Eye News and Research

Latest Eye News and Research

Chordoma surgery through the nose

A remarkable brain surgery at Saint John’s Health Center has restored vision to a seriously ill young woman from Spain—and the entire operation was performed through her nose without an incision.

22 Dec 2009

TLC Vision reaches agreement with holders of Company's senior secured debt to restructure balance sheet

TLC Vision Corporation, North America's premier eye care services company, said today that it has reached an agreement with holders of a majority of the Company's senior secured debt to restructure its balance sheet.

22 Dec 2009

Reference platform for diabetic retinopathy and other vascular complications

The volume addresses a variety of current scientific discussions about mechanisms of damage such as growth factors and the VEGF/PEDF balance in the diabetic eye, the ocular renin-angiotensin system, and leukocyte interactions with the microvasculature among others.

22 Dec 2009

Discovery suggests how toxin-filtering cells go awry

Researchers from Children's Hospital Boston and Brigham and Women's Hospital have identified an important genetic cause of a devastating kidney disease that is the second leading cause of kidney failure in children, according to The NephCure Foundation.

22 Dec 2009

SynergEyes wins the 22nd annual Most Innovative New Product Award for 2009

CONNECT(R), one of the nation's most successful organizations dedicated to creating and sustaining the growth of innovative technology and life science businesses, announced SynergEyes, Inc., the high Dk hybrid contact lens manufacturer, as the winner of its 22nd annual Most Innovative New Product (MIP) Award for 2009.

22 Dec 2009

Effectiveness of VSEL stem cells in regenerative medicine demonstrated at the ASH meeting

NeoStem, Inc. (NYSE Amex: NBS), which is a leading provider of pre-disease adult stem cell collection, processing and long-term storage services, and holds the exclusive, worldwide license to VSEL(TM) technology that uses very small embryonic-like stem cells isolated from peripheral blood, announced today that five posters and two oral presentations at the prestigious American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting in New Orleans in early December demonstrated the basic cellular mechanisms of very small embryonic-like stem cells.

21 Dec 2009

U.S. Census Bureau highlights pioneering transplant procedures

The first successful organ transplant in the U.S. was performed this week in 1954 in Boston by Harvard Dr. Joseph Murray. He transplanted a kidney from one identical twin to another, who lived just over eight years. For his pioneering work on organ transplants, Dr. Murray received the Nobel Prize in medicine in 1990.

21 Dec 2009

Subitizing vision therapy for improving math skills

"The incidence of individuals with a mathematics learning disability is between 6-7% of the population." Since there are more than 300 million individuals in the United States, up to 21 million men, women, and children may be affected by this disorder. Sidney Groffman OD, MA, FCOVD, Professor Emeritus at SUNY College of Optometry, author of the article published in the December 2009 issue of Optometry & Vision Development, also says, "This is unfortunate because math skills are of prime importance in everyday life enabling us to understand number concepts and do calculations. Math ability is essential for many occupations and professions."

19 Dec 2009

Diabetes patients at higher risk from glaucoma

An estimated 3 million Americans have glaucoma, which can stealthily cause vision loss even before people realize they have the disease. People with diabetes face special risks from glaucoma. This January during Glaucoma Awareness Month, through its EyeSmart™ campaign, the American Academy of Ophthalmology in partnership with the American Glaucoma Society and the Glaucoma Research Foundation, remind Americans that knowing your glaucoma risks can save your sight and that people with diabetes need to be extra-vigilant.

19 Dec 2009

Rosetta Genomics announces third-quarter 2009 financial results

Rosetta Genomics, Ltd., a leading developer of microRNA-based molecular diagnostics, today reported financial results for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2009 and provided a business update.

18 Dec 2009

ISTA Pharmaceuticals files sNDA for bromfenac ophthalmic solution

ISTA Pharmaceuticals, Inc., today announced the Company submitted a supplemental New Drug Application (sNDA) to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for bromfenac ophthalmic solution dosed once-daily as a treatment for ocular inflammation and pain following cataract surgery.

18 Dec 2009

Comprehensive approaches to understand the interaction of H1N1 strains with human cells

Scientists have generated hundreds of new leads in the fight against the H1N1 flu pandemic, according to two new studies published online December 17th in the journal Cell, a Cell Press publication.

18 Dec 2009

Pelosi signals openness to bill without public option, others also eye possibilities

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi signaled Wednesday that she is open to health care reform that doesn't include a public option, "a strong signal that Congress could agree on a plan early next year," McClatchy reports.

17 Dec 2009

Alcon increases its financial support for NovaBay Pharmaceuticals' research and development efforts

NovaBay Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company creating a new class of anti-infectives for treating multi-drug resistant pathogens, announced today that effective immediately, its partner, Alcon Inc. has increased its on-going financial support of the company's research and development efforts by more than $2 million per year. The additional funding is expected to enhance NovaBay's pre-clinical and clinical development programs in the areas of eye, ear and sinus infections, as well as contact lens solutions.

17 Dec 2009

Michelangelo studies: Close partners sculpt one another's skills and traits to promote goal achievement

A new international review of seven papers on "the Michelangelo phenomenon" shows that when close partners affirm and support each other's ideal selves, they and the relationship benefit greatly.

17 Dec 2009

Encouraging early clinical results for treatment of KC with Avedro's Keraflex KXL technology

During the 5th International Congress of Corneal Cross Linking for Keratoconus in Leipzig, Germany on December 5th, Avedro presented encouraging early clinical results for treating keratoconus, a progressive disease of the cornea of the eye. The procedure, known as Keraflex® KXL, is non-incisional and reshapes the cornea without removing any tissue.

16 Dec 2009

Pillo1 for chronic neck and back pain

At a time when Americans spend over $50 billion on ways to alleviate neck and back pain, Dr. Raymond Hall is theorizing a painful connection between conventional pillows and neck issues and created a revolutionary solution called Pillo1 (www.pillo1.com) to address the problem.

16 Dec 2009

ThromboGenics completes enrollment in second microplasmin Phase III trial

ThromboGenics NV, a biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery and development of innovative treatments for eye disease, vascular disease and cancer, announces today that it has completed the enrolment of the second Phase III trial evaluating microplasmin for the non-surgical treatment of eye disease.

16 Dec 2009

NEI study reports 66.4 percent increase in myopia in Americans

According to the American Academy of Ophthalmology, the 66.4 percent increase in myopia in Americans since the 1970s, as reported in the recent National Eye Institute (NEI) study, is significant and will impact healthcare costs as well as vision quality.

16 Dec 2009

University of Florida obtains stimulus grant to establish ataxia consortium

University of Florida neurologists are trying to change that with the help of a $1 million Challenge grant from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke to establish a nationwide network of physician-scientists with expertise in clinical ataxia research.

16 Dec 2009