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Welcome to Optometry Simplified.

In this biweekly newsletter, I've curated the best resources to help you grow personally and professionally.

My mission is to find what's best for my patients and my practice.

Here's what I've found...

Links I Liked

Should OCT angiography be performed on all patients with diabetes?
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Watch as Nate Lighthizer, OD, and Mile Brujic, OD, discuss two clinical cases where the OCTA findings led to interesting and contrary management plans. Optometric Insights​

Reliability is a superpower. Ignore sunk costs.

63 more pearls of wisdom from business and marketing guru, Seth Godin. I will be regularly reviewing this list! Seth's Blog​

The five tenets of ethical cataract comanagement.

And many other helpful insights on all things billing and coding during and after comanagement from Thomas Cheezum, OD. Modern Optometry​

Research I'm Reading

Can cataract surgery alone help lower IOP in glaucoma patients?​

A new meta-analysis says: Yes—and the results are stronger than you might expect. Eye​

Does IPL reduce demodex count?

Perhaps reducing the demodex count could be beneficial, but additional/concurrent therapies are likely necessary for significant improvements. See the systematic review of IPL treatments for the reduction of demodicosis here: Contact Lens & Anterior Eye​

Deep Thoughts

Will Alcon's new Tryptyr® (acoltremon) replace cyclosporine and plugs?

If your goal is to increase aqueous production, not manage inflammation, Tryptyr might just become your new go-to.

Tryptyr is a TRPM8 receptor agonist that stimulates cold-sensitive corneal nerves. It’s not an immunomodulator. It’s not a plug. And it doesn’t need weeks to kick in.

In clinical studies, Tryptyr increased Schirmer’s score by an average of 3.7mm—a bigger jump than Restasis® (1.0mm), Xiidra® (0.7mm), or even punctal plugs (3.1mm).

The kicker? A Number Needed to Treat (NNT) of 2.7. That’s shockingly low for a dry eye therapy. In comparison, Restasis clocks in with an NNT of 10.

Need a refresher on NNT? Check out a recent newsletter for a quick explanation.

So, will it replace cyclosporine or plugs? If we’re being precise, it depends on what you’re treating.

For aqueous deficiency alone, especially when inflammation isn’t the main driver, Tryptyr could absolutely become the first-line choice.

But inflammation-driven disease? That may still be cyclosporine’s lane.

If this holds up in practice, Tryptyr might simplify the treatment ladder for aqueous-deficient dry eye and move us one step closer to tailored, mechanism-specific therapy.

​See a full breakdown of how Tryptyr stacks up against all other common therapies for increasing tear volume.

Practice Performance Partners Pick

What happens when one primary care optometrist observes another’s team in action and then gives honest, constructive feedback?

That’s precisely what happened when Chris Wolfe, OD spent a day inside Aaron Werner, OD's practice.

The result? A candid, insightful conversation about what great primary eye care actually looks like—and how real-time coaching can raise the bar across the entire team.

​Worth every minute:​

Can you do me a favor? If you found any of these resources helpful, share this newsletter with one of our colleagues!

See you in 2 weeks!

--Kyle Klute, OD, FAAO

1515 S 152 Avenue Circle, Omaha, Nebraska 68144
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