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Product: emPower Electronically-focusing Eyewear
Top Line: Following an award-winning preview at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, PixelOptics officially introduced emPower, the world’s first electronically-focusing prescription eyewear, earlier this month at International Vison Expo.
Close Up: The glasses are being rolled out regionally in the U.S. Starting in May 2011, in a partnership with Aspex Eyewear and Panasonic Healthcare Co., Ltd., the emPower eyeglasses will be available in the Southeastern U.S. and then to other markets. Panasonic manufactures the electronic lens blanks; the electronic frames, produced by Aspex, will be shown in a fashion collection of 12 models, including nine semi-rimless and three acetates, in a range of color options, each housing the proprietary mechanisms of the emPower eyewear.
Vital Stats: The company said it has commitments from nine leading optical laboratories to support the first multiple regional launches. U.S. Optical, Robertson Optical, Luzerne Optical, Pech Optical, Milroy Optical and Southern Optical have all signed agreements. The company also reached agreements with Perfect Optical, Empire Optical and Cherry Optical to support future rollouts.
www.pixeloptics.com

Product: The Diopsys NOVA-DN VEP Vision Testing System
Top Line: The new Diopsys NOVA-DN VEP Vision Testing System allows clinicians to objectively assess optic nerve disease earlier than traditional vision tests because it uses Visual Evoked Potential (VEP) technology and proprietary software to evaluate the entire vision system from the eye to the visual cortex.
Close Up: "VEP is an objective, functional test that can help discriminate between healthy and glaucomatous eyes," said Alberto Gonzalez Garcia, MD, neuro-ophthalmologist and research director at Diopsys, Inc. Optometrists and ophthalmologists may use VEP in addition to traditional testing methods to enhance diagnosis and treatment. Diopsys, Inc. is a medical instrumentation company dedicated to delivering high-quality, cost-effective preventative health care. The company specializes in the development and marketing of patient-friendly, non-invasive diagnostic vision testing equipment.
Vital Stats: The Diopsys NOVA-DN records the electrical response of a patient's entire vision system and provides easy-to-read reports that give the doctor a simple way to evaluate optic nerve function. Physicians are able to compare tests over time to track disease progression. Many optic nerve disorders, such as glaucoma and ischemic optic neuropathy, are asymptomatic since central vision may not be affected until later stages of the disease. Also, diagnosis and management of optic nerve disorders are often based on structural or visual field tests which are limited in their ability to detect disease early.
www.diopsys.com

Product: Lighthouse International’s Online Vision Rehabilitation Program
Top Line: Lighthouse International announces a new online training program designed to help health care professionals such as nurses, occupational therapists, physical therapists, opticians and teachers of people who are visually impaired work more effectively with adults who have low vision or no vision. It is made possible by a federal grant from The National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research.
Close Up: The new program, which offers AOTA CEU credits, provides a solid framework for understanding the field of vision rehabilitation and illustrates practical techniques for working with people who have partial sight or are blind. Individual lessons cover a wide range of topics from the most common causes of vision loss in adults to improving safety in the home environment to reinforcing the proper use of low vision optical devices. Topics in the eight-lesson program include:

• Introduction to Vision and Low Vision
• Vision Loss and Its Impact on Function
• Low Vision Optical Devices
• Independent Living Skills
• Indoor Orientation and Mobility

“Building on our 35 years of experience in professional education for vision rehabilitation professionals, we are very pleased to offer this new Web-based training program,” said Mark G. Ackermann, president and CEO of Lighthouse International. “Sixty one million Americans are at-risk of significant vision loss. It is crucial that we prepare professionals to be able to deal with the profound implications vision loss will have in all aspects of our society.”
Vital Stats: The program is fully accessible to professionals who may be visually impaired, as well as those who are sighted. For example, it uses text alternatives for all visual elements and keyboard access to all program elements. Each two-lesson course in the Multi-E- Skills Vision Rehabilitation Training Program can be taken individually for $40 a credit, or the complete program is offered at a 15 percent discount of $360.
This program is also simultaneously being launched in Arabic in the Broader Middle East North Africa (BMENA) region with the Ebsar Foundation, a leading source for clinical care and professional training located in Saudi Arabia. The Arabic version is made possible by a two-year grant from The Olayan Group.
www.lighthouse.org/CE

Product: Electronic health records (EHR) continuing education course.
Top Line: The ophthalmology e-learning site ACTIONED has launched a new electronic health records (EHR) continuing education course series in partnership with the Joint Commission on Allied Health Personnel in Ophthalmology (JCAHPO). at ACTIONED for ophthalmic professionals across the country.
Close Up: The credit-based course was created through an unrestricted educational grant from ophthalmic EHR and practice management solutions leader Compulink Business Systems, Inc. The first in the series of planned courses, titled “Electronic Health Records (EHR) Training Module I,” is now available. Subsequent training modules within this EHR series will address protocol issues in a practice setting, focusing on the following topic areas: Patient Management and Scheduling, Insurance and Billing, Financial Management, Ambulatory Surgical Center, Chart documentation, Coding History and Examination, E-prescribing, Disease Management and Images.
Vital Stats: The course has been approved for one JCAHPO Group B credit and/or one COE Category A credit. Approval of AOC and OPS credits are currently pending.
www.actioned.org; www.jcahpo.org; www.compulinkadvantage.com

Product: Precision Vision’s Catalog of Low Vision Aids
Top Line: After many years of requests and several years of research and development, Precision Vision, a leading supplier of vision testing products, has begun offering a selection of high quality low vision products that meet the demanding expectations set by both Precision Vision's customers and staff.
Close Up: The company has published a catalog of its low vision aids. The product range includes Handheld Illuminated Magnifiers, Stand-illuminated Magnifiers, Dome Magnifiers, Bar Magnifiers, Handheld Telescopes and Spectacle-mounted Telescopes. “The same care and commitment to excellence that is placed into each vision tool we manufacture is equally matched in each of the new low-vision aids in this collection,” said Ed Kopidlansky, president of Precision-Vision.
Vital Stats: Precision Vision also sells a wide variety of Low Vision Test materials available on its website and coming soon to its low vision catalog.
http://precision-vision.com/index.cfm