Eye Health News and Research

Latest Eye Health News and Research

Negotiators eye short-term and long-term 'doc fix' options

Single-year and two-year fixes to the "sustainable growth rate" formula -- or even a permanent fix -- are floated as the White House and congressional republicans continue negotiations over taxes and spending.

20 Dec 2012

New Spectra Iris indirect ophthalmoscope from Keeler

Spectra Iris is a new addition to Keeler's indirect ophthalmoscope range. It has been specifically designed as a compact, lightweight and portable indirect with an adjustable aperture for all pupil sizes.

20 Dec 2012

Aspirin use may increase risk of age-related macular degeneration

People who regularly took aspirin 10 years prior to examination had a small but statistically significant increase in the risk of a subtype of age-related macular degeneration (AMD), according to a study by University of Wisconsin-Madison researchers.

20 Dec 2012

Ethnic disparities remain in glaucoma testing

A decade’s worth of data show that Hispanic men and women are less likely than individuals of other race or ethnicity to undergo ocular imaging for glaucoma.

19 Dec 2012

Harvard scientists shed new light on olfactory feedback mechanism

More than a century after it was first identified, Harvard scientists are shedding new light on a little-understood neural feedback mechanism that may play a key role in how the olfactory system works in the brain.

19 Dec 2012

Dominance and skill are two strategies to gain power and status

19 Dec 2012

Kids misuse holiday baking ingredients for drug-like effect

Watch your kitchen cupboards this season as thrillseekers look to common holiday baking ingredients for a rise - cinnamon, nutmeg and even marshmallows are the primary ingredient in trendy risky behavior.

19 Dec 2012

Obama, Boehner trade 'fiscal cliff' offers, express optimism about possible deal

President Barack Obama's latest offer does not include a Republican proposal to increase the Medicare eligibility age from 65 to 67. Meanwhile, The Wall Street Journal reports on how health care spending is driving the nation's debt, while USA Today details a new poll showing the public favors the president in the fiscal talks.

19 Dec 2012

Small ceramic indoor cookstoves do not reduce pneumonia incidence among children, study shows

"Small ceramic indoor stoves, such as those sold by women in AIDS self-help groups in Africa, do save fuel and cut down on eye-irritating smoke, a new study has found -- but they do not save children from pneumonia," the New York Times reports.

19 Dec 2012

BubR1 and its associated regulators promising targets for aging disorders and cancer

A new series of studies in mouse models by Mayo Clinic researchers uncovered that the aging process is characterized by high rates of whole-chromosome losses and gains in various organs, including heart, muscle, kidney and eye, and demonstrate that reducing these rates slows age-related tissue deterioration and promotes a healthier life span. The findings appear in today's online issue of Nature Cell Biology.

18 Dec 2012

Partisan differences persist on taxes and Medicare, other entitlement programs

Meanwhile, news outlets report that some Senate Republicans are working on a back-up plan that would cancel certain tax increases scheduled to take effect next year for most Americans.

15 Dec 2012

Combination therapy reduces sleep apnea symptoms at altitude

Patients with obstructive sleep apnea can better control their symptoms when traveling to higher altitudes by combining autoadjusted continuous positive airway pressure with acetazolamide, research suggests.

14 Dec 2012

K. Hovnanian Children's Hospital offers comprehensive surgical program

No matter what age you are, surgery can be a scary thing. Knowing you are in good hands, though, can help soothe fears. K. Hovnanian Children's Hospital at Jersey Shore University Medical Center offers a comprehensive child-friendly, family-oriented program that includes surgical specialties, dentistry, general surgery, neurosurgery, ophthalmology, ENT, orthopedic surgery and urology.

14 Dec 2012

CBT most effective for children with post-traumatic stress disorder

Research published in The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews confirms the effectiveness of psychologic therapy for children with post-traumatic stress disorder, particularly cognitive behavioral therapy.

13 Dec 2012

LED light instantly triggers or reverses depression-like behavior in rodents

A specific pattern of neuronal firing in a brain reward circuit instantly rendered mice vulnerable to depression-like behavior induced by acute severe stress, a study supported by the National Institutes of Health has found. When researchers used a high-tech method to mimic the pattern, previously resilient mice instantly succumbed to a depression-like syndrome of social withdrawal and reduced pleasure-seeking - they avoided other animals and lost their sweet tooth.

13 Dec 2012

Bumetanide could treat children with severe autism or Asperger's syndrome

Although this therapy is not curative, it nevertheless reduced the autistic disorders' severity in three-quarters of the children. The researchers have filed a request for authorisation to perform a multi-centre European clinical trial in order to determine more precisely the population concerned by this therapy.

13 Dec 2012

Roundup: Health centers moving into contaminated tracts; Mass. budget cuts worry health advocates

The community health center rising on a derelict corner here in West Philadelphia never would have broken ground if not for the asbestos inside the building that was demolished to make way for it. Because of the contamination, Spectrum Health Services received a $2 million federal cleanup grant, the first piece of a $14 million construction financing puzzle.

13 Dec 2012

The argument for vision insurance

Individuals with vision insurance are more likely than those without it to have had recent eye care visits, and to have no difficulty reading printed matter or recognizing their friends from across the street, report US researchers.

12 Dec 2012

Picaa app helps children and teenagers with some kind of cognitive, visual or hearing disability

This application -named Picaa- can be used on iPhone, iPad and iPod touch and has been translated into several languages (English, Galician, Arab, etc.). This application has topped the 20,000 downloads from App Store -mainly from Spain and the USA- since its release. Picaa is a system designed for the development of learning and communication activities to be performed in class.

12 Dec 2012

$Study finds increase in prevalence of nonrefractive visual impairment in the U.S.$

Study finds increase in prevalence of nonrefractive visual impairment in the U.S.

The prevalence of nonrefractive visual impairment (not due to need for glasses) in the U.S. has increased significantly in recent years, which may be partly related to a higher prevalence of diabetes, an associated risk factor, according to a study in the December 12 issue of JAMA.

12 Dec 2012