Eye Health News and Research

Latest Eye Health News and Research

DSMB authorizes ACT to proceed with next set of patients in stem cell clinical trials

Advanced Cell Technology, Inc., a leader in the field of regenerative medicine, announced today that the independent Data and Safety Monitoring Board (DSMB) overseeing the Company's two ongoing stem cell clinical trials in the United States authorized ACT to move forward with enrolling and treating the next set of patients in each of the trials.

29 Sep 2011

Scientists report discovery of potential new drug for epidemic keratoconjunctivitis

Scientists are reporting discovery of a potential new drug for epidemic keratoconjunctivitis (EKC) - sometimes called "pink eye" - a highly infectious eye disease that may occur in 15 million to 20 million people annually in the United States alone. Their report describing an innovative new "molecular wipe" that sweeps up viruses responsible for EKC appears in ACS's Journal of Medicinal Chemistry.

29 Sep 2011

Hospitals fall short in efforts to curb readmissions

A Dartmouth Atlas report that studied Medicare beneficiaries concluded that hospital readmission rates are largely static. Facilities will face financial penalities next year if they do not improve their statistics.

29 Sep 2011

A Daddy’s heart is healthier: Study

A new study shows that fathers are less likely to die of heart disease than men who’ve never had kids. This raises questions about a possible biological link between male infertility and overall health. Other recent studies have found a connection between testicular and prostate cancer and infertility.

27 Sep 2011

Two computerized tests increase ability to detect remaining vision in patients with RP

Two new computerized tests increase the ability to measure remaining vision in patients with retinitis pigmentosa (RP) and other blinding diseases, reports a study in the October issue of Optometry Vision Science, official journal of the American Academy of Optometry.

27 Sep 2011

Subtle and unspoken clues exchanged by patients, doctors exert an influence on medical care

Subtle and unspoken clues exchanged by patients and doctors exert an influence on medical care, according to a new study by the University of Michigan Health System. Researchers analyzed video recordings of routine checkups and conducted follow-up interviews with participants to help elucidate signals sent and received on both sides of the examination table.

27 Sep 2011

ISRA sponsors 'Susan G. Komen Shoot for the Cure' event

In observance of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, the ISRA is pleased to announce its sponsorship of the first annual "Susan G. Komen Shoot for the Cure" benefit shooting event.

27 Sep 2011

Statistical algorithm can now determine focus error in eyes, cameras

University of Texas at Austin researchers have discovered how to extract and use information in an individual image to determine how far objects are from the focus distance, a feat only accomplished by human and animal visual systems until now.

27 Sep 2011

Men over 75 with prostate cancer are being undertreated: Study

It's an ongoing debate: Should men over a certain age be treated for prostate cancer? Should these patients be submitted to treatments that may result in significant side effects if they may not live very much longer?

27 Sep 2011

JDRF, iCo Therapeutics collaborate for iCo-007 Phase 2 trial in DME

iCo Therapeutics Inc. today announced that the company has entered into a research collaboration agreement with JDRF, the worldwide leader for research to cure, treat, and prevent type 1 diabetes (T1D), to support the previously announced Phase 2 investigator sponsored clinical trial investigating iCo-007 in Diabetic Macular Edema.

26 Sep 2011

Positive results from Clermont's non-preserved latanoprost phase III trial on glaucoma

Clermont Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a privately held ophthalmic-focused biopharmaceutical company, announced today positive results from a phase III trial of non-preserved latanoprost. In the study, non-preserved latanoprost was compared to Xalatan (latanoprost ophthalmic solution) 0.005%, in subjects diagnosed with open-angle glaucoma.

26 Sep 2011

Gold nanowires in engineered cardiac patches could help heart attack patients

A team of physicians, engineers and materials scientists at Children's Hospital Boston and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have used nanotechnology and tiny gold wires to engineer cardiac patches, with cells all beating in time, that could someday help heart attack patients.

26 Sep 2011

Percutaneous hepatic perfusion extends survival time for melanoma patients

Melanoma of the eye frequently spreads to the liver and, once this has happened, there is no effective treatment and patients die within an average of two to four months. Only about one in ten patients live for a year. Now, final results from a phase III study have demonstrated that a new treatment significantly extends the time patients can live without the disease progressing.

26 Sep 2011

Embryonic stem cell therapy for incurable Stargardt eye disease

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26 Sep 2011

RegeneRx completes RGN-259 Phase 2 trial on dry eye syndrome

RegeneRx Biopharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced that treatment and follow-up have been completed on 69 patients in the Company's Phase 2 clinical trial with RGN-259 for the treatment of dry eye syndrome, five more than the number of evaluable patients contemplated in the trial's protocol.

26 Sep 2011

STAAR's new Visian ICL with CentraFLOW technology showcased at ESCRS congress

STAAR Surgical Company, a leading developer, manufacturer and marketer of minimally invasive ophthalmic products, today announced the Visian Implantable Collamer Lens (ICL), and new Visian ICL with CentraFLOW technology utilizing the KS-AquaPORT, were featured prominently in twice as many presentations at the 2011 Congress of European Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgeons (ESCRS) as those on the ICL during last year's Congress.

23 Sep 2011

Scientists discover mechanism behind MRI-induced vertigo

A team of researchers says it has discovered why so many people undergoing magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), especially in newer high-strength machines, get vertigo, or the dizzy sensation of free-falling, while inside or when coming out of the tunnel-like machine.

23 Sep 2011

UHC honors UC San Diego Health System with Quality Leadership Award

UC San Diego Health System is proud to receive the 2011 UHC Quality Leadership Award. This national award is given to academic medical centers that demonstrate excellence in delivering high-quality care as measured by the UHC Quality & Accountability Study, which has been conducted by the consortium annually since 2005.

23 Sep 2011

Cedars-Sinai inaugurates new facility to generate induced pluripotent stem cells

The Cedars-Sinai Regenerative Medicine Institute has opened a new Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell (iPSC) Core Facility to produce powerful cells capable of making all tissues of the body from adult human skin cells.

23 Sep 2011

AGTC receives FFB grant to evaluate gene therapy treatment for X-linked Retinoschisis

Applied Genetic Technologies Corporation, a privately-held, clinical stage biotechnology company developing novel systems to deliver human therapeutics, announces that it has received a grant of $1.5 million from the Foundation Fighting Blindness to fund a pre-clinical trial evaluating the safety and efficacy of a gene therapy treatment for X-linked Retinoschisis (XLRS), a genetic eye disease affecting over 35,000 patients in the US and Europe.

22 Sep 2011