WASHINGTON — The Holland Foundation for Sight Restoration is dedicated to treating patients with severe ocular surface disease with stem cell deficiency.
According to Edward J. Holland, MD, the foundation’s cofounder, less than 1% of patients diagnosed with the condition receive treatment, making it one of the largest areas of unmet need in ophthalmology. To address this gap, the foundation created a treatment protocol: The Cincinnati Protocol.
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“We’ve shown that we have very safe treatment options with ocular surface stem cell transplantation and systemic image suppression,” he told

SAN DIEGO — Weight loss plateaus do not mean that treatments are unsuccessful nor that patients are not benefiting in other ways, a speaker at the Obesity Medicine Association’s annual meeting said.
According to Mayo Clinic, a weight loss plateau is when a person’s weight stops changing, and it “eventually happens to everyone who tries to lose weight.”
Jaime Almandoz, MD, MBA, DABOM, FTOS, a professor of medicine at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, spoke with Healio about why these plateaus occur, how to define treatment success beyond weight displayed on the scale, and

CHICAGO — With the United States on track to set a modern record for measles cases, health care systems need to be ready for possible outbreaks.
Even though most systems may have protocols in place to address measles exposures, Ericka Hayes, MD, attending physician and senior medical director of infection prevention at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, and colleagues found that it is beneficial to examine those protocols to make sure everything is working efficiently.
“For measles, you need to have continued preparedness, and you need to be continuously educating, because this isn’t

Changes made this week to the rules controlling how the CDC’s influential vaccine advisory panel operates could open the door for less qualified members and further undercut public confidence in vaccines, experts said.
HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. rewrote the charter for the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices weeks after a federal judge essentially disbanded the panel Kennedy had put in place during his first year as health secretary, calling them unqualified to serve.
The previous version of the ACIP charter said voting members should be “knowledgeable in the

NEW ORLEANS — Use of a triple-tapered collared stem in patients aged older than 70 years undergoing total hip arthroplasty may decrease the risk for periprosthetic fracture, according to results presented here.
“I personally do not think we should be using [triple-tapered collared] stems in every single patient. Cemented implants make sense for some patients, but that group is becoming smaller,” Jeremy M. Gililland, MD, professor of orthopedics at the University of Utah, told Healio. “It is not just about age; it is not just about sex. These stems do have a broad utility and can be used in a

WASHINGTON— Cyclophotocoagulation, a safe and effective procedure, should be considered by ophthalmologists more often for patients with glaucoma, according to a presenter.
At Glaucoma Day during the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery meeting, Jonathan Eisengart, MD, said that, while cyclophotocoagulation (CPC) has traditionally been reserved for eyes with low vision, pain from elevated IOP, or those that have previously underwent failed outflow procedures, trabeculectomy and tube shunts may not necessarily be safer options.
“I certainly don't need to remind you of the various

The FDA has again rejected Replimune’s biologics license application for vusolimogene oderparepvec plus nivolumab for treatment of advanced melanoma, according to its complete response letter to the company.
The FDA stated that data from the RPL-001-16 and RP1-104 studies submitted by the company were “insufficient to conclude substantial evidence of effectiveness of vusolimogene oderparepvec for treatment of unresectable advanced cutaneous melanoma.”
As Healio previously reported, in 2025, the FDA rejected the company’s prior biologics license application for the drug

A new doctor-owned optometric alliance called VIEW Optometry has launched and is recruiting practices across the U.S. with the goal of starting a movement for independent optometry.
“We want to be our own force in the industry that prevents the giant corporations from dictating what optometry is or what optometry becomes,” Thomas A. Lucas, OD, cofounder and president of VIEW Optometry, told Healio. “That should be a doctor-led discussion, and not simply a profit-driven discussion. And we want VIEW Optometry to have a seat at that table.”
VIEW Optometry launched early this year. It is open to

Editor’s note: This is a developing news story. Please check back soon for updates.
The FDA approved an updated label for Vabysmo for the treatment of macular edema following retinal vein occlusion beyond 6 months, according to a Genentech press release.
Vabysmo (faricimab-svoa) is a bispecific antibody that inhibits angiopoietin-1 and VEGF-A. It is also approved for the treatment of neovascular age-related macular degeneration and diabetic macular edema.
It was approved for macular edema due to retinal vein occlusion (RVO) in 2023, and the label update allows patients to continue using it

Bausch + Lomb obtained 510(k) FDA clearance for its Bi-Blade+ advanced dual-port vitrectomy cutter and Adaptive Fluidics update for the Stellaris Elite system, according to a company press release.
The Bi-Blade+ allows for more efficient vitreous removal by increasing flow rate and reduces cutter vibration compared with the company’s previous device, Bi-Blade. The update to Adaptive Fluidics automatically infuses fluid into the eye during surgery by responding to surgeon vacuum commands, according to the release.
Together, the technologies can improve IOP stability and control during surgery.