Eye News and Research

Latest Eye News and Research

Autistic children score almost exactly same as neurotypical kids in tests of learning new words

A new study has found that children with autism are capable of learning new words the same way any child would—by following someone's gaze as they name an object. They just take longer to pick up the skill.

4 May 2016

Researchers develop molecule that binds to GAA enzymes key to progress of Pompe disease

Researchers at Leiden University have made a breakthrough in the study of the hereditary Pompe disease. Together with colleagues in York, they have developed a molecule that binds to the enzyme that is key to the progress of the disease. The findings have been published in ACS Central Science.

4 May 2016

NEI-funded study analyzes outcomes of anti-VEGF therapy for AMD

In a study of nearly 650 people with the eye disease age-related macular degeneration (AMD), half still had vision 20/40 or better, typically good enough to drive or to read standard print, after five years of treatment with anti-VEGF drugs that are injected into the eye. The authors of the study, funded by the National Eye Institute (NEI) at the National Institutes of Health, say those outcomes would have been unimaginable about 10 years ago, prior to the drugs' availability.

3 May 2016

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

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

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

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

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

Exposure to blue light may lead to eyestrain but does not damage retina

Nearly 90 percent of adults use digital devices for two or more hours per day, according to The Vision Council's 2016 Digital Eye Strain Report, exposing consumers to blue light that some suggest is dangerous.

26 Apr 2016