Jordana Joy, Editor

In the first episode of the second season of The Independent Advantage, Diana Canto-Sims, OD, chats with practice owner Maria Sampalis, OD, on why artificial intelligence has boomed in practice ownership spaces.

Merabet, OD, PhD, MPH, discusses what his research on motion processing reveals about the neural roots of CVI and where diagnostic tools like neuroimaging and eye tracking are headed.

The findings extend prior Asian efficacy data to a diverse North American cohort for Stellest lenses.

Optometrists share advice on the best practices for ensuring students are prepared for the new school year and how clinicians can leverage the influx to grow their practice.

The agency assigned a PDUFA target action date of April 30, 2027.

Teacher-led vision screening identified about 3 in 4 children with refractive error and correctly cleared most unaffected students.

Perceived stress modestly predicted later dry eye symptoms in young adults, but significance depended on a prespecified 1-tailed test.

Carolyn Majcher, OD, FAAO, discussed the impact of the FDA's approval of the drug for wet AMD after nearly 2 decades of off-label use.

Patients with corrected presbyopia used larger fonts, held smartphones farther away, and read more slowly, suggesting 40-cm testing may miss device demands.

Katie W. Chu, OD, personalizes care towards her community by fostering proactive conversations with patients. She stopped by to discuss her recommendations for pediatric contact lens and LASIK consultation.

The WaveDȳn Vision Analyzer measures the eye's full optical error, and the WaveDȳn Advantage service uses those measurements to design a wavefront-guided scleral lens correcting both low- and higher-order aberrations.

Myopia developed in 24.5% of initially nonmyopic male students over 3 years, with the highest risk among those with limited hyperopic reserve.

Hamza Shah, OD, MS, FAAO, and Carolyn Majcher, OD, FAAO, weigh in on the recent FDA approval of the drug, which has been used off-label by compounding pharmacies for nearly 2 decades.

Pamela Theriot, OD, FAAO, discussed comprehensive eye exams, managing pediatric dry eye symptoms, and avoiding digital eye strain as back to school season begins.

Maria Sampalis, OD, weighs in on how she has tripled her private practice's growth during her career and how she has used the back to school season as an opportunity to strengthen that growth.

Philip Morgan, BSc, PhD, MCOptom, FAAO, and Lyndon Jones, DSc, PhD, FCOptom, discuss the latest data on contact lens profitability released from the Contact Lens Institute.

Toric, spheric, and multifocal contact lenses are 86%, 79%, and 29% more profitable, respectively, than equivalent glasses-only patients.

Jade Coats, OD, FAAO, stated that providing pre- and post-op patient care can provide an opportunity to support ophthalmologists.

Jessica Steen, OD, FAAO, DipABO, stated that each ADC can have distinct ophthalmic monitoring needs and management protocols.

Neda Gioia, OD, CNS, FMCP, FOWNS, CFMP, stated that preparing optometric students for the possibility of burnout may help reduce its prevalence.

Mila Ioussifova, OD, CNS, FAAO, FOWNS, details her AOA Optometry's Meeting 2026 session.

Erin Rueff, OD, PhD, FAAO, provides tips to fellow clinicians on how to keep these patients comfortable in their lenses.

As of July 13, 2026, a meeting date has not been set.

Mila Ioussifova, OD, CNS, FAAO, FOWNS, details her session on the hormonal and aesthetic considerations ODs should make when treating these patients.

The meeting featured advances in contact lens technology, evolving approaches to keratoconus management, and new insights into dry eye disease treatment.

Jade Coats, OD, FAAO, details what has changed in dry eye treatment in the last decade, and how to optimize the ocular surface through the power of comanagement.

Justin Schweitzer, OD, FAAO, details how to distinguish secondary glaucomas from primary glaucomas in a recent presentation.

Jessica Steen, OD, FAAO, DipABO, weighs in on what the optometric community should know concerning what side effects their patients may experience.

Jessilin Quint, OD, MBA, FAAO, said that integrating AI into your practice can start small.

Neda Gioia, OD, CNS, FMCP, FOWNS, CFMP, details what she finds concerning and surprising in a recent study she conducted with Kaleb Abbott, OD, MS, FAAO, FOWNS.