image: This is the cover for Fundamentals of Intravitreal Injections. view more
Credit: World Scientific
Two eye surgeons (ophthalmologists) have written a first-of-its-kind book to save the sight of millions of patients around the world by making eye injections (intravitreal injections) safe and comfortable.
Worldwide, over 12 million intravitreal injections are delivered for sight-threatening conditions such as age-related macular degeneration, retinal vein occlusions and diabetic retinopathy. Fundamentals of Intravitreal Injections: A Guide for Ophthalmic Nurse Practitioners and Allied Health Professionals provides a unique insight into safe and comfortable delivery of these, thereby ensuring preservation of precious vision for thousands.
Age-related macular degeneration is one of the commonest causes of visual impairment registration internationally. Intravitreal injections (injections into the vitreous gel of the eye) of anti-vascular endothelial growth factors (Anti-VEGF's) such as Lucentis® (ranibizumab), Avastin® (bevacizumab) and Eylea® (aflibercept) are now widely accepted to reduce the progression of "wet" macular degeneration.
There is also good evidence of their efficacy in macular oedema secondary to diabetes and vein occlusions. Ophthalmic Nurse Practitioners and Allied Health Professionals are increasingly becoming invaluable team members for delivering intravitreal injections, particularly as the clinical demand increases. This book has been written to aid the practitioners in such an endeavour and will provide concise but relevant information in a format that is easy to carry around and access.
Towards the end, the authors outline their experience with designing a training structure and in organising wetlab sessions for both ophthalmic trainees and nurse practitioners, including some easy tips for readers to set up a session of their own. The appendices contain the latest information on Basic Life Support and anaphylaxis treatment.
The book is aimed primarily at nurse practitioners and allied health professionals, but it will also be a useful reference for junior ophthalmic trainees learning how to perform intravitreal injections. Ophthalmologist Peter Simcock describes the work as "A timely and well-written wealth of information for ophthalmic nurse practitioners which will also be useful for ophthalmologists in training," while nurse practitioner Alison Triggol calls it "A very worthy teaching aid for all new practitioners taking on the role, with clear and concise descriptive text and explanatory imagery."
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This book retails for US$68 / £60 in hardback on https://www.worldscientific.com/worldscibooks/10.1142/10977. Visit the site to learn more about the book.
About The Authors
Salman Waqar is a Consultant Ophthalmologist at the Royal Eye Infirmary at Derriford Hospital, Plymouth, UK. He completed his medical degree from the University of Health Sciences, Pakistan. He undertook basic training in general surgery (Sheffield) followed by specialist ophthalmology training in the beautiful south west of England. Dr Waqar has published extensively on the use of virtual reality training systems in ophthalmology and has also designed various innovative instruments to enhance patient safety. He is regularly involved with training ophthalmic nurse practitioners and is an instructor for the Basic Microsurgical Skills course with the Royal College of Ophthalmologists. His prior foray into the world of books includes contributing to one related to ophthalmology training (refraction and retinoscopy), a science fiction novel and a children's' book. Outside of work he is an enthusiastic triathlete and squash player. You can find out more about him on http://www.salmanwaqar.net.
Jonathan Park is a Consultant Ophthalmic Surgeon at Musgrove Park Hospital, UK. He is also co-founder of the South West Ophthalmic Research and Development group that utilises virtual reality surgical simulators to train our future eye surgeons, and the research lead for national and international studies investigating eye infections after surgery. Dr Park qualified as a doctor from the University of Bristol in 2005. Following his Ophthalmology training in South West England, Dr Park completed a retinal specialist fellowship in Toronto, Canada, which provided him with extensive experience in the management of surgical and medical retinal disorders. Dr Park performs retinal surgery for a wide range of retinal problems including retinal detachment, macular hole, epi-retinal membranes and complications from diabetes. He provides medical care for a variety of eye diseases including macular degeneration, retinal vein occlusion and diabetic retinopathy. He also performs complex cataract surgery and surgery for eye trauma.
About World Scientific Publishing Co.
World Scientific Publishing is a leading international independent publisher of books and journals for the scholarly, research and professional communities. World Scientific collaborates with prestigious organisations like the Nobel Foundation and US National Academies Press to bring high quality academic and professional content to researchers and academics worldwide. The company publishes about 600 books annually and 135 journals in various fields. To find out more about World Scientific, please visit http://www.worldscientific.com.