Blindness News and Research

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Magnet restores colour perception in partially-sighted patient

A researcher from the University of Essex has succeeded in inducing the experience of colour in the blind part of a partially sighted patient's visual field.

3 Nov 2008

Earlier jaundice treatment decreases brain injury in preterm infants

A study from a National Institutes of Health research network found that an early treatment to prevent severe newborn jaundice in extremely early preterm infants reduced the infants' rate of brain injury, a serious complication of severe jaundice.

30 Oct 2008

Eye pressure spikes and glaucoma

A new Australian study has found some surprising factors which contribute to glaucoma and other pressure-related eye diseases.

29 Oct 2008

Research targets diabetes-related eye conditions

World Diabetes Day is on 14 November this year highlighting that diabetes is on the increase and to create awareness to aid prevention of figures growing larger. To help prevent diabetes becoming a burden to the NHS resources in the future, new research projects commissioned by the National Institute for Health Research's Health Technology Assessment (NIHR HTA) programme will evaluate the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of different screening tests used in diabetic eye care.

23 Oct 2008

Gene find sheds light on motor neuron diseases like amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

Scientists have identified a gene in mice that plays a central role in the proper development of one of the nerve cells that goes bad in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or Lou Gehrig's disease, and some other diseases that affect our motor neurons.

22 Oct 2008

Contact lenses are home to pathogenic amoebae

Contact lenses increase the risk of infection with pathogenic protozoa that can cause blindness. New research, published in the November issue of the Journal of Medical Microbiology, shows that a high percentage of contact lens cases in Tenerife are contaminated with Acanthamoeba that cannot be killed by normal contact lens solution.

20 Oct 2008

Increased pressure in the brain leads to vision loss more often in men

A new study shows that men are more likely to lose vision as a result of a particular cause of intracranial hypertension, or increased pressure in the brain, than women with the condition. The research is published in the October 15, 2008, online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

16 Oct 2008

Diabetics more likely to lose their vision

Experts in the United States have found that vision loss is more common in people with diabetes than those without the disease.

14 Oct 2008

Visual impairment more common in people with diabetes

Visual impairment appears to be more common in people with diabetes than in those without the disease, according to a report in the October issue of Archives of Ophthalmology.

13 Oct 2008

Research shows how cornea uses stem cells to repair itself

A group of researchers in Lausanne, Switzerland has published a study appearing in the Oct 1 advance online edition of the Journal Nature that shows how the cornea uses stem cells to repair itself.

2 Oct 2008

First genetic research model of retina receptors

A team of scientists at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center has created the first genetic research model for a microscopic part of the eye that when missing causes blindness. The research appears in a recent issue of the Journal of Biological Chemistry.

30 Sep 2008

Men's health campaign launched to address often overlooked physical, emotional and sexual issues affecting men with diabetes

In addition to dealing with the day-to-day aspects of diabetes management that involve blood glucose, nutrition and lifestyle management, men in the United States with diabetes are also grappling with other physical, emotional and sexual health issues according to survey findings released today by the American Diabetes Association.

9 Sep 2008

New treatment for diabetics identified

Some of the most serious health complications associated with diabetes could be prevented or delayed by taking a widely available cholesterol-lowering drug which has already been on the market for three decades, new research has shown.

8 Sep 2008

Coated lenses set to reduce 'post-op' infections for cataract patients

Research presented at the British Pharmaceutical Conference (BPC) in Manchester reveals that coating an artificial lens with antibiotics could significantly reduce the risk of post-operative infection, and even blindness, for cataract patients.

7 Sep 2008

Hallucinations in the flash of an eye

Ever seen or heard something that wasn't there? For most of us such experiences - termed hallucinations - are a normal, fleeting, brain glitch; yet for a few they are persistent, distressing and associated with a range of psychiatric, neurological and eye conditions.

4 Sep 2008

Advances in cell therapy bring cure for diabetes step closer

Affecting eight percent of America's population, diabetes can lead to blindness, kidney failure, strokes and heart disease. Thanks to Tel Aviv University researchers, a new cure -- based on advances in cell therapy -- may be within reach.

2 Sep 2008

Antiangiogenic and anti-inflammatory drugs: are they safe?

Since Rofecoxib (Vioxx) was withdrawn from the worldwide market based on the safety findings of the Adenomatous Polyp Prevention on Vioxx (APPROVe) study, the uncertainty around the cardiovascular safety of NSAIDs and COX-2 inhibitors remains and leaves practitioners with difficult management decisions for the hundreds of millions of patients worldwide who continue to require pain-relieving therapy to maintain an acceptable quality of life.

1 Sep 2008

Drug Lucentis to save eyesight of thousands in the UK

The eyesight of thousands of people in the UK will be saved with a new drug available under the National Health Service.

27 Aug 2008

Early trigger for type-1 diabetes found in mice

Scientists at the Stanford University School of Medicine are shedding light on how type-1 diabetes begins.

26 Aug 2008

NicOx updates on PF-03187207 and research collaboration with Pfizer

NicOx S.A. has announced the results of a dose-ranging phase 2 study conducted with PF‑03187207 in Japanese patients with glaucoma by its partner Pfizer Inc. PF-03187207 is a nitric oxide-donating prostaglandin analog. The study was designed to compare the safety and efficacy of several doses of PF-03187207 to Xalatan (latanoprost) and enrolled 112 Japanese patients with primary open-angle glaucoma or ocular hypertension.

25 Aug 2008