Mittelman	Flanag

Salus University recently welcomed Rear Admiral Michael H. Mittelman, OD, MPH, as its sixth president.

Dr. Mittelman is a 1980 graduate of the university’s Pennsylvania College of Optometry, as well as the former deputy surgeon general of the US Navy and the Navy’s deputy chief of the Bureau of Medicine and Surgery.

“I believe it is our destiny to set a new standard and lead the transition of American health, educational and rehabilitation education through this century and beyond,” Dr. Mittelman recently posted on Salus’ blog. “As I’ve said in the past, the challenges will be great, but the rewards will be many.”

Dr. Mittelman succeeds outgoing president Thomas L. Lewis, OD, PhD.

John G. Flanagan , PhD, MCOptom, professor at the University of Waterloo School of Optometry and Vision Science, in Ontario, Canada, has been appointed as the eighth dean of the University of California Berkeley School of Optometry.

Dr. Flanagan is currently director of the Glaucoma Research Unit, Toronto Western Research Institute, a senior scientist at the Toronto Western Hospital, University Health Network, and executive vice president of the Optometric Glaucoma Society.

Dr. Flanagan, whose term at Berkeley will begin in June 2014, succeeds outgoing dean Dennis Levi, OD, PhD.


Diabetes Guideline Ready for Review
“Eye Care of the Patient with Diabetes Mellitus,” the American Optometric Association’s first evidence-based clinical practice guideline, is now available for review and comment until November 30. All comments will be reviewed by the AOA Evidence-Based Optometry Guideline Development Group. A final copy of the guideline will be released in January 2014. To read and reveiw the guideline, go to http://stage.aoa.org/Optometrists/Tools-and-Resources/Evidenced-based-Optometry/CPG-3--Eye-Care-of-the-Patient-with-Diabetes-Mellitus.


Treatment of MicroRNAs Halts Neovascularization
Researchers at The Scripps Research Institute have found a way to target and inhibit the action of microRNAs in mouse eyes, which stops abnormal blood vessel growth without damaging existing vasculature or neurons. This could represent a novel and effective way to treat a broad range of neovascular eye diseases, such as diabetic retinopathy, macular degeneration and macular telangiectasia, say the investigators. Their results are published in the November issue of the Journal of Clinical Investigation.