Using tiny solar-panel-like cells surgically placed underneath the retina, scientists at the Stanford University School of Medicine have devised a system that may someday restore sight to people who have lost vision because of certain types of degenerative eye diseases…
Measurement of pressure within the eye, or intraocular pressure (IOP), is known to fluctuate throughout the day, and wide swings in patients with glaucoma are believed to be related to the progression of the disease, which can cause permanent damage to the optic nerve and vision. The clinical assessment of IOP, however, has been restricted to office visits during daytime hours…
RUB researchers explain channelrhodopsin Controlling nerve cells with the aid of light: this is made possible by optogenetics. It enables, for example, the investigation of neurobiological processes with unprecedented spatial and temporal precision. The key tool of optogenetics is the light-activated protein channelrhodopsin…
Some lots of Avaira Sphere contact lenses have been added to CooperVision’s global recall of the Avaira brand product line. The company says the level of silicone oil residue in some Avaira Sphere lens lots did not meet its updated quality requirements. Silicon oil on the contact lens can cause discomfort, eye pain, hazy vision, and even eye injuries that require medical attention…
Researcher Thijs Meenink at Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e) has developed a smart eye-surgery robot that allows eye surgeons to operate with increased ease and greater precision on the retina and the vitreous humor of the eye. The system also extends the effective period during which ophthalmologists can carry out these intricate procedures…
Two new studies add to the growing body of evidence that a new approach to cataract surgery may be safer and more efficient than today’s standard procedure. The new approach, using a special femtosecond laser, is FDA-approved, but not yet widely available in the United States. It’s one of the hottest topics this week at the 115th Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Ophthalmology…
University of Texas at Austin researchers have discovered how to extract and use information in an individual image to determine how far objects are from the focus distance, a feat only accomplished by human and animal visual systems until now. Like a camera, the human eye has an auto-focusing system, but human auto-focusing rarely makes mistakes…
An ophthalmologist at UT Southwestern Medical Center has helped create a convenient device that lets patients who have a degenerative eye disease better track vision changes. With the hand-held digital device, called myVisionTrack, patients can now perform an accurate self-test in less than 90 seconds, said Dr. Yu-Guang He, associate professor of ophthalmology at UT Southwestern…
With research and development assistance from the Georgia Tech Research Institute (GTRI) and seed funding from the Georgia Research Alliance (GRA), an Atlanta-based company is developing what it hopes will be the next-generation instrument for optimizing eyesight for the hundreds of millions of people who wear glasses or contacts - or who are candidates for corrective surgery…
If you find yourself in central London this week with a spare hour or two, drop into the Royal Society’s Summer Science Exhibition 2011, it’s on until the 10th of July, and there you will see an amazing exhibit about how scientists are using the latest technology to create “artificial sight” to help blind and partially-sighted people…