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First Edition: December 9, 2013

Today's headlines include reports about new sticker-shock concerns over costs for coverage purchased through the health law's new online insurance marketplaces.

9 Dec 2013

Researchers one step closer to development of drug-eluting contact lens for glaucoma treatment

For nearly half a century, contact lenses have been proposed as a means of ocular drug delivery that may someday replace eye drops, but achieving controlled drug release has been a significant challenge. Researchers at Massachusetts Eye and Ear/Harvard Medical School Department of Ophthalmology, Boston Children's Hospital, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology are one step closer to an eye drop-free reality with the development of a drug-eluting contact lens designed for prolonged delivery of latanoprost, a common drug used for the treatment of glaucoma, the leading cause of irreversible blindness worldwide.

9 Dec 2013

Penn researchers identify protein that could clear Alzheimer's plaques

The body is structured to ensure that any invading organisms have a tough time reaching the brain, an organ obviously critical to survival. Known as the blood-brain barrier, cells that line the brain and spinal cord are tightly packed, making it difficult for anything besides very small molecules to cross from the bloodstream into the central nervous system. While beneficial, this blockade also stands in the way of delivering drugs intended to treat neurological disorders, such as Alzheimer's.

9 Dec 2013

New findings by UCI, German researchers could aid in saving sight of millions

Groundbreaking new findings by UC Irvine and German chemists about how cataracts form could be used to help prevent the world's leading cause of blindness, which currently affects nearly 20 million people worldwide.

6 Dec 2013

Diversity essential for brain's ability to localize sounds

The ability to localize the source of sound is important for navigating the world and for listening in noisy environments like restaurants, an action that is particularly difficult for elderly or hearing impaired people.

4 Dec 2013

Lord Walton of Detchant receives honorary degree from Northumbria University

Northumbria University, Newcastle has today awarded Lord Walton of Detchant with an honorary degree in recognition of his long career as a world-leading neurologist.

4 Dec 2013

World-class Krembil Discovery Tower now opens in Canada

The Honourable Dr. K. Kellie Leitch, Minister of Labour and Minister of Status of Women congratulated Toronto Western Hospital today on the opening of the Krembil Discovery Tower, a facility dedicated to research excellence, training the next generation of medical professionals and improving health care for patients across Canada.

2 Dec 2013

Optogenetics offers a promising therapy for retinal degeneration

For a few years now optogenetics has been seen as a very promising therapy for progressive blindness, for example when it is a result of retinal degeneration.

28 Nov 2013

Cedars-Sinai researchers design new procedure to treat stem cell-related corneal blindness

Researchers in the Cedars-Sinai Regenerative Medicine Institute have designed and tested a novel, minute-long procedure to prepare human amniotic membrane for use as a scaffold for specialized stem cells that may be used to treat some corneal diseases.

27 Nov 2013

Isis Pharmaceuticals commences Phase 1 study of ISIS-GSK3Rx for treatment of common viral infection

Isis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. announced today that it has initiated a Phase 1 study for ISIS-GSK3Rx and earned a $3 million milestone payment from GlaxoSmithKline.

27 Nov 2013

Director of Scheie Eye Institute honored with WIO's Suzanne Veronneau Troutman Award

Joan M. O'Brien, MD, the George E. de Schweinitz and William F. Norris Professor of Ophthalmology, chair of the Department of Ophthalmology and director of the Scheie Eye Institute at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, was recently presented with the Women in Ophthalmology's Suzanne Veronneau Troutman Award.

26 Nov 2013

EC approves INVOKANA (canagliflozin) medication for adults with type 2 diabetes mellitus

Janssen-Cilag International NV announced today that the European Commission has approved INVOKANA (canagliflozin) in the European Union for the treatment of adults with type 2 diabetes mellitus, to improve glycaemic control[1]. Canagliflozin is an oral, once-daily medication, which belongs to a new class of medications called sodium glucose co-transporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitors.

23 Nov 2013

Genetic diagnostic test for inherited eye diseases now available from Mass. Eye and Ear

The Massachusetts Eye and Ear/Harvard Medical School Department of Ophthalmology today announced the availability of a comprehensive genetic diagnostic test for inherited eye diseases.

22 Nov 2013

Intraoperative RLN monitoring prior to thyroid surgery improves surgical outcomes

Intraoperative recurrent laryngeal nerve (RLN) monitoring has gained popularity with approximately 53 percent of general surgeons and 65 percent of otolaryngologists using intraoperative nerve monitoring in select or all cases.

19 Nov 2013

Research shows oral contraceptive use over three years could be a risk factor for glaucoma

Research presented today, at the 117th Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Ophthalmology in New Orleans, has found that women who have taken oral contraceptives for three or more years are twice as likely to suffer from glaucoma, one of the leading causes of blindness which affects nearly 60 million worldwide. The researchers caution gynecologists and ophthalmologists to be aware of the fact that oral contraceptives might play a role in glaucomatous diseases, and inform patients to have their eyes screened for glaucoma if they also have other risk factors.

19 Nov 2013

Study: New device helps people who lost vision due to blinding genetic disease

Research presented today at the 117th Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Ophthalmology shows promising data about a device that helps people who have lost their vision due to a blinding genetic disease to recognize common objects.

18 Nov 2013

Cataract surgeries deliver 4,567% financial return on investment to society

Cataract surgeries performed over one year eventually save $123.4 billion over 13 years and delivers a 4,567 percent financial return on investment to society according to the results of a cost-utility study, published online today in the Academy's official journal, Ophthalmology, and will be presented on Nov. 17 at the world's largest ophthalmic conference, the American Academy of Ophthalmology's 117th Annual Meeting, in New Orleans. Researchers say that the results prove that healthcare interventions create substantial economic wealth.

16 Nov 2013

E-Rare funding recommended for European young investigators network for Usher syndrome

Based on a ranking list that was established by the EU Scientific Evaluation Committee, the E-Rare funding bodies recommended the European young investigators network for Usher syndrome coordinated by Dr. Kerstin Nagel-Wolfrum from Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz for funding. Out of 82 submitted projects, EUR-USH was among the 11 excellent scientific projects that were chosen after a competitive two-step scientific evaluation by peers. In October 2013, researchers held their kick-off meeting in Nijmegen, the Netherlands.

16 Nov 2013

Oraya presents data from INTREPID study of stereotactic radiotherapy for treatment of wet AMD

Oraya® Therapeutics, Inc. announced today that initial three-year safety follow-up data from its INTREPID study of Oraya Therapy™ stereotactic radiotherapy for the treatment of wet age-related macular degeneration (AMD) were presented for the first time today during the America Academy of Ophthalmology's (AAO) annual meeting in New Orleans.

16 Nov 2013

Mass. Eye and Ear's OGSH launches new collaboration to care for people ENT diseases

Rates of death and disability stemming from ear, nose and throat conditions continue to rise in developing countries like Uganda, but despite the need, fewer than 15 operating ear, nose and throat surgeons serve Uganda's 33.4 million and growing population. Only two ENT residency programs exist in this country, but many trainees do not remain in the country after graduation. Mass. Eye and Ear's Office of Global Surgery and Health is launching a new collaboration with Mbarara University Science and Technology School of Medicine and Mbarara Regional Referral Hospital to help address the need for more trained physicians to care for the ENT diseases and conditions of this population and to help encourage those who are ENT trained to stay in the country to care for those who need them.

16 Nov 2013

Blindness News and Research

First Edition: December 9, 2013

Researchers one step closer to development of drug-eluting contact lens for glaucoma treatment

Penn researchers identify protein that could clear Alzheimer's plaques

New findings by UCI, German researchers could aid in saving sight of millions

Diversity essential for brain's ability to localize sounds

Lord Walton of Detchant receives honorary degree from Northumbria University

World-class Krembil Discovery Tower now opens in Canada

Optogenetics offers a promising therapy for retinal degeneration

Cedars-Sinai researchers design new procedure to treat stem cell-related corneal blindness

Isis Pharmaceuticals commences Phase 1 study of ISIS-GSK3Rx for treatment of common viral infection

Director of Scheie Eye Institute honored with WIO's Suzanne Veronneau Troutman Award

EC approves INVOKANA (canagliflozin) medication for adults with type 2 diabetes mellitus

Genetic diagnostic test for inherited eye diseases now available from Mass. Eye and Ear

Intraoperative RLN monitoring prior to thyroid surgery improves surgical outcomes

Research shows oral contraceptive use over three years could be a risk factor for glaucoma

Study: New device helps people who lost vision due to blinding genetic disease

Cataract surgeries deliver 4,567% financial return on investment to society

E-Rare funding recommended for European young investigators network for Usher syndrome

Oraya presents data from INTREPID study of stereotactic radiotherapy for treatment of wet AMD

Mass. Eye and Ear's OGSH launches new collaboration to care for people ENT diseases

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