Cell Transplants: These Blind Mice Can See Again
LONDON, November 2006 Researchers at Moorfields Eye Hospital, other London institutions and the University of Michigan
have reported success with experimental cell transplants that restored at least partial sight in blind mice with damaged nerve cells
(photoreceptors) essential for sight.
Researchers said these findings eventually may have implications for treating certain eye diseases such as
retinitis pigmentosa (RP). A person with RP loses eyesight when photoreceptors
found in the inner back lining of the eye (retina)
become permanently damaged.
"Remarkably, we found that the mature retina, previously believed to have no capacity for repair, is in fact able
to support the development of new functional photoreceptors," University College London (UCL) researcher Jane Sowden,
PhD, said in a news release.
Cells used in the transplants were harvested from retinas of mice that were several days old. Researchers say the
cells were not stem cells, which eventually can grow into different types, but represented more advanced cells that
already had begun to specialize.
Results of these experiments were reported in the Nov. 9, 2006 issue of Nature magazine.
153 Million People Worldwide Live Without Needed Vision Correction
GENEVA, October 2006 A simple pair of eyeglasses could make all the difference in terms of employment
and educational opportunities for 153 million people worldwide who are unable to afford eye exams and appropriate
vision correction, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
WHO's new 2006 global estimates of vision problems show that millions of people, most of them in low and middle income
countries, have uncorrected refractive errors such as
nearsightedness,
farsightedness and
astigmatism. WHO officials note that these
types of eye problems are easily corrected and yet represent a leading cause of vision impairment worldwide.
As part of WHO's Vision 2020 Global Initiative program, strategies are being adopted to improve access to affordable eye
care worldwide. WHO also has announced plans to raise world awareness of the magnitude and seriousness of the problem of
uncorrected vision problems.
Optical Scanning System May Predict Alzheimer's
ACTON, Mass., September 2006 An optical scanning system appears able to detect protein substances within the eye's
lens that may indicate beginning stages of Alzheimer's,
a devastating disease in which the brain's nerve cells begin to die.
The Optiscan system, so far tested on eyes of mice, belongs to diagnostics company Neuroptix Corp. (Acton, Mass.).
Optiscan now will be developed as an inexpensive diagnostic tool that potentially can be used to detect Alzheimer's
in a clinical setting, according to a company news release.
West Nile Virus Can Cause Vision Symptoms
PALM SPRINGS, Calif., September 2006 A recent study indicates that people with severe West Nile Virus symptoms,
which can include vision problems, may develop lesions and scarring in the inner back of the eye
(retina) from chorioretinitis.
From 2002 through 2005, researchers at Southern California Desert Retina Consultants in Palm Springs, Calif.
studied West Nile Virus cases involving seven people who developed vision problems.
Authors of the study, reported in the September 2006 issue of Ophthalmology, noted that multifocal
chorioretinitis is the most common among vision symptoms associated with West Nile Virus. Other studies also
have noted that multifocal chorioretinitis might be a marker indicating presence of serious forms of West Nile Virus.
Other vision problems found in association with West Nile Virus included optic nerve damage
(optic neuritis)
and inflammation causing reduced blood flow (occlusive vasculitis). Researchers also note that diabetic patients
were more likely to develop serious and lasting vision problems from West Nile Virus.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says that about one of every 150 diagnosed cases of
West Nile Virus, which spreads through mosquito bites, is likely to create serious symptoms. The CDC says approximately
3,000 people were diagnosed with West Nile Virus in the United States during 2005, resulting in 119 deaths.
Computer System Provides Navigation for the Blind
ATLANTA, August 2006 Georgia Tech researchers have converted a device originally developed to
help robots maneuver on their own into a computer system that could help the blind navigate, known as
the System for Wearable Audio Navigation (SWAN).
"We are excited by the possibilities for people who are blind and visually impaired to use the
SWAN auditory way-finding system," Atlanta's Center for the Visually Impaired Executive Director
Susan B. Green said in a news release.
The device provides audio clues for navigation through a laptop computer, tracking chip and
headphones. Researchers say the technology, originally developed for military use, also could
have other applications such as for firefighters blinded by smoke.
Decorative Eye Implants May Become Illegal in Illinois
SPRINGFIELD, Ill., August 2006 The Illinois state legislature continues
to consider legislation that would ban implantation of tiny bits of "eye
jewelry" in heart, half-moon and other shapes. The Illinois state house of
representatives on April 15, 2005 unanimously passed a bill to make
implanting eyeball jewelry a felony offense for any individual, including
physicians. Meanwhile, the deadline for the state senate to consider final
passage of the bill has been extended to January 2007.
The eye jewelry fad, first reported in the press in April 2004, seems to
have begun in the Netherlands. At that time, the American Academy of
Ophthalmology issued a statement about the implant's potential harm.
According to Academy spokesperson Wayne Bizer, DO: "My concern would be
that it might cause foreign body granuloma or scar tissue."
"The implant could also allow bacteria to get beneath the conjunctiva,
causing a serious vision-threatening infection or possibly erode the sclera,
the white part of the eye," Bizer said, adding that the implant also could
be difficult to remove.
In August 2004, a Los Angeles ophthalmologist introduced the procedure to
the United States, according to a report by NBC10.com, at a cost of $3,900 per eye.
Other eye doctors expressed worries about possible infection, bleeding and
the eventual extrusion of the eye jewelry through the eye's surface.
Modest Drinkers Can Still Be "Blind Drunk" When They Drive
SEATTLE, July 2006 In a study indicating that even low levels of drinking and driving may be dangerous, most
individuals who had consumed modest amounts of alcohol failed to see someone dressed in a gorilla suit who appeared in
video clips primarily showing people playing ball.
Only 18 percent of people with low blood alcohol levels, about half the legal drinking and driving limits in most U.S. states,
saw the gorilla. About 46 percent of study participants who had consumed no alcohol saw the gorilla. People participating in the
study did not know which drinks given to them contained alcohol prior to the airing of the video clips.
Study results from experiments conducted by researchers at the University of Washington in Seattle and at Victoria
University of Wellington in New Zealand were published in late June 2006 in the Applied Cognitive Psychology journal.
Researchers say inability to see an object in the visual field while concentrating on another image is known as
"inattentional blindness." Inattentional blindness can have serious safety implications for drivers who consume even low
levels of alcohol because of the need to be simultaneously aware of all aspects of the visual field.
Implant Stimulates Sight in Blind People
DETROIT, June 2006 An implant placed in the inner back portion of the eye (retina)
where images are detected by light-sensitive cells appears to be able to stimulate recognition of light and patterns in certain individuals previously
considered completely blind.
Results are from early studies involving the Learning Retinal Implant from Intelligent Medical Implants (Zug, Switzerland). A company news release
issued from Detroit says these early results demonstrate the first-ever accomplishment of wireless transmission of data and energy into such an implant,
resulting in pattern recognition in the blind.
The first implantation took place in November 2005 in an individual at the University of Hamburg Medical School in Germany, where Gisbert Richard, MD,
serves as principal investigator for the study. As of June 2006, four people had received implants.
"Our study concludes that it is possible to provoke pattern recognition by electrical stimulation," Richard said in a news release. "The wireless data
and energy transmission into the implant allowed totally unrestricted eye movement and is therefore considered suitable as a long-term solution for blind persons."
The study initially is aimed at potentially reversing blindness in people who have the inherited, blinding eye disease known as
retinitis pigmentosa, which affects several million people worldwide
and has no known cure. [See the article on retinitis pigmentosa.]
Children Wearing Eye Patches for Lazy Eye May Be Bullied at School
BRISTOL, England, June 2006 British researchers say early screening and treatment of pre-schoolers with
lazy eye (amblyopia), who often must wear
eye patches, could help reduce risks of later being bullied at school.
University of Bristol researchers in a study reported in June 2006 found that young children with amblyopia were
50 percent more likely to be bullied if eye patches were worn in school. Children with ambylopia who were screened early
and who had finished eye patching treatments by the time they entered school were much less likely to be bullied.
"Both parents and children might consider that halving the risk of being bullied is a good reason for a child to
attend a pre-school vision screening appointment, rather than wait for detection and treatment at school age," said
Bristol eye surgeon and researcher Cathy Williams. "...We know that repeated bullying is consistently associated with
physical and emotional problems for the victims and may have long-term consequences."
Bristol researchers say amblyopia affects about 3 percent of all children, but is easily treated when the dominant eye
is patched to help strengthen the weaker eye. [See also: Children's Eye Exams]
Artificially Engineered Cells Restore Partial Vision in Blind Mice
DETROIT, April 2006 Artificially engineered cells in the eyes of blinded mice demonstrated ability to detect at
least some light during Wayne State University School of Medicine (Detroit) studies reported in the April 6, 2006 issue of Neuron.
In experiments funded by the National Eye Institute, researchers used artificially engineered cells to replace at
least some function of the blind eye's damaged light-sensitive cells (rods
and cones) found within the inner back of the
eye (retina) where vision processing takes place.
Researchers introduced a gene derived from light-sensitive protein from green algae (ChR2) into the retina to stimulate light sensitivity
in cells that ordinarily do not respond to light. Researchers said these study results have implications for future research into finding ways to restore
vision lost to eye diseases such as retinitis pigmentosa,
which permanently damages light-sensitive cells.
North Carolina School Officials Fight Mandatory Eye Exam Law
RALEIGH, N.C., March 2006 North Carolina House of Representatives Speaker Jim Black,
an optometrist, has drawn considerable heat for his support of legislation that now requires
school children entering state kindergarten programs to undergo eye exams beginning within
six months of the upcoming fall 2006 semester.
News reports say about a dozen school boards from throughout North Carolina have joined
together in a lawsuit opposing mandatory eye exams as unconstitutional. Opponents argue
that some counties in the state don't even have eye doctors and that underprivileged
families would be unable to afford the cost of eye exams.
Black had argued that early eye exams for young children are crucial for detecting often
overlooked eye ailments that can affect school work and proper vision development.
Viagra's Effect on Vision
TUSCALOOSA, Alabama, January 2006 A small Alabama study indicates that
impotence drugs such as Viagra, Cialis and Levitra could cause
optic nerve damage
and sudden blindness in older men with vascular problems such as high blood pressure or a
history of heart attacks, the British Journal of Ophthalmology reported in early 2006.
British news reports said University of Alabama researchers who conducted the study recommend
that patients using drugs such as Viagra should be warned of the risk of developing impaired
blood flow to the optic nerve, which can cause sudden blindness.
The study of 76 men attending one eye health care clinic found that patients who previously
had experienced heart attacks were 10 times more likely to develop a condition called
non-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (NAION), causing reduced blood flow
damaging the eye's optic nerve, if they had taken drugs for impotence.
When the issue first was reported in the summer of 2005, Pfizer (the maker of Viagra) said
on its website that no one among 13,000 patients included in 103 clinical trials leading to
U.S. Food and Drug Admininstration approval of the drug had reported a NAION episode. But
an editorial in the British journal says that eye care physicians may not be asking patients
diagnosed with NAION if they have taken drugs for impotence, thus causing associations to be missed.
Other previous research indicated that older people generally are more likely to have NAION,
particularly if they have high cholesterol, high blood pressure, a history of smoking, heart
disease and diabetes. This same group also is more likely to experience impotence and therefore to take medication for it.
About Nine to 15 Million Children in China Have Amblyopia
BEIJING, China, December 2005 From three to five percent of China's children suffer from amblyopia, but less than
one percent of them have received efficient treatment, says a study that was reported on the People's Daily Online website.
Conducted by the Chinese medical institute of south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, the research found
most of the amblyopia incidence has occurred in children younger than six and seems to be congenital or genetic, with
a higher incidence in children with an amblyopic parent. One of the ophthalmologist researchers said that
the prolonged, intense use of TVs and computers, as well as large amounts of schoolwork, are helping to cause the condition.
Driving Blind
GREAT BRITAIN, November 2005 Frightening research by Privilege Insurance Company found that while 55
percent of British drivers require glasses or contact
lenses for driving, 18 percent of these, or three million drivers, have driven without their lenses. And 17
percent of these (more than half a million
people), drive without their lenses once every few days.
More than 500,000 drivers have been involved in an incident such as
drifting out of the lane, speeding or driving on the wrong side of the road while not using their eyewear. And the last time they
drove without their eyewear, 11 percent did so on a journey of more than 50 miles.
Unlicensed Eye Examiner Found Testing Eyes in Philadelphia
PHILADELPHIA, November 2005 The NBC 10 News Team in Philadelphia reported that it visited an opticianry in
the city and recorded an undercover videotape that showed
the owner testing a woman's eyes and prescribing eyeglasses for her. He also tested a man's eyes and
sold him contact lenses. The owner, Bill Nigro, admitted that he is not licensed to be an eye doctor.
The report said that under Pennsylvania state law, only eye doctors optometrists and ophthalmologists
are allowed to conduct eye exams. The reason is that they are trained not only to prescribe lenses but also to
evaluate eye health and detect problems and diseases.
Older Children May Benefit from Lazy Eye Treatments
BETHESDA, Md., April 2005 Surprising results from a nationwide study show that older children may benefit from
traditional therapies for lazy eye (amblyopia), the National Eye Institute (NEI) announced.
Many eyecare providers previously thought that only very young children up to about age 7 could benefit from therapies
such as eye patching, eye drops and activities for improving near vision, the NEI said. Lazy eye typically develops beginning
in infancy when the eye-brain connection fails to develop properly, resulting in one eye becoming extremely dominant.
The non-dominant eye in lazy eye eventually may become blind.
"Doctors can now feel confident that traditional treatments for amblyopia will work for many older children," NEI Director
Paul A. Sieving, MD, PhD, said in a news release. "This is important because it is estimated that as many as 3
percent of children
in the United States have some degree of vision impairment due to amblyopia. Many of these children do not receive treatment
while they are young."
In the study reported in the April 2005 issue of Archives of Ophthalmology, many of 507 older children ages 7-17 had
vision improvement when traditional lazy eye therapies were used.
Can Tinted Lenses or Filters Help People with Dyslexia?
ST. LOUIS, Mo., March 2005 An ongoing controversy over whether tinted lenses or filters might help people who have
learning disabilities associated with dyslexia has again surfaced in early 2005.
An article in the Wall Street Journal in March points out a recent marketing push by some eye doctors who charge up to $2,000 for
diagnostic tests using colored filters for patients with dyslexia, a method that some eye experts say is based on dubious science.
"Reading difficulties and learning disabilities are complex problems that have no simple solutions," says a joint statement by the
American Academy of Pediatrics, American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus and American Academy of Ophthalmology.
"There is no known eye or visual cause for these learning disabilities and no known effective visual treatment."
But an official position paper from the American Optometric Association (AOA) based in St. Louis says that some "undetected vision
problems may be a factor in individuals who exhibit the symptoms" of a syndrome defined by psychologist Helen Irlen as a connection
between dyslexia and vision.
The AOA says further research is needed, based on reviews of scientific literature showing mixed results regarding the
effectiveness of tinted lenses as an aid for people who have reading difficulties associated with dyslexia.
"Vision problems are a frequent factor in reading difficulties," the AOA's position paper says. "Ignoring the role of vision or inadequately
evaluating the vision of individuals with reading problems is a disservice which may prevent the person from receiving appropriate care."
Cystic Fibrosis Drug to Be Tested as Dry Eye Treatment
CHAPEL HILL, N.C., March 2005 A new drug that may hydrate the eye's surface to help ease dry eye
symptoms has received U.S. Food and Drug Administration clearance to begin clinical trials aimed at proving its effectiveness,
Lantibio Inc. announced.
The drug, Moli1901, initially was developed as a cystic fibrosis treatment, company director of
development Terry Laliberte said in a news release. The drug treats cystic fibrosis by altering the way lungs form
mucus, creating a more normal environment in airways.
The release says Moli1901 may potentially moisten the eye's surface to relieve dry eye
symptoms such as irritation, discomfort and long-term effects that might lead to eye injury.
About 5.5 million U.S. residents are estimated to have dry eye syndrome, which occurs more often in
women, primarily due to hormone changes associated with menopause.
Eye Doctors Baffled by Increase in Rare Eye Problem Among Infants
SAN FRANCISCO, March 2005 Ophthalmologists are puzzled about why a once rare condition called optic nerve hypoplasia (ONH) appears
to be increasing nationwide among infants who may be blinded by the condition, the Wall Street Journal reported in early March 2005.
The condition results from inadequate development of the optic nerve responsible for transmitting images from the eye to the brain.
Creig Hoyt, MD, chairman of the University of California at San Francisco ophthalmology department, told the Journal that increased
numbers of ONH cases may be due to better methods of diagnosing the condition. But other ophthalmologists indicate there is no clear reason
for the dramatic increase in cases seen at their practices.
Low blood sugar (hypoglycemia), abnormal regulation of body temperature and yellowish skin (jaundice) in infants are among symptoms indicating
that the optic nerve may need to be examined. Early intervention can help lessen neurological damage associated with ONH.
Back to current eye news.
[Page updated January 2008]
More articles on eye conditions, diseases & safety: |
|