A new study shows having surgery to correct cataracts may reduce the risk of hip fractures among elderly people by up to 23%.Falls and the resulting bone fractures are a major cause of disability and death among the elderly. Researchers say fall-related injuries cost the U.S. more than $10 billion in health care costs in 2000.The results suggest cataract surgery may be a cost-effective way to red
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Having Surgery to Correct Cataracts May Protect Against Hip Fractures in Older People
Posted by Bharat (#1) 4395 days ago (Editorial)Help For The Blind From Device Converting Images Into Music
Posted by Bharat (#1) 4399 days ago (Editorial)
Sensory substitution devices (SSDs) use sound or touch to help the visually impaired perceive the visual scene surrounding them. The ideal SSD would assist not only in sensing the environment but also in performing daily activities based on this input. For example, accurately reaching for a coffee cup, or shaking a friend's hand. In a new study, scientists trained blindfolded sighted participants
Tiny needle targets drugs to back of eyes
Posted by Bharat (#1) 4399 days ago (Editorial)
Microneedles less than one millimeter long may offer a better way to treat diseases like macular degeneration by delivering drugs directly to the back of the eye.For the first time, researchers have demonstrated that needles can deliver drug molecules and particles to the eye in an animal model, an important finding as the population ages and develops more eye-related illnesses—and as pharmaceuti
Device lets disabled write or draw on a computer screen using their eyes
Posted by Bharat (#1) 4399 days ago (Editorial)
A French researcher has built a device allowing disabled people to write or draw on a computer screen using only their eyes, a report said Thursday.With head-mounted cameras monitoring their eye movements, test subjects were able to write and draw on a blank computer screen in the latest breakthrough for people trapped in immobility by disease or accident.Lorenceau's system, still just a prototyp
Early Experience With the Femtosecond Laser for Cataract Surgery
Posted by Bharat (#1) 4399 days ago (Editorial)
Since its introduction in ophthalmic surgery 10 years ago, the femtosecond laser has demonstrated its utility for improving the predictability, precision, and safety of corneal surgery, primarily in making the corneal flap for LASIK surgery. The laser-created flap's superiority over flaps made manually with a blade microkeratome has resulted in the gradual supplanting of the manual blade microker
Eye Injuries In Young Athletes Can Be Avoided With Protective Eyewear
Posted by Bharat (#1) 4399 days ago (Editorial)
August is Children's Eye Health and Safety month and pediatricians are being advised to educate parents, coaches and young athletes about the dangers of eye injuries, urging them to wear protective goggles when they participate in sports, in particular for high-risk sporting activities, including fencing, boxing and ball sports, such as soccer, basketball, softball, lacrosse and baseball.Accordin
Sudden difficulty closing one eye, inability to control tears in it
Posted by Bharat (#1) 4401 days ago (Editorial)
Bell's palsy is an impairment of the nerve that controls facial muscles (the seventh cranial nerve), causing temporary paralysis in half the face. It sometimes follows a viral infection (such as shingles, mono or HIV) or a bacterial infection (such as Lyme disease). Diabetics and pregnant women are also at higher risk. Half of the entire face, not just the eye, is affected. Effects vary from pers
Phacoemulsification Complications Declining
Posted by Bharat (#1) 4401 days ago (Editorial)
After adoption of phacoemulsification as the procedure of choice to repair cataracts, the risk for retinal detachment (RD) dropped significantly between 1989 and 2001, according to a study published in the July issue of the Archives of Ophthalmology. The study further evaluated additional risk factors for RD post–cataract surgery using phacoemulsification. RD is the most common sight-threatening