Myopia Treatments Beyond Corrective Lenses
For those who may not know, 40 percent of the U.S. population has myopia, also known as nearsightedness. Most people with myopia use corrective lenses, either eyeglasses or contact lenses to achieve near 20/20 vision. For some, turning to surgical procedures, such as LASIK or having intraocular lenses implanted, is an option. Although myopia is […]
Research Advancements Offer Hope for LCA & Usher Syndrome Patients
Leber congenital amaurosis type 10 (LCA10) and Usher syndrome are both genetic diseases that lead to blindness. LCA10 is a retinal disease that leads to severe visual impairment or blindness in early childhood. Usher syndrome is the leading cause of both blindness and deafness, with type 2A (USH2A) being the most common type. This type […]
Prozac & Carbon Monoxide—Unlikely Items That Can Help Preserve Vision
You read correctly. Two separate studies have shown that the antidepressant Prozac and the gas that comes out of car and truck exhausts, carbon monoxide, can be used to preserve vision. Starting with Prozac, also known as fluoxetine, it may be effective against dry or atrophic age-related macular degeneration (AMD). Bradley D. Gelfand, PhD at […]
Curing Inherited Blindness Genetically
Let’s say you bought a new car and you discovered that it is defective. Instead of going back to the dealer, there was a way to fix the defect in the car while you were using it. That’s right, you could be driving around town while under the hood, things are being fixed by the […]
Visibly (Formerly Opternative) No Longer Offering Online Vision Tests
The online vision screening site Visibly, (formerly Opternative) was removed from service in August 2019. Since 2016, the American Optometric Association (AOA) has been lobbying the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that the site’s online vision test did not have a premarket review from agency, nor did it receive approval for safety or efficacy. The […]
Update on Ocular Melanoma
Last year there were news reports of a group of Auburn University alumni who had all developed ocular melanoma. (See blog entry Folks with Ocular Melanoma Cluster on Social Media.) Despite its name, it is not similar to skin melanoma since it is not necessarily caused by exposure to the sun. It is a rare […]
Alternative to Reading Glasses
Benjamin Franklin is credited with developing bifocal glasses in 1760. Of course, one wonders if he wore them while he flew his kite on that dark and stormy night or if he ever had trouble finding them when he wanted to read a book or write a letter! Most people are smart enough not to […]