DIABETES EDUCATION SERIES FROM TRANSITIONS OPTICAL GROWS
WITH NEW CLINICAL PAPER ON EYECARE AND EYEWEAR NEEDS OF CHILDREN

Stresses Role of Eyecare Professional in Early Detection and Treatment
PINELLAS PARK, Fla., Mar. 27, 2009 – Transitions Optical, Inc. has enhanced its diabetes education series with a third clinical paper, Healthy Sight Counseling Diabetes and the Eye: Children, which delves into the growing incidence of diabetes in children, and the consequent need to protect their eyes from the optical complications of the disease, through comprehensive eye care and sight-enhancing eyewear. The paper serves as a supplement to the clinical paper, Healthy Sight Counseling: Diabetes and the Eye, and stresses the role of the eyecare professional in enabling early detection of diabetes and educating children and their parents about important steps to minimize the effects of the disease on vision and eye health.

“Not only is the incidence of diabetes growing among children, but, as the research in this paper suggests, the progression of diabetes-related eye disease can be especially quick and severe for them,” said Cathy Rauscher, global marketing specialist, Transitions. “For these reasons, the needs of children with diabetes warrant special attention, and we were pleased to bring together the paper’s authors to focus on this topic.” In recent studies, the percentage of children with newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes has increased from less than 5 percent before 1994 to 30-50 percent in subsequent years, with the increased rate of obesity among children cited as a key factor.

Healthy Sight Counseling Diabetes and the Eye: Children is authored by Bruce Bode, M.D., F.A.C.E.; Newton Kara José, Jr., M.D.; Marc Lustig, M.D., Ph.D.; and Susan Stenson, M.D., F.A.C.S.

As the clinical paper explains, a high number of cases of childhood diabetes go unrecognized. In many cases, ocular symptoms may be the first noticeable complaint on the part of the patient, so an eyecare professional may be the first to detect the disease. Once diabetes is diagnosed, the authors recommend that eyecare professionals apply Healthy Sight Counseling, which emphasizes the importance of maintenance and preventive eye care and increased professional and patient awareness. The authors also emphasize the importance of educating juvenile patients with diabetes about their greater risk for ocular diseases. Additionally, the paper advocates the use of ultraviolet (UV) blocking photochromic or fixed tint lenses combined with anti-reflective coatings to help protect against harmful UV radiation and vision-impairing glare.

“It is essential to counsel children with diabetes and also their parents about the importance of controlling the disease, and receiving regular eye exams to monitor for optical complications, including refractive changes, diabetic retinopathy, decreased contrast sensitivity, and increased sensitivity to glare and everyday light,” said Dr. Lustig. “For a child that has the disease or is at risk, the eyecare professional can also play a critical part by advising the parent about the full range of lens options available to help ensure optimal quality of vision for their child.”

Diabetes Education Series
The new clinical paper supplements the growing family of papers in the series entitled Healthy Sight Counseling: Diabetes and the Eye, and Healthy Sight Counseling Diabetes and the Eye: Special Populations. The first paper introduced research on the impact of diabetes on the eye, potentially leading to several debilitating eye diseases – including diabetic retinopathy, cataracts and age-related macular degeneration – as well as the susceptibility of diabetic eyes to heightened damage from UV light.

Stemming from this research, Special Populations provides insights into the higher prevalence – and often severity – of diabetic retinopathy and other diabetes-related eye diseases among minority populations, including African-Americans and Hispanic-Americans.

All three papers in the diabetes series have been accepted by the Healthy Sight Institute and will be housed at HealthySightInstitute.org. Several public education tools are also available for download from the site – including six posters that focus on the issue of diabetes and the eye, and several other materials related to issues of UV and glare protection, and other factors important for promoting healthy sight.

Print copies of the diabetes papers, select educational posters and a patient brochure are available through Transitions Optical Customer Service at (800) 848-1506.