innovation ahead,” said Lyndon Jones, PhD, DSc, FCOptom, FAAO, the director of CORE.

Six CORE scientists will be featured in eight different talks in New Orleans:

• AZR MD 001 Improved Tear Film Stability and Symptoms of Meibomian Gland Dysfunction in a 6-Month Study
• Sign and Symptom Improvement Rates Among MGD Patients Following 6 Months of Treatment with AZR MD 001
• Rapid Fire: Dry Eye in 2023
• Sustained Drug Delivery Devices for the Eye
• Task-Based Evaluations of Two Daily Disposable Soft Multifocal Lenses
• Investigation of Ease of Fit to a Different Daily Disposable Multifocal Soft Lens
• Subjective Vision Experience in Soft Myopia Control Contact Lenses by Age
• Software Guided Orthokeratology Fitting Success

The CORE rebrand was announced at Academy 2018 in Chicago, conceived to illustrate the organization’s substantial expansion from its early roots in contact lens clinical studies. In celebration of its six years under the new name, CORE plans to release several infographics that spotlight various projects, publications, education, people, and more in the coming weeks.

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