Latest news with #DME
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Biologic Competition, Payer Pressures, and Gene Therapy Momentum Define a Pivotal Moment in nAMD and DME Management, According to Spherix Global Insights
More than 70% of surveyed U.S. ophthalmologists anticipate a fundamentally transformed approach to managing nAMD and DME within the next five years. Exton, Pennsylvania, July 10, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Recently released research from Spherix Global Insights provides a timely look at the increasingly competitive and complex treatment landscape for neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD) and diabetic macular edema (DME). The Q2 wave of the syndicated RealTime Dynamix™ studies—based on responses from more than 100 U.S. ophthalmologists, primarily retina specialists—captures current prescribing dynamics, perceptions of leading therapies, and evolving expectations shaped by emerging treatments and payer influence. Study findings reveal Roche/Genentech's Vabysmo continues to command the lead in the retina market, earning strong marks for efficacy, physician satisfaction, and flexible dosing. Regeneron's Eylea HD is steadily gaining ground as retina specialists sharpen their focus on newer, longer-acting options. At the same time, Eylea 2mg remains the preferred second line product, after Avastin, due to its long-term data, efficacy, and safety profile. Despite high awareness, biosimilars remain on the periphery—particularly in the first-line setting. While many physicians are open to their use in principle, uptake remains modest, constrained in part by clinical conservatism and concerns about interchangeability. However, many ophthalmologists acknowledge that the payer environment could force a shift, especially if step therapy mandates begin to require biosimilar trials before branded biologic access. Payer influence continues to cast a long shadow over treatment decisions, with roughly three-quarters of respondents reporting that coverage restrictions, prior authorization requirements, and cost-sharing concerns regularly impact prescribing choices. Physicians estimate that one in three patients with nAMD or DME are likely receiving less-than-optimal care due to these access-related hurdles. Most practices now rely on dedicated biologic coordinators to manage the administrative load, but even with support staff in place, prior authorizations remain a major friction point. The increasing use of AI-driven auto-denial systems is only exacerbating these delays, introducing new workflow inefficiencies, and stalling the initiation of preferred therapies. Amid this increasingly complicated environment, gene therapies are offering a sense of future promise. Ophthalmologists are optimistic about the long-term potential of assets in development such as 4DMT's 4D-150, AbbVie's ABBV-RGX-314, and Adverum's Ixo-vec. These agents are generating significant anticipation for their ability to reduce treatment burden and deliver transformative durability, potentially redefining the landscape beyond traditional biologics. Indeed, as the in-line competitive field tightens and new options on the horizon expand, over 70% of ophthalmologists expect a fundamentally reshaped treatment landscape within the next five years. The latest Q2 update of the RealTime Dynamix™ series include responses from 112 U.S. ophthalmologists (101 for nAMD; 100 for DME) with high-volume patient caseloads. Data were collected between May 5 and June 11, 2025. As the market continues to shift under the pressure of payer dynamics and pipeline disruption, Spherix will continue to track these developments and deliver actionable insights to keep stakeholders ahead of the curve. RealTime Dynamix™ is an independent service providing strategic guidance through quarterly or semiannual reports, which include market trending and a fresh infusion of event-driven and variable content with each wave. The reports provide an unbiased view of the competitive landscape within rapidly evolving specialty markets, fueled by robust HCP primary research and our in-house team of experts. About Spherix Global Insights Spherix is a leading independent market intelligence and advisory firm that delivers commercial value to the global life sciences industry, across the brand lifecycle. The seasoned team of Spherix experts provides an unbiased and holistic view of the landscape within rapidly evolving specialty markets, including dermatology, gastroenterology, rheumatology, nephrology, neurology, ophthalmology, and hematology. Spherix clients stay ahead of the curve with the perspective of the extensive Spherix Physician Community. As a trusted advisor and industry thought leader, Spherix's unparalleled market insights and advisory services empower clients to make better decisions and unlock opportunities for growth. To learn more about Spherix Global Insights, visit or connect through LinkedIn. For more details on Spherix's primary market research reports and interactive dashboard offerings, visit or register here: NOTICE: All company, brand or product names in this press release are trademarks of their respective holders. The findings and analysis addressed within are based on Spherix Global Insight's analysis and do not imply a relationship with or endorsement of the companies or brands mentioned in this press release. CONTACT: Bob Shewbrooks, Ophthalmology Franchise Head Spherix Global Insights 4848794284
Health Line
5 days ago
- Health
- Health Line
My Ever-Evolving Eye Health and Retinopathy Story
Losing my eyesight because of type 1 diabetes has always been the greatest fear of my life. Now, more than four decades after my T1D diagnosis and many years after my initial retinopathy diagnosis, diabetes is starting to steal my vision. And I'm scared as hell. Over the past 5 years, I've had 16 laser treatments and 6 injections in my eyes. Thinking about those numbers makes my mind spin. I worry whether, at some point, my eyes will just decide to give up. Recently, I've been dealt a new diagnosis card: glaucoma. This complicates my already precarious state of life with both diabetes-related retinopathy and diabetic macular edema (DME). I now need to take eye drops twice a day to help lower the pressure in my eyes and prevent vision loss. I've had diminished vision in my right eye since early 2024. There are dark floaters, almost like I'm looking through a thin veil placed in front of that eye. I can still see, but there are times when I close that eye just to get a break from that veil effect for a few brief moments, especially on clear sunny days or when I'm looking at bright screens. There is a lot happening in my eye health journey, to say the least. Fear of complications For a dozen years after my initial retinopathy diagnosis, my condition was considered very mild and didn't require any attention beyond the best-possible blood sugar management. But the fear of something more significant has always been there, lurking. Many people with diabetes (PWDs) live in fear of the dreaded diabetes complications that could someday strike — especially those of us diagnosed with T1D as kids or teens, who've had many years for possible complications to develop. There is a term in our circle called ' fear of hypoglycemia.' It's used to describe the experience of dreading low blood sugars so much that it negatively impacts your diabetes management. In a frantic effort to avoid lows, people with diabetes often let themselves run high, which increases the likelihood of complications. Diagnosis Diaries 'Of course, I was terrified by the idea of a scary needle moving toward my eye. But in reality, I barely noticed it.' I would suggest a new term for consideration, 'fear of complications.' So many of us shape our lives and our diabetes care based on that fear, that anticipation, that dread of future complications — or of current complications that may evolve and get worse. It has a real mental health impact. The psychosocial part of diabetes care is still in desperate need of improvement. I've been hearing the warnings about diabetes complications for as long as I can remember — including the fact that people with diabetes are at higher risk of developing eye disease. More than half of all people with diabetes will experience diabetes-related retinopathy or macular edema at some point in their lives. Other estimates put that number even higher, particularly for people with T1D. Facing my worst diabetes fears In the summer of 2019, I learned that I'd crossed some retinopathy-related threshold and my diagnosis had evolved into one requiring laser treatments. My world seemed to collapse. My heart started beating rapidly, and tears began to swell. Even though the eye doctor assured me that the treatments would be 'very routine,' my mind could hardly process the news. After being informed of my progressing retinopathy and the need for laser treatments, my fear of complications immediately clouded all rational thought. My eye doctor tried to reassure me, as did others who'd been through this type of laser treatment before. 'Calm down,' they advised. 'It'll be all right.' And yet, I couldn't calm down. Understandably. I'd never gone through something like this firsthand. Going into the procedure, my nerves were frayed. I barely slept the night before. And the drive to the eye clinic was excruciating. My retinopathy laser treatment Despite my fears, I went through with it. I discovered that the actual procedure wasn't scary or painful at all. It turned out to be less inconvenient than even a normal diabetes eye exam, where you have to keep your eyes open while staring into ridiculously bright lights. The procedure on my affected eye went something like this: I was given numbing eye drops and drops to dilate my pupils. I saw someone draw an X to mark the spot over my left eye — a safety precaution. I placed my chin on the laser machine and looked into its light, focusing on a little dot while the doctor examined the insides of my eye. This wasn't scary, as it was no different than any other machine I'd had to rest my chin on in the past for routine eye exams. Next, I saw 30 bright flashes of light that were—as my eye doctor had explained—about the same as seeing rapid camera flashes back-to-back. This part took about 20 minutes in total. The whole procedure from start to finish was only about 45 minutes, with half that time devoted to sitting in a waiting room as my numbing and dilation drops did their job. And that was it! My first-ever experience with retinopathy laser treatment was a breeze. No pain, no big deal. That's what my eye specialist had told me going into the procedure, but I didn't take his word for it. I should've listened and trusted him. In terms of 'recovery' afterward, it was easy-peasy with no visual impact. My left eye just felt dilated. In the following hours, we went out for dinner and drinks without any issues (aside from some grimaces when a bright light hit me at the wrong angle). It was also a nice bonus that my blood sugars didn't spike as a result of this procedure. The hour or so before the treatment, I did experience higher blood sugars because of the stress and nervousness going into the appointment. But my blood sugar levels only rose to the low 200s before leveling off and settling back down within a couple of hours. Over the next few days, my left eye was a bit itchy, and there were a handful of moments of minor discomfort from glaring at my bright laptop screen. But that was it. Experiencing eye injections That initial laser procedure was successful and treated the eye issue at hand. But it wouldn't be my last. My progressing retinopathy would soon lead to DME and require more treatments. Almost a year after my first laser treatment, an eye hemorrhage materialized. I started noticing dark, black floaters in my right eye — the one that hadn't needed the initial laser treatment. Cue even more panic from me! There was a lot of crying because this was the first and most noticeable time my vision had been impaired as a result of retinopathy. My situation was described as a 'critical, vision-impacting emergency.' The retinal specialist observed that a small blood vessel had burst. Blood leakage in my retina was causing the floaters in my field of vision. This required an eye injection. Diagnosis Diaries 'Connecting to others who've gone through these types of treatments has been a saving grace, putting my nerves and mind at ease in the most stressful of times.' There are several eye injection medications available for diabetes-related retinopathy, but my doctor suggested the oldest one on the market: Avastin. Interestingly, Avastin isn't even approved for diabetes-related retinopathy or DME. It was previously used to treat cancer. Now it's used off-label for people with diabetes experiencing retinopathy-related vision issues, as it can slow or stop abnormal blood vessel growth. My eye specialist explained that it's a less expensive first-line treatment that's just as effective as the newer, more expensive injections. Once again, my treatment began with numbing drops. But then came the injection. Of course, I was terrified by the idea of a scary needle moving toward my eye. But in reality, I barely noticed it. Thankfully the injection comes from the side of your field of vision. And due to the numbing drops, I felt only a little pinch, lasting just a few seconds. It was finished just as quickly as it had begun. Later in the day, once the eye drops had worn off, my sight was back to normal. There was some minimal burning at times, similar to the way it hurts looking into a bright light. It would force me to close my eyes for a moment to adjust while I wipe away some tears. The blood in my eye that was causing the floaters eventually dissipated, as the doctor expected it would. An evolving diagnosis I've had several more injections and many more laser treatments since this started. This is a continuing journey with many moving parts: Several of my appointments include dye tests, where they inject a yellow dye into my veins and then take detailed photos of the back of my eye to see how my blood vessels are faring. With glaucoma, I also need to use eye drops twice a day to help keep my eye pressure low. Otherwise, there's a chance that I could suddenly lose my vision because of the glaucoma, not the diabetes-related retinopathy. I'm also at higher risk for developing a detached retina thanks to family history and my own eye health issues, and so that is something I'm keeping in mind as I get older. To date, I'm grateful everything has been going as well as it can. And I continue doing my best to keep my blood sugars in range. Although no one wants to develop or need treatment for diabetes-related eye disease, I'm obviously hugely relieved about my (mostly) positive experience. Even though I remain scared about losing my eyesight, I try to be mindful of the fact that there's a lot to be thankful for in living with diabetes in the here and now. Mike Hoskins is an engagement editor at Healthline. Prior to that, he was managing editor at DiabetesMine. He has lived with type 1 diabetes since age 5 in 1984, and his mom was also diagnosed with T1D at the same young age. With a journalism degree from Oakland University in Michigan, Mike has over two decades of experience at various daily, weekly, and specialty print and digital media publications. He joined DiabetesMine in 2012, after several years of writing his own personal blog, .
Time of India
6 days ago
- Health
- Time of India
Andhra Pradesh seeks NMC nod for PG medical courses at 5 new colleges
Vijayawada: Following the launch of undergraduate MBBS courses with 150 seats each at five newly established medical colleges in Vizianagaram, Rajamahendravaram, Eluru, Machilipatnam, and Nandyala, the Andhra Pradesh govt has approached the National Medical Commission (NMC) for permission to introduce postgraduate (PG) medical courses. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now "We wrote to the NMC to admit two students per branch in broad specialty PG medical courses, including MD (Doctor of Medicine) and MS (Master of Surgery) programmes such as paediatrics, gynaecology, orthopaedics, anaesthesia, and others from the 2025–26 academic year," said director of medical education (DME) Dr DSVL Narasimham. The DME noted that after developing all necessary infrastructural amenities, including faculty and clinical materials, which are key parameters for NMC's assessment to grant LoP for admitting the new PG admissions, they wrote to the NMC in November 2024 seeking nod to start the PG courses and admit students from ensuing academic years at the five new medical colleges. A sked about the reasons behind the DME writing to NMC to admit two students per branch, Dr Narasimham elaborated: "While a professor can guide a maximum of three students, two students by an associate professor and one student by an assistant professor in PG courses, and considering the availability of the faculty, we wanted to admit two PG students with one associate professor as a guide at the new medical colleges. " The DME added that the old medical colleges can admit 20 PG students into the broad speciality PG courses, whereas new medical colleges will start with two or three seats considering the faculty strength. "The NMC, which is currently busy with the NEET PG entrance examination, will conduct a virtual inspection on the availability of key infrastructure amenities and other key parameters before issuing LoP to start the PG courses at the new medical colleges. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now It is expected that the NMC would complete its virtual inspection of the available amenities and sanction permission to admit students into PG courses by September at the new medical colleges before initiating the PG admission process," Dr Narasimham added. Pointing out that the five new govt medical colleges are successfully running the MBBS course with sanctioned 150 seats, the DME said: "The govt will write to NMC to increase the MBBS seats from 50 to 100 from the next 2026-27 UG academic year at Paderu govt medical college, wherein the NMC issued LoP for just 50 seats when 100 seats were sought, citing infrastructural deficiencies there."
Time of India
6 days ago
- Health
- Time of India
Govt constitutes panel for organ and tissue transplant programme
Vijayawada: The state govt constituted a steering committee for the smooth functioning of the State Organ and Tissue Transplant Organisation (SOTTO) and the implementation of various activities under the National Organ Transplant Programme (NOTP) guidelines. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now This initiative aims to boost the donor transplant programme, with the director of medical education (DME) AP serving as its chairperson. Special chief secretary (Medical & Health) M T Krishna Babu issued a govt order (GO) RT No 452, constituting the steering committee with a chairperson and six members. Chief transplant coordinator (CTC) Jeevandhan, AP, was appointed as the committee's member secretary on Tuesday. The steering committee members include Nephrology and Urology professors from Kurnool and Andhra Medical Colleges, along with superintendents of AIIMS Mangalagiri and GGH Guntur. Additionally, the Government Pleader of the Health Medical and Family Welfare department, the Joint Director (Medical) office of DME, AP, and the Administrative Officer of Jeevandhan, AP, are also part of the committee.
Associated Press
6 days ago
- Business
- Associated Press
One Health Direct Expands runOMNI Capabilities with AI-Driven Automation to Enhance Productivity, Compliance and Efficiency
DUNEDIN, Fla., July 8, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- One Health Direct (OHD) is providing more information regarding the next evolution of its runOMNI platform, unveiling powerful new automation features designed to streamline all facets of DME (durable medical equipment) operations and reduce the administrative burdens placed on its internal team. As an upgraded and rebranded version of the company's original operational engine, Genesis, runOMNI now incorporates AI-driven functionality that strengthens compliance, improves accuracy, and allows human teams to focus their efforts where critical thinking is most valuable. 'runOMNI isn't about replacing people, it's about elevating them and maximizing their critical thinking capabilities,' said Alois Rubenbauer, Founder and CEO of One Health Direct. 'We've designed the system to handle repetitive, error-prone tasks so our teams, and our partners' teams, can focus on what matters most: helping patients and providers succeed in achieving better outcomes.' The enhanced system uses intelligent automation and AI to help eliminate common DME operational bottlenecks, streamline communication, and improve overall process consistency across the board. These tools reduce delays, enhance accuracy, and support better oversight without requiring constant manual intervention. The result is a more efficient and scalable workflow that enables faster execution, fewer errors, and stronger compliance from intake through fulfillment. At its core, runOMNI reflects a deliberate balance between automation and human oversight. While the system automates high-volume, rules-based processes, its intuitive dashboards and smart prompts give team members visibility into what needs to happen next, allowing for faster execution, less rework, and more informed decision-making. The result is a leaner and more agile workforce, capable of moving quickly without compromising compliance or quality. 'We want our teams to spend less time performing redundant tasks and more time utilizing their training to solve problems,' said Matthew Landon, CTO of One Health Direct. 'That's how we deliver better outcomes at scale.' About One Health Direct One Health Direct provides cutting-edge healthcare marketing, customer service, and patient engagement solutions to partners and clients. Our focus is on supplying innovative treatment options for patients suffering from chronic health conditions, sent right to their homes while making the entire qualification, billing, and fulfillment process simple and time-saving for both the patient and physician. Through collaboration with strategic partners and subsidiaries, One Health Direct has developed a holistic system that enables patients to receive better treatment solutions that more effectively and efficiently manage their chronic healthcare issues. Whether a partner is utilizing the complete system or only certain components, One Health Direct is committed to helping each partner provide better service to more patients suffering from chronic conditions. One Health Direct supports patients in attaining innovative treatment options, including DME (durable medical equipment) products like continuous glucose monitors (CGMs), orthotics, urological and phototherapy supplies. Contact: Brett Guerin One Health Direct Chief Marketing Officer [email protected] View original content to download multimedia: SOURCE One Health Direct
