Ophthalmology News and Research

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Ophthalmology is the specialized field of medicine that focuses on the health of the eye. It includes the anatomy, physiology and diseases that may affect the eye. Historically, the science of ophthalmology encompassed all aspects of visual function, both in health and in illness. Additionally, ophthalmology also includes animal eyes as ocular function and optic diseases are similar among humans and animals.

Potential new therapy for uveitis

An inflammatory eye condition that is one of the world's leading causes of blindness could be treated much more effectively and easily thanks to a new discovery here.

29 Sep 2007

Childhood vaccination for the rubella virus may protect adult eyes

Childhood vaccination for the rubella virus may have also almost entirely eliminated an inflammatory eye disease from the U.S.-born population, according to a study by researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

20 Sep 2007

New insights into retinal growth

Peering at microscopic changes within the retina, scientists in the Department of Ophthalmology at Weill Cornell Medical College in New York City, have discovered a key mechanism driving eye health and eye disease.

12 Sep 2007

Glaucoma surgery with novel laser device

Prof. Ehud Assia, of Tel Aviv University's Sackler School of Medicine is, quite simply, a rock star in the field of eye surgery.

12 Sep 2007

Organisms found on contact lenses provide clues to corneal eye infections

Cultures of contact lenses may sometimes identify the organisms involved in cases of corneal eye infection, according to a report in the September issue of Archives of Ophthalmology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

11 Sep 2007

Yellow plant pigments may lower risk for age-related eye disease

Consuming higher levels of the yellow plant pigments lutein and zeaxanthin may be associated with a lower risk for age-related macular degeneration, according to a report in the September issue of Archives of Ophthalmology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

11 Sep 2007

New anti-cancer drug made from corn lillies kills brain tumor stem cells

A drug that shuts down a critical cell-signaling pathway in the most common and aggressive type of adult brain cancer successfully kills cancer stem cells thought to fuel tumor growth and help cancers evade drug and radiation therapy, a Johns Hopkins study shows.

30 Aug 2007

Gamma globulin effective treatment for pinkeye

Gamma globulin, a type of antibody isolated from blood samples that used to be routinely given to health care workers and international travelers to protect them from infectious diseases, is a highly effective treatment for pinkeye with little apparent toxicity, according to a study by researchers at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine.

29 Aug 2007

Zinc and macular degeneration link

A team of scientists, including three researchers at George Mason University, found that the mineral zinc could play a role in the development of macular degeneration.

28 Aug 2007

Another reason to quit - smoking increases the risk blindness in seniors

Australian researchers say people who smoke are four times more likely to develop age-related macular degeneration (AMD).

14 Aug 2007

New Alzheimer's drugs may help prevent glaucoma

British eye specialists have shown for the first time that key proteins involved in Alzheimer's disease are also implicated in glaucoma.

8 Aug 2007

Staffordshire screening programme on track to screen over 35,000 diabetes patients

The Staffordshire Diabetic Retinopathy Screening Service, a community based digital eye screening programme designed to detect and treat diabetic retinopathy, the leading cause of blindness in the developed world, is on track to exceed its target of screening over 35,000 diabetes patients this year.

7 Aug 2007

Link identified between Alzheimer's disease and glaucoma

UK scientists have shown for the first time that key proteins involved in Alzheimer's disease are also implicated in glaucoma, the major cause of irreversible blindness worldwide.

7 Aug 2007

New treatment for glaucoma shows promise

Iowa State University researchers have developed a new technique that successfully treated rats for blindness caused by glaucoma.

3 Aug 2007

Neuroprotectin D1 protects retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells

Two papers to be published in the Early Edition online of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) the week of July 30-August 3, 2007 report findings that demonstrate that neuroprotectin D1 (NPD1) protects against damage to retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells and identifies an important trigger for its production and novel molecular mechanisms that support vision.

1 Aug 2007

C3 gene variant increases risk of blindness

Researchers have found a gene variant that can more than double the risk of developing the degenerative eye disease, age-related macular degeneration.

19 Jul 2007

Apraclonidine causes severe lethargy in infants

New research suggests that an eyedrop used to diagnose a rare syndrome in infants can cause severe lethargy lasting up to 10 hours and requiring hospital admission and oxygen administration.

17 Jul 2007

Two-thirds of nursing home residents not getting regular eye care

Two-thirds of nursing home residents in a new UAB (University of Alabama at Birmingham) study had no record of or reference to an eye examination in their medical charts, although more than half were visually impaired.

11 Jul 2007

Age-related macular degeneration associated with increased mortality risk

Individuals age 49 and older with cataract and those age 49 to 74 years with age-related macular degeneration appear to have higher mortality rates over an 11-year period than those without such visual impairments, according to a report in the July issue of Archives of Ophthalmology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

10 Jul 2007

Peregrine licenses worldwide rights to a novel anti-angiogenesis technology

Peregrine Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has announced that it has licensed worldwide exclusive rights to a novel anti-angiogenesis technology from The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center.

10 Jul 2007