Eye Health News and Research

Latest Eye Health News and Research

Seizure drug slows spread of uveal melanoma

A drug commonly used to treat seizures appears to make eye tumors less likely to grow if they spread to other parts of the body, according to researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

29 Nov 2011

Scientists seek to prove beta oscillations of the cortex

Before she could seek to convince the world that her computer model of a key brain circuit explains a fundamental, 80-year-old mystery of neuroscience with potential relevance to Parkinson's disease, Stephanie Jones sought to convince Christopher Moore.

29 Nov 2011

Lack of consumer motivation, attention affects impact of nutrition labels on food choices

Despite good understanding and prevalence of nutrition information on food labels in Europe, a lack of motivation and attention of consumers prevents labels from impacting positively on food choices.

24 Nov 2011

Stress chemicals shut down and brain processes emotional experiences during REM sleep

They say time heals all wounds, and new research from the University of California, Berkeley, indicates that time spent in dream sleep can help. UC Berkeley researchers have found that during the dream phase of sleep, also known as REM sleep, our stress chemistry shuts down and the brain processes emotional experiences and takes the painful edge off difficult memories.

24 Nov 2011

$Study lends new insights into pediatric facial fractures$

Study lends new insights into pediatric facial fractures

Facial fractures in children occur in different patterns in different age groups, but most often occur with other types of severe injuries, reports a study in the December issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, the official medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons.

23 Nov 2011

Health spending still in jeopardy despite end of super committee

Although Medicare and Medicaid were largely protected when the panel broke up, budget cutters will continue to eye them, and other health programs will likely have funding reduced.

23 Nov 2011

Medicare to cover infusion costs for prostate cancer vaccine, company says

In Medicare news, the drug maker Dendreon says federal officials have said they will pay doctors to administer the drug. Also, policymakers are studying Medigap to see if curbs on those policies could help cut Medicare costs.

23 Nov 2011

Regeneron’s Eylea for treating age related macular degeneration gets FDA nod

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals has received marketing approval for their eye drug - Eylea, an injection meant to treat a common cause of blindness in older people. Eylea can be used to treat “wet” age-related macular degeneration. The only other drug approved for the condition is Lucentis from Roche, which was approved in 2006.

21 Nov 2011

Akebia commences dosing in AKB-9778 Phase 1 study for diabetic macular edema and retinopathy

Akebia Therapeutics, Inc., a small molecule discovery and development company focused on anemia and vascular disorders, today announced that it has dosed the first subjects in a first-in-man Phase 1 study of AKB-9778, a first-in-class human protein tyrosine phosphatase beta (HPTPβ) inhibitor in development for diabetic macular edema (DME) and diabetic retinopathy (DR).

21 Nov 2011

Retina Implant scientific advisory board approves multi-center phase of second human clinical trial

Retina Implant AG, the leading developer of subretinal implants for retinitis pigmentosa patients, today announced that its scientific advisory board is in full support of beginning the multi-center phase of the Company's second human clinical trial. The trial, which began in Tuebingen, Germany in 2010, will be expanded across Europe in five new sites, including two additional locations in Germany, Oxford, London and Budapest.

21 Nov 2011

FDA approves EYLEA for treatment of wet Age-related Macular Degeneration

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved EYLEA (aflibercept) Injection, known in the scientific literature as VEGF Trap-Eye, for the treatment of patients with neovascular (wet) Age-related Macular Degeneration (AMD) at a recommended dose of 2 milligrams every four weeks for the first 12 weeks, followed by 2 mg every eight weeks.

19 Nov 2011

Senator Klein opens new Cognitive Neurophysiology Laboratory at Albert Einstein College of Medicine

New York State Senator Jeffrey D. Klein joined administrators and faculty members of Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University last Friday to officially open their new Cognitive Neurophysiology Laboratory.

19 Nov 2011

Regeneron receives FDA approval for Eylea to treat wet AMD

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Eylea (aflibercept) to treat patients with wet (neovascular) age-related macular degeneration (AMD), a leading cause of vision loss and blindness in Americans ages 60 and older.

18 Nov 2011

High fish intake during pregnancy leads to better verbal intelligence, motor skills in children

The statement that 'fish is good for the brain' is increasingly backed-up by scientific evidence but what the actual outcomes are in terms of mental performance or 'brain power' is still being discovered.

18 Nov 2011

New protein in the fruit fly eye may shed light on neurodegenerative diseases

Researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and collaborators have discovered a powerful new protein in the eye of the fruit fly that may shed light on blinding diseases and other sensory problems in humans.

18 Nov 2011

Kenya readies to step up fight against trachoma

AllAfrica.com reports on trachoma -- a chronic bacterial infection spread by direct contact with eye, nose and throat secretions from others who are infected -- in Kenya, profiling Kajiado County where the disease has reached the blinding stage in 3.4 percent of patients, "making it a serious public health problem in that region and many other similarly remote areas with little access to health care and screening."

18 Nov 2011

Debt panel deliberations involve gloom, doom and blame

As indications continue to suggest the super committee stalemate continues, the panel members and other lawmakers are pointing fingers and assigning blame. Health programs -- including Medicare -- continue to be a sticking point. News outlets also examine how the threatened cuts that would kick in if the panel doesn't find success would impact the health sector.

18 Nov 2011

NSU faculty and students provide schoolchildren with hearing aids in BVI

Students and faculty from Nova Southeastern University recently completed their second medical mission in the British Virgin Islands (BVI), where they provided schoolchildren with hearing aids and audiology services.

18 Nov 2011

First study to describe transporter system that bacteria use to ensure their survival

Bacteria responsible for middle ear infections, pink eye and sinusitis protect themselves from further immune attack by transporting molecules meant to destroy them away from their inner membrane target, according to a study from Nationwide Children's Hospital.

18 Nov 2011

IRCI to design and fund clinical trials for rare cancers

Cancer Research UK will join forces with international research groups from the UK, Europe and the US to launch an initiative to boost the development of new treatments for patients with rare cancers. The announcement will be made by Dr Harpal Kumar, chief executive of Cancer Research UK, at the 2011 World Cancer Leaders' Summit taking place today in Dublin.

18 Nov 2011