Woo's Wisdom: Highlights from Three Woo U Sessions
Continuing education is one of the best ways to keep our patient care sharp, and the Woo U community never disappoints. Below are the Woo's Wisdom recaps from three recent sessions, covering the newest eye care technology, common myths in posterior segment disease, and combination therapy for myopia management. Whether you attended live or are catching up, we hope these takeaways spark ideas for your practice.
Latest Advances in Eye Care Technology: Innovations in Early Detection and Management with Dr Greg Caldwell
What is the importance of early testing? Patients are expecting it, equipment is always evolving and our role in patient care is changing.
Imaging and Diagnostic Technology:
He started off discussing imaging and diagnostic technology, including retinal cameras, flicker comparison, Rabin Cone contrast test, ERG/VEG, dark adaptation, and generic testing. He also spoke about the importance of measurement of macular pigment.
Wellness Counseling
He then discussed the importance of counseling patients about the importance of overall wellness and health, including nutrition, diet and exercise.
Case Studies
He used case studies to highlight how these tools can be used in our practices in diseases including glaucoma, AMD, thyroid eye disease and rheumatoid arthritis.
Thank you for sharing your wisdom with the Woo U community!
Myths and Misperceptions in Posterior Segment Disease with Dr Jeffry Gerson
We are the front line for much of retinal pathology, treatments available today weren't available just a few years ago. Some treatments administered by OD's may be as good or better than MD driven ones.
Here are his answers to typical myths and misconceptions:
AMD: it IS common, there is no "good" kind of AMD, treatment for GA will stop progression, and there is emerging science on diets and supplements for AMD (not just lutein and zeaxanthin)
Diabetes: A1c only controls a relatively small percentage of risk for DR- don't just ask patients about their A1c!
Peripheral retina: PVDs- they are benign, VMA and VMT are not the same, all peripheral retinal changes do NOT need to be referred.
Plaquenil: The risk of maculopathy on plaquenil is low.
Low vision: Low vision is NOT old fashioned magnifiers, and with new technology, we are all able to provide care to these patients.
He shared numerous case studies to break down these myths and misconceptions in our practices.
Thank you for sharing your wisdom with the Woo U community!
Myopia Management with Combination Therapy: An Evidence-Based, Case-Based Approach with Dr Thanh Mai
He started with a detailed history of myopia management, including an overview of the most recent studies. He then discussed monotherapy and combination therapy, and the pros and cons of both.
What is combination therapy? It typically combines an optical pathway (ortho k, soft MF, HAL spectacles) with atropine.
Why It Works
He also discussed why combination treatment works using an evidence based discussion, including mechanistic rationale and key studies supporting dual pathway myopia control.
Clinical Lessons
He discussed clinical lessons, the cost of waiting, and how to have the combination therapy conversation with parents.
Real Cases
He shared three cases of patients he currently sees in his practice, including his own myopic son, and what decisions influenced his clinical prescribing.
His best advice? The kids who need more are already in your chair. Start measuring axial length, escalate on data, don't be afraid to add a second modality, document everything and own the prognosis conversation.
Want more insights like these? Stay tuned for future Woo's Wisdom posts, and we'll see you at the next Woo U event.
