Vertexometer
One World Sight Project Founder Invents Instrument to Improve LASIK Results Portion of world-wide profits being donated to OWSP
Newport Beach, CA – Richard A. Weiss, M.D., of Newport Beach, California, introduced the Weiss Vertexometer, an instrument designed to improve the accuracy of refractive surgical procedures, at the American Academy of Ophthalmology’s Annual Meeting in New Orleans on Sunday, November 11.
The patented Weiss Vertexometer is a device that is used to directly and conveniently measure the vertex distance before refractive surgery. For the most accurate visual results, precise vertex distance must be known prior to procedures such as LASIK, PRK, LTK and even intra-ocular contact lenses.
According to the Vertexometer inventor, Dr. Weiss, the vertex distance is the distance between the phoropter (instrument used to determine refractive error) and the patient. “Currently, most refractive surgeons are using an average measurement,” said Weiss, who has practiced in Newport Beach since 1986 and is a Clinical Assistant Professor in the Department of Ophthalmology at the University of California, Irvine. “Since the vertex distance must be entered into the laser before every LASIK procedure, accuracy of individual refractive results requires accurate vertex distance measurements in each patient. With the Weiss Vertexometer, the vertex measurement will be more precise, thus reducing the chance of over- or under-correction during a procedure.”
The Weiss Vertexometer works by having the patient close their eyes and carefully positioning the instrument between the patient and the phoropter. One side of the tip is gently placed on the closed eyelid and a flexible measuring device is advanced from the opposite side of the tip to make light contact with the lens inside the phoropter. The vertex distance is indicated on a scale at the base of the device. “The instrument was designed to be user-friendly and very accurate,” commented Weiss. “This is the only instrument on the market that directly and conveniently measures the vertex distance at the phoropter to enhance the accuracy of refractive surgery.”
The Weiss Vertexometer is available through OASIS Medical with a portion of the proceeds being donated to the One World Sight Project, Inc., a non-profit organization to help cure world blindness.
Headed by Dr. Weiss, the One World Sight Project (http://www.owsp.org/) has united international ophthalmology (including advisors from the World Health Organization and the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness) with entertainers such as Stevie Wonder and Chick Corea to form a cooperative venture in which the goal is to cure needless blindness in developing countries.
Dr. Weiss received his undergraduate degree at New York University before receiving his medical degree at Temple University School of Medicine. He went on to complete his ophthalmology residency at Georgetown University. He has also taken special fellowship training in ophthalmic plastic and reconstructive surgery at the University of Toronto, one of only twenty training positions available in this field yearly in North America. In 1995, Dr. Weiss was asked to travel to South Africa and perform a complex reconstructive eyelid procedure for President Nelson Mandela.
For more information on Richard A. Weiss, M.D. or the Weiss Vertexometer, please call 949-720-1400 or go to http://www.drweiss.com/. The Weiss Vertexometer can be purchased from OASIS Medical at 800-528-9786 or by going to http://www.oasismedical.com/.