General Vision and
Eye News Archive (2008)

...continued from Current Eye News

Statin Drugs Sometimes Cause Eye Disorders

PORTLAND, Ore., December 2008 — Researchers say eye disorders related to statin drug use are rare, but can occur in about 0.1 percent of cases.

Statin drugs are prescribed extensively to help lower cholesterol and prevent conditions such as strokes and heart disease. While highly beneficial, the drugs also have been linked to skeletal muscle disorders as a side effect.

Casey Eye Institute investigators discovered that that these types of muscle problems could cause eye disorders such as improper range-of-motion function, ptosis and double vision.

In a study of reports involving more than 250 people who reported ocular events associated with statin use, researchers found that all problems cleared up when the drug was discontinued.

Study results were reported in the December issue of Ophthalmology.

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Uncorrected Presbyopia Causes Worldwide Vision Problems

SYDNEY, Australia, December 2008 — Australian researchers say about half of 1.04 billion people worldwide with age-related focusing problems caused by presbyopia have inadequate access to eyeglasses that could correct the problem.

Because presbyopia is so prevalent, many people in developing countries are unable to function as they should in their daily lives and workplaces, according to studies. Presbyopia affects everyone beginning at about age 40, when the eye's natural lens grows more rigid and can't focus at all distances.

Investigators from University of New South Wales in Sydney said worldwide population trends related to aging show that:

• By 2020, 1.4 billion people will have presbyopia.
• By 2050, that number will grow to 1.8 billion people.

"Without intervention to make spectacles more accessible, the global number of individuals who will have a disability associated with uncorrected presbyopia is predicted to grow to 563 million people by 2020," said researcher Brien A. Holden, PhD.

Study results were published in the December issue of Archives of Ophthalmology.

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Melatonin for Uveitis?

BUENOS AIRES, November 2008 — Argentina researchers say melatonin, a natural supplement for enhancing sleep, may have anti-inflammatory properties that help control uveitis.

Eye inflammation associated with uveitis can have many causes, including underlying autoimmune diseases and eye injuries. Uveitis also can be difficult to treat and control.

But researchers with the University of Buenos Aires and The National Research Council say melatonin supplements could be superior to conventional uveitis treatments such as corticosteroids to control inflammation.

Unlike steroids, which can cause complications such as glaucoma and high blood sugar, researchers say melatonin appears to have no adverse side effects.

Study results were published in the December issue of American Journal of Pathology.

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Vision Screening Law May Have Reduced Fatality Rate for Older Drivers

BIRMINGHAM, Ala., November 2008 — Vision screening required for Florida drivers 80 or older appears to reduce significantly the number of motor vehicle fatalities in this age group.

University of Alabama researchers examined motor vehicle fatality rates for older drivers for a two-year period beginning in 2004, when Florida legislators approved a law requiring vision screening before drivers' licenses are given to older residents.

Fatality rates for all age groups in Florida increased by 6 percent during this time period, but declined 17 percent for older drivers.

"The exact mechanism responsible for this association is unclear, and future research should attempt to identify what might explain this relationship," said researchers, who published the study results in the November issue of Archives of Ophthalmology.

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Drug Could Control Myopia in Children

ATLANTA, November 2008 — Pirenzepine gel applied twice daily to the eye was found in a two-year study to slow development of myopia in children, according to results presented at the American Academy of Ophthalmology annual meeting.

More investigation is needed to determine why the drug that can slightly dilate the pupil works to slow myopia progression, said study participant and University of Oklahoma ophthalmology professor R. Michael Siatkowski, MD.

The U.S. study involved two-year follow-up of 84 children ages 8-12. In the "sham" group with 31 children, myopia progressed by almost one diopter in two years. In the pirenzepine group of 53 children, average myopia progression was only 0.58 diopter.

Despite encouraging early results, Siatkowski said the nearly $50 million investment needed to continue late-stage FDA clinical trials means that no further action will be taken to develop the drug for myopia control at this time.

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Gene Therapy Restores Vision in Mice

BOSTON, October 2008 — Gene therapy successfully restored at least some function of certain damaged, light-sensitive cells in mice eyes during experiments conducted by Massachusetts General Hospital (Harvard) researchers.

"This is a proof of principle that someday we may be able to repair blindness in people with conditions like retinitis pigmentosa and macular degeneration," said Richard Masland, PhD, director of the hospital's Cellular Neurobiology Laboratory.

Study results published in the Oct. 14 issue of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences journal described injection into the eye of melanopsin, a gene that helps retinal cells respond to light.

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Child Golf-Related Injuries

DENVER, October 2008 — Golf-related eye injuries aren't that common among children. But when this type of trauma does occur, Denver researchers say damage can be very serious.

A University of Colorado Denver School of Medicine study of 11 children with golf-related eye injuries found that golf clubs were involved in 10 cases. Only one eye injury was linked to a golf ball.

In all cases, bones were broken around the eye socket. Nine children required surgery, and optic nerve damage was noted in three cases. While eight of the injured eyes had 20/20 vision after treatment, two eyes lost all light perception.

"Most children are injured by other children wielding a golf club while at play away from the golf course," researchers noted in study results published in the September issue of Archives of Ophthalmology.

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Most Young Children Overlooked for Crucial Eye Exams

RANCHO CORDOVA, Calif., September 2008 — Most children under 5 years old need but do not receive comprehensive eye exams that could be crucial for detecting vision-threatening conditions such as lazy eye (amblyopia), according to a major survey conducted by VSP Vision Care.

A survey of 3,930 U.S. residents found that about 76 percent of children younger than 5 had never undergone a comprehensive eye exam. The July 2008 survey also found that most adults (68 percent) wear sunglasses outdoors, compared to only 30 percent of children.

"While most people are becoming quite vigilant about using sunscreen to protect their skin, most parents may not realize that the sun's harmful rays can also severely damage their children's eyes," said James Short, OD, chair of VSP Vision Care's board of directors.

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Brain Quickly Compensates for Lost Sight

BOSTON, September 2008 — The brain has a much greater capacity to compensate quickly for sudden vision loss than previously thought, according to researchers at Berenson-Allen Center for Noninvasive Brain Stimulation at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center.

For a study of the brain and vision loss, 47 volunteers were divided (almost) evenly into two groups. One group remained completely blindfolded and supervised for five days straight. The other group was blindfolded only during testing periods, and went about their business with normal sight at all other times.

The group that remained blindfolded was superior to the other group in skills such as ability to learn Braille and dramatically increased responses of the brain's visual cortex to the sensation of touch.

Results reported in the Aug. 27 issue of the journal PLOS One indicate that the brain can reorganize its functions rapidly to compensate for the loss of a sense such as sight.

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Experimental Lens Implant May Help Children
Improve Lazy Eye

LOS ANGELES, August 2008 — An experimental implantable lens may help certain children who develop lazy eye, a condition that results when one eye is much stronger than the other.

If therapies such as patching the stronger eye aren't used to improve the function of the weaker eye, that eye could become even less effective — and even go blind.

Los Angeles eye surgeon Paul Dougherty, MD, told the Associated Press that some children have lazy eye because of a difference in focusing ability. He mentioned one case where an older child was extremely nearsighted in one eye, but not the other.

Patching to strengthen the weaker eye wouldn't necessarily work in such a case. So Dr. Dougherty surgically inserted an implantable lens to correct the nearsighted eye.

Eye surgeons will examine ultimate outcomes of this and other experimental procedures using implantable lenses to monitor whether this approach will work for correcting certain types of lazy eye.

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New Device Automatically Conducts Visual Field Testing

TEL AVIV, August 2008 — A new, automated method of testing how much the eye can see within a 360-degree visual field could help detect neurological damage from brain injuries or diseases such as glaucoma, according to Tel Aviv University researchers from the Maurice and Gabriela Goldschleger Eye Research Institute.

People who have eye exams likely are familiar with conventional methods of visual field testing, which involve stabilizing the head and having the test subject hit a button to indicate when flashes of light are seen within different parts of a screen.

But researchers say these methods can create flawed results, especially when test subjects are very young or old, or have certain disabilities.

The new device, known as the VIP Virtual Perimetry, instead is attached to the head in the form of goggles. Instead of requiring a physical response from the person being tested, the device automatically detects and measures the eye's responses to visual stimuli.

By identifying blind spots or "scotomas" within the visual field, the device can help doctors pinpoint areas where the eye's optic nerve or brain may have neurological damage.

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Half of All U.S. Adults Have Blurry Vision

BETHESDA, Md., August 2008 — If you have blurry vision, you're not alone — so do about half of all U.S. adults, according to a major survey conducted by researchers at the National Eye Institute (National Institutes of Health).

The way your eyes bend, or refract, light waves can cause problems with how you see, leading to common refractive errors known as nearsightedness, farsightedness and astigmatism.

These vision errors are widespread, based on a survey of more than 12,000 adults conducted between 1999 and 2004. Results were reported in the August issue of Archives of Ophthalmology.

The survey found that:

• Of those who responded, 3.6 percent were farsighted, 33.1 percent were nearsighted and 36.2 percent had astigmatism.
• People older than 60 were more likely to be farsighted than nearsighted.
• Hispanics were less likely to have any kind of refractive error (44.4 percent), compared with non-Hispanic Caucasians (53.4 percent) and African-Americans (49.3 percent).

Researchers estimate that providing eye care addressing refractive errors for U.S. citizens older than 12 costs between $3.8 billion and $7.2 billion annually.

"Refractive error is . . . the most common condition affecting the ocular health of the U.S. population, involving young adults, middle-aged persons and older adults of all ethnicities," researchers said in the survey report.

[Read more about how your eyes refract light.]

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Laser Show Harms Eyes of Russian Viewers

MOSCOW, July 2008 — A Russian laser show gone terribly wrong caused several dozen people to lose eyesight — some permanently — after the inner lining of their eyes (retinas) were burned, according to worldwide news agencies.

The mishap took place at the Aquamarine Open Air Festival near Moscow when event organizers decided to erect a large tent to protect attendees from rain showers. Unfortunately, the tent caused laser light that ordinarily would have dispersed into the sky to bounce off the fabric and into the eyes of people watching.

The accident underscores the importance of taking extra precautions for eye safety to prevent eye injuries during activities such as using laser devices or setting off fireworks.

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Blinding Trachoma Eye Infections May Disappear by 2020

MELBOURNE, June 2008 — Australian researchers say that trachoma, a preventable but potentially blinding type of conjunctivitis, could be eliminated by 2020 with increased medical intervention and improved living conditions in developing countries.

Centre for Eye Research investigators say that eye infections caused by Chlamydia trachomatis affect about 84 million people worldwide, primarily in developing countries. Recurring bouts of trachoma can scar the upper eyelid, which then contacts and damages the eye's surface (cornea) — leading to blindness.

Strategies for preventing trachoma-related blindness, known by the acronym SAFE (surgery, antibiotics, facial cleanliness and environmental improvements), have been beneficial. Researchers say the proportion of people with trachoma who develop blindness has dropped from 15 percent in 1995 to 4 percent in 2004.

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Fireworks Accidents Threaten Eyesight

SAN FRANCISCO, June 2008 — The American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) has issued safety tips to accompany Fireworks Eye Safety Awareness Month in June.

"There is nothing worse than a Fourth of July celebration ruined by someone being hit in the eye with a bottle rocket," said John C. Hagan, MD, AAO clinical correspondent and ophthalmologist at Discover Vision Centers in Kansas City.

Of the more than 9,000 fireworks accidents that occur annually, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission says 30 percent affect eyes and eyesight.

Hagan said his practice alone treats about 30 fireworks-related eye injuries each year, ranging from eye lacerations from fireworks blowing up too soon to eye burns from sparklers.

AAO fireworks safety tips include:

• Children should never play with fireworks of any type.
• Fireworks handled by trained professionals should be viewed at a safe distance.
• Seek medical help immediately for any fireworks-related eye injury.

Read more about eye safety, eye injuries and how to prevent eye injuries.

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London Hospital Reports Two Successful "Bionic Eye" Implants

LONDON, April 2008 — London surgeons at Moorfields Eye Hospital have successfully implanted devices that stimulate rudimentary sight within the inner back of the eye (retina) in two people blinded by an inherited eye disease, retinitis pigmentosa.

The devices, known as Argus II technology (Second Sight), include cameras and processing units that transmit signals wirelessly. The signals travel to electronic receivers and an electrode panel, which are implanted in the eye and attached to the retina where vision processing occurs.

Camera transmissions and electronic stimulation of the retina result in detection of basic light and shapes for people who otherwise are severely blind.

Second Sight, which developed the Argus II device, is based near Los Angeles.

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Early Surgery for Strabismus May Help Infants Develop Motor Skills

DALLAS, April 2008 — Study results indicate that it's important for eyes to work normally together (binocular vision) so that infants can develop skills such as crawling and grasping, according to researchers at the Retina Foundation of Southwest Texas.

In the study, infants who underwent corrective surgery for misaligned eyes (strabismus) were found to "catch up" on development of motor skills that otherwise had been delayed.

Surgeries conducted to strengthen eye muscles were for a form of strabismus known as infantile esotropia, which can hamper development of depth perception. Researchers say these results may underscore the importance of early surgery for infants who have strabismus.

Study results were published in the April issue of Journal of AAPOS (American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus).

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Gene Therapy May Work for Inherited Eye Diseases

NAPLES, Italy, April 2008 — Until recently, the idea of replacing faulty genes causing inherited eye diseases such as Stargardt's with "good" genes was not considered feasible because of the large size of the genes involved.

But researchers in Naples, Italy now say they have developed a vector, a way of delivering even large-sized genes into the eye through modification of a specific adeno-associated virus. The modified virus can carry information from good genes that then is transferred into the eye's affected cells, causing them to function normally.

Experiments using mouse eyes were conducted by Telethon Institute of Genetics and Medicine in Naples, Italy.

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Early Vision Screening Improves Outcomes for
Children With Amblyopia

ANCHORAGE, Alaska, April 2008 — A study has found that therapies aimed at strengthening the weaker eye in amblyopia are more effective when vision screenings detect the problem in children before they reach age 2. Treatments are not as effective when amblyopia is first found in children between ages 2 to 4.

Archives of Ophthalmology in its April issue reported findings of an Alaska Blind Child Discovery organization's evaluation of vision screenings conducted among 21,367 Alaskan children between 1996 and 2006. In those screenings, 94 children tested positive for amblyopia before age 4 and received a minimum of two years of treatment.

The evaluation revealed that the 36 children screened before age 2 had better vision outcomes following treatment than the 58 children screened between ages 2 and 4.

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Do You Wear Glasses? You Aren't a Geek!

MELBOURNE, Australia, April 2008 — Australian researchers say they have "busted" a myth that implies myopic people who wear eyeglasses are introverted nerds.

In a four-year study, investigators at the University of Melbourne's Centre for Eye Research teamed up with psychologists to evaluate 633 twins and 278 family members for traits such as openness, conscientiousness, extroversion, agreeableness and neuroticism.

Results indicate that myopic people are no more likely to be introverted than anyone else. But they are slightly more likely to be agreeable.

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Eye Doctor Warns Against Using Urine as Eye Drops

STOCKHOLM, March 2008 — In some parts of the world, folk remedies call for using urine as eye drops to ward off eye diseases.

But one eye doctor from Durban, South Africa said at a recent conference that this practice has led to serious eye infections caused by adult gonococcal conjunctivitis, related to a sexually transmitted disease (gonorrhea).

Carina Slazus, MD, said she has seen cases where scarring of the eye's clear surface (cornea) has caused people to go blind. Slazus said it's important for eye doctors in areas of the world where urine-based eye drops are common to educate local healers about the potentially devastating effects of gonococcal conjunctivitis.

Comments made by Slazus at the annual meeting of the European Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgeons were published in the March issue of EuroTimes Magazine.

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Daily Computer Use Causes Vision Side Effects

ST. LOUIS, March 2008 — Daily computer use consistently causes side effects such as dry eye, eye strain and light sensitivity, according to survey results announced by the American Optometric Association (AOA).

The AOA's 2007 Eye-Q survey and related marketing research show that 82 percent of Americans frequently use a computer or handheld device such as a PDA. Almost half spend three or more hours daily with such devices.

The AOA says most computer users (78 percent) fail to correctly position computer monitors below eye level, which can lead to various computer vision syndrome (CVS) problems and side effects such as neck and/or backache and fatigue.

Eye strain was a common complaint, with 41 percent of respondents reporting problems.

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Most Americans Overlook Risks of Eye Disease

BETHESDA, Md., March 2008 — While most Americans rank going blind as one of the worst possible health problems, respondents in a major survey revealed that they knew very little about serious eye diseases that could rob them of sight.

A survey of 3,000 adults sponsored by the National Eye Institute (NEI) and Lions Club International Foundation found that:

• Only 8 percent knew that glaucoma has no early warning signs before vision is lost, which is why regular eye exams are important.
• Only 11 percent knew that diabetic retinopathy also has no early warning signs, although 51 percent were aware that diabetes can cause eye problems.
• Just 16 percent had heard of the term "low vision," which applies to people whose poor vision cannot be improved through conventional means such as glasses and contact lenses.

Of ethnic groups identified in the survey, Hispanics were the least informed, with 41 percent saying they had not seen or heard any eye health information within the previous year.

"Good eyesight is important to our quality of life, and it is essential for adults to have accurate information to help them make informed decisions about their eye health needs," said NEI director Paul A. Sieving, MD, PhD. "These survey results will help us identify specific ways in which we can close the gap in knowledge about eye diseases and address the disparities that exist."

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"Lazy Eye" Treatments May Benefit Adults

BEIJING, March 2008 — Chinese researchers say they have evidence contradicting the common notion that adults cannot benefit from "lazy eye" (amblyopia) treatments such as eye patching.

Laboratory tests at a Beijing hospital that were designed to strengthen the weaker or "lazy" eye in amblyopia resulted in successful treatments for most of 30 subjects, all 20 years old.

Study results were published March 3 in the PNAS (Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences) Early Edition.

"Lazy eye" often is identified in young children who have a weaker eye that fails to "connect" properly to the brain to establish a fully developed vision system. A common remedy involves patching the stronger eye so that the weaker eye is strengthened or learns to see more clearly.

But eye doctors commonly have thought that these types of treatments cannot work for adults or for children older than 8 because vision systems were already set and could not be altered or "rewired."

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Vision Correction Improves Developmental Skills of Young Children

SAN DIEGO, February 2008 — Young children with poor vision can significantly improve developmental testing scores when their vision is corrected with prescription eyeglasses.

This is according to a study published in the February issue of Archives of Ophthalmology.

Skills such as visual-motor coordination among young children (ages 3-5) improved with appropriate vision correction, said Shiley Eye Center Director Stuart I. Brown, who also is chair of ophthalmology.

"This underscores the value of our county-wide program for screening and treating eye abnormalities in young children to ensure they have every opportunity to do well as they mature," Brown said.

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Fatty Acids in Eye Drops Help Relieve Dry Eyes

BOSTON, February 2008 — Researchers say alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) found in fatty acids can be formulated as an eye drop to help relieve dry eye syndrome.

Different formulations of eye drops using fatty acids were applied in mouse eyes during studies by scientists at Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary (MEEI) and Schepens Eye Research Institute. Study results were published in the February issue of Archives of Ophthalmology.

"Using topical formulations of fatty acids to treat dry eye would allow for more flexibility for treatment, including lessening side effects that patients can experience from oral intake of fatty acids," said Harvard Medical School Professor Reza Dana, MD, who also is cornea service director for MEEI.

During experiments, researchers found that topical applications of ALA reversed symptoms as well as inflammatory changes associated with dry eye.

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Blue-Eyed People Have Common Ancestor

COPENHAGEN, Denmark, January 2008 — All blue-eyed people have a common ancestor who acquired a genetic mutation 6,000 to 10,000 years ago, according to University of Copenhagen researchers.

"Originally, we all had brown eyes," said Hans Eiberg, associate professor from the Department of Cellular and Molecular Biology. "But a genetic mutation affecting the OCA2 gene in our chromosomes resulted in the creation of a 'switch,' which literally turned off the ability to produce brown eyes."

Eiberg said other variations in eye color, from brown to green, can be explained by varying amounts of a pigment coloring the iris, known as melanin. But the blue-eyed color is associated specifically with the genetic "switch" that limits production of melanin in the eye.

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New Type of Cell Phone "Reads" to the Blind

BALTIMORE, January 2008 — Newly developed technology enables a pocket-sized, portable device to photograph printed materials, which then are read aloud via cell phone for the benefit of the blind or learning disabled.

The tiny text-to-speech reading device was developed by K-NFB Reading Technology Inc., a company formed from research and development efforts of the National Federation of the Blind and Kurzweil Technologies, Inc.

The new technology is combined with the Nokia N82 mobile phone to provide a complete unit.

"The knfbReader Mobile will allow the blind unprecedented access to the printed word, affording a level of flexibility and capability never before available," said National Federation of the Blind president Dr. Marc Maurer. "No other device in the history of technology has provided such portability and quick access to print materials."

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High-Vitamin Corn Could Help
Prevent Eye Disease

CHICAGO, January 2008 — A specially developed, high-vitamin corn could help offset vitamin A deficiencies and associated blindness in developing countries, according to researchers at University of Illinois, where the corn was cultivated.

The specialty corn could have significant impact in areas such as sub-Saharan Africa, where up to 30 percent of young children are vitamin A deficient, said officials from research funding agencies including the U.S. Department of Agriculture and National Science Foundation.

Scientists cultivated the corn by identifying genetic markers of precursors necessary for formation of vitamin A, a method described in the Jan. 18 edition of Science.

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New Technology Helps Eye Doctors Monitor
Progression of Macular Degeneration

MINNEAPOLIS, January 2008 — A new technology called preferential hyperacuity perimetry (PHP) now helps eye doctors monitor possible progression of intermediate or "dry" macular degeneration so that proper treatment, if needed, can begin at an appropriate time.

Most cases of "dry" macular degeneration never progress to advanced forms that can cause blindness. But monitoring is needed to make sure treatment is started soon enough, if age-related macular degeneration reaches an advanced or "wet" form.

Treatments do not exist for early or "dry" forms of macular degeneration. But early intervention with treatments for advanced forms of the eye disease can help stop or possibly reverse damage caused to the inner back of the eye (retina), where vision processing occurs.

This is why effective monitoring offered by the new PHP technology is important, according to company officials from Notal Vision that developed the Foresee PHP (marketed by MSS in the United States).

Reports indicate the Foresee PHP can detect early formation of scotomas or blind spots in the visual field, which can be markers of advancing macular degeneration.

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Company Withdraws Eyelash Lengthening Product

SAN JOSE, Calif., January 2008 — Jan Marini Skin Research will no longer market its Age Intervention Eyelash lengthening product that contains a glaucoma medication, according to reports by The Wall Street Journal and other news outlets.

Company officials said the decision was based on conflicts with the FDA and with Allergan, which has sued the cosmetics company and others for violation of its glaucoma drug patents.

The Wall Street Journal says Allergan also reportedly is developing its own eyelash lengthening product containing a glaucoma drug, Lumigan, which has the side effect of causing eyelash growth.

In November, the FDA seized about $2 million in Age Intervention Eyelash products because of potentially harmful consequences of using a glaucoma drug for cosmetic purposes, including less effective eye pressure control for those who have the eye disease.

Back to current eye news.

[Page updated January 2010]