Eye Health News and Research

Latest Eye Health News and Research

Advances in telemedicine: an interview with Dr Ameet Bakhai

Telemedicine is the art of improving patient care via managing data remotely, and in this spirit one of the earliest examples often not considered in this category, would be the permanent pacemaker, first implanted into a human being in 1958.

2 May 2016

NEI to discuss research advances in regenerative medicine for eye disease at ARVO 2016

The National Eye Institute (NEI), part of NIH, is participating in the Inaugural Press Conference from the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology Annual Meeting (ARVO 2016), the largest gathering of eye and vision researchers in the world, attracting over 11,000 attendees from more than 75 countries.

2 May 2016

Novel gene therapy can treat pulmonary hypertension linked with heart failure

Scientists have used a novel gene therapy to halt the progression of pulmonary hypertension, a form of high blood pressure in the lung blood vessels that is linked to heart failure, according to a study led by Roger J. Hajjar, MD, Professor of Medicine and Director of the Cardiovascular Research Center at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.

30 Apr 2016

Self-collected vaginal swabs may help identify HPV infection

High risk, potentially cancer causing human papillomavirus infections are common among women in Papua New Guinea. But self sampling with vaginal swabs may provide materials that screen as accurately as the more labor-intensive approach using cervical samples obtained by clinicians.

30 Apr 2016

Machine learning could become powerful tool in plastic surgery

With an ever-increasing volume of electronic data being collected by the healthcare system, researchers are exploring the use of machine learning—a subfield of artificial intelligence—to improve medical care and patient outcomes.

30 Apr 2016

Scientists find way to reduce need for secondary cataract surgery

Scientists at the University of East Anglia may have found a way to prevent complications from surgery to treat cataract - the world's leading cause of blindness.

29 Apr 2016

Distracted caregivers negatively impact infants' burgeoning attention spans

Caregivers whose eyes wander during playtime -- due to distractions such as smartphones or other technology, for example -- may raise children with shorter attention spans, according to a new study by psychologists at Indiana University.

29 Apr 2016

Pioneering gene therapy may lead to potential cure for common causes of vision loss

Pioneering gene therapy has restored some vision to patients with a rare form of genetic blindness for as long as four years, raising hopes it could be used to cure common causes of vision loss, new University of Oxford research published today shows.

29 Apr 2016

Researchers identify role of darks in visual brain maps

Scientists have been studying how visual space is mapped in the cerebral cortex for many decades under the assumption that the map is equal for lights and darks. Surprisingly, recent work demonstrates that visual brain maps are dark-centric and that, just as stars rotate around black holes in the Universe, lights rotate around darks in the brain representation of visual space.

28 Apr 2016

Comprehensive dilated eye exams may provide clear view of eye health

David Watson has worn glasses to correct nearsightedness the majority of his life, and had his vision checked regularly to make sure his prescription was up to date. But when his wife convinced him to have a comprehensive dilated eye exam, he got a surprise. His doctor told him something didn't look right with his retina, the light sensitive tissue at the back of his eye. His retina was torn, and he had not had any symptoms.

28 Apr 2016

Diabetic patients at risk for developing retinal diabetic neuropathy

A University of Iowa-led study of diabetes-related vision impairment holds good news -- and some bad news -- for patients with signs of these disorders.

28 Apr 2016

ZOTEN nanoparticles can help develop natural immunity against genital herpes

An effective vaccine against the virus that causes genital herpes has evaded researchers for decades. But now, researchers from the University of Illinois at Chicago working with scientists from Germany have shown that zinc-oxide nanoparticles shaped like jacks can prevent the virus from entering cells, and help natural immunity to develop.

28 Apr 2016

People with TBI may have long-term sleep disturbances

People who have had a traumatic brain injury (TBI) may still have sleep problems a year and a half after being injured, according to a study published in the April 27, 2016, online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. In addition, people with TBI may also be unaware of just how much their sleep is disturbed.

28 Apr 2016

New methods for IOP measurements in patients with abnormal corneas

As a fundamental component of the ocular examination, accurate measurement of intra-ocular pressure (IOP) facilitates the management of patients with established glaucoma and the identification of patients with an elevated risk of developing glaucoma. For over 70 years, the most common method of measuring IOP has been by Goldmann Applanation Tonometry (GAT), largely on account of its low cost and ease of use.

28 Apr 2016

Experimental cancer drug Nutlin-3 shows promise in cancelling effects of fragile X syndrome

A University of Wisconsin-Madison researcher who studies the most common genetic intellectual disability has used an experimental drug to reverse — in mice — damage from the mutation that causes the syndrome.

28 Apr 2016

Researchers discover gene that plays vital role in inherited eye disorder

Researchers from the University of Liverpool have identified a specific gene that plays a key role in an inherited eye disorder.

26 Apr 2016

Light-sensitive serotonin receptors may help study causes of anxiety, depression

Anxiety and depression are two of the most frequently occurring mental disorders worldwide. Light-activated nerve cells may indicate how they are formed.

26 Apr 2016

Study highlights potential emergence of new swine flu strains

The wide diversity of flu in pigs across multiple continents, mostly introduced from humans, highlights the significant potential of new swine flu strains emerging, according to a study to be published in eLife.

26 Apr 2016

TKCI outlines plan to curb corneal blindness worldwide by 2030

The Tej Kohli Cornea Institute in partnership with the world-renowned LV Prasad Eye Institute, has today laid out its plan to control corneal blindness, globally, by 2030.

26 Apr 2016

ADHD highly prevalent among children with vision problems

Children with vision problems not correctable with glasses or contact lenses may be twice as likely to have a diagnosis of attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), suggests a study in the May issue of Optometry and Vision Science, official journal of the American Academy of Optometry. The journal is published by Wolters Kluwer.

26 Apr 2016