(PRESS RELEASE) ELKINS PARK, PA — A $25,000 gift by MacuLogix Inc. will establish an endowed award for graduates of the Pennsylvania College of Optometry (PCO) at Salus University.
Each year, one PCO/Salus graduate who has demonstrated commitment to treating patients with age-related macular degeneration (AMD) will receive the Maculogix AMD Advocacy endowed award. MacuLogix, a company based in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, that equips eye care professionals with the devices and training needed to effectively diagnose and manage patients with AMD, selected PCO/Salus to honor two graduates, Glenn Corbin, OD ‘82, and Gary Kirman, OD ‘86.
“Glenn and Gary have been instrumental in our success,” said Gregory R. Jackson, PhD, co-founder and chief technology officer at MacuLogix. “From day one, they have been committed to sharing their knowledge and real-world experience with MacuLogix. We are excited to honor them with this award to PCO/Salus to inspire future doctors to be as passionate about AMD care as they are.”
As the first commercial customers of MacuLogix, Drs. Corbin and Kirman have been using dark adaptation testing in their practices since 2014, starting with the original AdaptDx automated dark adaptometer and eventually the head-mounted AdaptDx Pro in 2020. Their professional and personal commitment to elevating the standard of care for age-related macular degeneration combined with the endowed award from MacuLogix will help encourage graduating optometrists to follow in their paths.
“The doctors and staff at Kirman Eye are so grateful to be pioneers of the AdaptDx and AdaptDx Pro technologies,” said Dr. Kirman, an optometrist at Kirman Eye in Hummelstown, Pennsylvania. “After seeing the devastating effects of AMD on several of my family and friends, finding and treating this disease has been my passion and my purpose. After performing nearly 4,000 dark adaptation tests in seven years, we are extremely confident that we are finding and treating every patient in our practice with AMD.”
The AdaptDx Pro guided by Theia™ measures dark adaptation in a clinical setting quickly and effectively, using a measurement called the Rod Intercept™. Impaired dark adaptation, as measured by the AdaptDx Pro, is 90 percent specific and sensitive to AMD. As a self-contained wearable headset, the AdaptDx Pro requires no dark room or external computer.
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“The past seven years of using dark adaptation testing in my practice has completely changed my outlook on this formerly devastating disease,” said Dr. Corbin, an optometrist at Wyomissing Optometric Center in Wyomissing, Pennsylvania. “Gary and I are both very humbled and honored to have MacuLogix provide our alma mater with this generous endowment to inspire the next generation of optometrists to focus on detecting and treating AMD with the goal of preserving their patients’ vision.”
Additionally, MacuLogix is donating an AdaptDx Pro to The Eye Institute (TEI) of Salus in Chestnut Hill, one of the University’s four clinical facilities, to provide fourth-year Doctor of Optometry (OD) students opportunity to utilize the latest technology before transitioning to practice.
“PCO/Salus is proud of our alumni in bringing AdaptDx Pro to their patients to assess AMD,” said Melissa Trego OD ‘04, PhD, dean of PCO/Salus. “We are thrilled to receive these funds to create an award for AMD advocacy and eager to share the technology with our students as they deliver patient care.”
