Online CME: Ophthalmology
Last Updated November 21, 2007.

Special Notice!! Looking for reviewers to help keep the List up-to-date.

The sites described on this page are primarily concerned with ophthalmology topics. You may find additional online CME sites and courses with ophthalmology content at the main online CME site.

Acuity Medical Education
Last visited...11/2007.
Credit hours....1.0.
Awarded by....Medical Education Resources, Inc.
Cost...........Free.
Instruction Type...Slide-Audio lecture.
Target Audiences...OPHTH.
Educational material last updated....11/07.
Financial support...(OSI) Eyetech, Inc.
CME Credit Expires...November 2008.

A single course, Issues in Management of the AMD (Age-Related Macular Degeneration) Patient: Looking at the Long-Term. Upon completion of this activity, you should be able to: discuss the treatment options available to AMD patients; identify what long-term factors should be considered in these treatments; explain how to optimize patient care over years of treatment; summarize the pharmacoeconomic implications of the various available treatments; and implement guidelines in clinical practice i for patients with wet AMD.

American Academy of Ophthalmology Online Education Center
Last visited...5/2008.
Access to the CME courses is now available to all physicians as well to members of The American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO).
Credit hours: Cases: about 13 case studies offering about 1 hour each. 
Courses: about 10 courses offering 1 or more hours each. 
Focal points: 2 hours per issue (total of 24 hours per year.)
Awarded by....American Academy of Ophthalmology.
Cost for Credit....About $15 for members, about $25 for non-members.
Instruction Type....Text-and-Graphics.
Target Audience...OPHTH.
Educ. material last updated....2006.
Financial support...Pharmaceutical companies

This site is under review. The URLs and titles shown are no longer correct. CME credit is available in three formats:
There are 13 Case Studies including: Cataract/Anterior Segment; Cornea/External Disease; Glaucoma; Neuro-Ophthalmology; Oculoplastics/Orbit; Pediatrics; and Refractive Management.
Courses include: Athletic Eye Injuries; The Ethical Ophthalmologist; Diseases of the Ocular Surface; Glaucoma Drainage Devices; Normal-Tension Glaucoma; Botulinum Toxin in Therapeutic Practice; Thyroid Eye Disease; Botulinum Toxin in Cosmetic Practice; Age-Related Macular Degeneration and  Diabetic Retinopathy.
Focal Points Online offers 12 issues per year. Topics include: Periorbital Skin Cancers; Optic Atrophy; Gonioscopy; Fitting Contact Lenses; Dry Eye; Why do Kids do That? Steroid Therapy for Ocular Inflammatory Disease; Nerve Fiber Layer, Macula, and Optic Disc Imaging in Glaucoma; Sutured Posterior Chamber Intraocular Lenses; Managing the Dissatisfied Optical Patient; OCT: Impact on Managing Retinal Disorders; and Surgical Techniques for Ocular Surface Reconstruction.

ImproMED
Last visited...7/2006.
Credit hours...4 courses; 4 hours.
Awarded by....ImproMED.
Cost...........Free.
Instruction Type...Slide-and-Text or Slide-Video-Lecture.
Target Audiences...OPHTH.
Educational material last updated....2003.
Financial Support...Pfizer Ophthalmics, Pharmacia.

This site has four activities for ophthalmologists:
General Glaucoma; and Safety and Efficacy in Current Glaucoma Treatment.
Results of Major Glaucoma Clinical Trials (Slide-and-Text) covers the results of  the Collaborative Normal Tension Glaucoma Study, the Advanced Glaucoma Intervention Study, the Collaborative Initial Glaucoma Treatment Study, the Ocular Hypertension Treatment Study, and the Early Manifest Glaucoma Trial. 
Recent Advances in Glaucoma: Results from the Ocular Hypertension Treatment Study (OHTS) (Slide-Video-Lecture) contains the October 2002 AAO satellite symposium. This activity is led by 5 ophthalmologists who were key investigators in the trial or involved in the review of the OHTS.

Internet-based Studies in Education and Research (University of Pittsburgh)
Last visited...8/2006.
Credit hours...0.5 to 1.5 per activity (total of about 25 hours in 25 modules, plus 31 - one credit modules in angiogenesis (mostly for ophthalmologists)
Awarded by....University of Pittsburgh (UPMC).
Cost...........Free.
Instruction Type....Text-Only with open-ended ("reflective") questions, Some modules also contain PowerPoint Slide Shows and / or streaming video. 
Target Audiences...General Interest, OPHTH.
Educational material last updated.....Modules are frequently updated.
Financial Support...None Stated.

This site was formerly called " Rapid Deployment CME." There are now about 25 modules for non-UPMC physicians. Each module consists of a set of linked articles and open-ended ("reflective") questions or multiple-choice quizzes. Some modules also contain PowerPoint Slide Shows and / or streaming video. There is a separate section of 31 modules on angiogenesis with special emphasis on angiogenesis in ophthalmology. Yet another section offers (mandatory) training for UPMC physicians.

Medscape Ophthalmology
Last visited...11/2006.
Credit hours...Varies from time to time.
Awarded by....Medscape and many other sponsoring organizations.
Cost...........Free.
Instruction Type...Text-and-Graphics, Text-Only, Slide-Audio Lecture, Slide-Video Lecture and Case-Based-Interactive.
Target Audiences....OPHTH.
Educational material last updated...New activities posted frequently.
Financial Support...Many academic, specialty, and commercial sources as well as WebMD.
Expiration of CME Credit...Credit for most activities expires one year after posting.

CME activities of special interest to ophthalmologists. Medscape contains a variety of educational formats:
CONFERENCE COVERAGE - Reports of  advances presented at major medical conferences; typically includes several tracks with news stories, expert interviews, and in-depth topic overviews.
CLINICAL UPDATE - Comprehensive original review article on scientific advances in a clinical topic.
FAST TRACK CLINICAL UPDATE – Narrowly focused original review article on scientific advances in a clinical topic.
CME-LIVE - Real-time online events with streaming video, synchronized visuals, and interactive questions and answers; archived for 1 year.
NEWS-CME - Daily reports of major current medical research articles; 0.25 credits each
JOURNAL CME - Articles selected from a wide selection of conference reports and peer-reviewed journals, including MedscapeGeneralMedicine (MedGenMed).
SPECIAL REPORT CME – Topic-based monthly email newsletter distributed to Medscape’s professional member database by specialty.
INTERACTIVE PATIENT CASES – Original CME activity presented to the physician in an interactive, clinical case-based format. 
CME CIRCLE – Multimedia content certified by other accredited professional education providers, typically from live symposia or monographs, and then posted on Medscape and archived for one year.

Ophthalmic Hyperguide
Last visited...1/2008.
Credit hours...1.0 each (total of 50).
Awarded by....Vindico Medical Education.
Cost...........Free.
Instruction Type....Tutorials are Text-and-Slide format; Lectures are Slide-Audio Format.
Target Audience....OPHTH.
Educational material last updated....2007.
Financial Support...Allergan.
CME Credit Expires...December 31, 2008.

Topics include Cataract and IOLs; Clinical Optics; Corneal and Anterior Segment Diseases; Glaucoma; Neuro-ophthalmology; Oculoplastics; Ophthalmic Pathology; Pain Management; Pediatric Ophthalmology; Refractive Surgery; and Retina.

VINDICO Medical Education Learning Center
Last visited...8/2007.
Credit hours...About 25 activities offering about 25 credit-hours.
Awarded by....Vindico Medical Education.
Cost...........Free.
Instruction Type...Monograph, Journal Article and Slide-Audio Lecture.
Target Audience...OPHTH.
Educational material last updated....2007.
Financial Support...None stated.
CME Credit Expires...One year after posting.

Most of Vindico's CME activities are directed towards ophthalmologists. You will find activities in these areas: Cataract Surgery, Cornea/External Disease, Glaucoma, Pediatrics/Strabismus, Practice Management, Refractive Surgery and Retina/Vitreous. There is also a sprinkling of activities in Cardiology, Endocrinology, Hematology/Oncology and Pediatrics.

Return to the Annotated List of Online CME (All Specialties)

This list was compiled by Bernard Sklar, MD, MS