By Emma Woollacott
MIT researchers are working on a retinal implant that could help blind people regain a useful level of vision.
It's designed for sufferers of retinitis pigmentosa and age-related macular degeneration, two of the leading causes of blindness. It won't restore normal vision, but could help blind people get around more easily.
Patients would wear a pair of glasses with a camera that sends images to a microchip attached to the eyeball. The glasses contain a coil that wirelessly transmits power to receiving coils surrounding the eyeball.
When the microchip receives visual information, it activates electrodes that stimulate nerve cells in the areas of the retina corresponding to the features of the visual scene. The electrodes directly activate optical nerves that carry signals to the brain, bypassing the damaged layers of retina.
In previous implants, the electrodes were attached directly to the retina from inside the eye, which carries more risk of damage. In the latest version, the implant is attached to the outside of the eye, and the electrodes are implanted behind the retina.
The team has been working on the implant for 20 years, and hopes to start testing it in blind patients within the next three years. The goal is to produce a chip that can be implanted for at least 10 years.
They've tried it out in Yucatan miniature pigs, which have roughly the same sized eyeballs as humans, purely to determine whether the implants remain functional and safe. So far, the prototypes have been successfully implanted in pigs for up to 10 months.
The researchers hope that once human trials begin and blind patients can offer feedback on what they're seeing, they will learn much more about how to configure the algorithm implemented by the chip to produce useful vision.
Patients have said that what they would like most is the ability to recognize faces. "If they can recognize faces of people in a room, that brings them into the social environment as opposed to sitting there waiting for someone to talk to them," says Shawn Kelly, a researcher in MIT's Research Laboratory for Electronics.
For more information go to www.maculardegenerationassociation.org
Friday, September 25, 2009
Friday, September 18, 2009
High-tech glasses help the nearly blind see
CBC News
An Ottawa company is developing computerized glasses that help people with severe visual impairments see — as well as zoom in on and replay what they saw with the press of a button.
The company, eSight Corp., received a $500,000 grant from the Ontario government this week to develop its evSpex product as part of a special $4.5 million fund to help 10 start-up companies bring products to market.
The device, which resembles a pair of large sunglasses, has a high-resolution camera on the outside and tiny LCD screens on the inside that project images to the wearer's eyes.
Before the image is projected, it's custom-processed by a tiny computer, said company president Rob Hilkes.
"So that when it's presented to a person who has diseased eyes … it's presented to the pieces of their vision that are most functional," he added.
Réjean Munger, a senior scientist at the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute who helped develop the glasses, said that can help people with a variety of diseases.
"We can take advantage of every bit of vision they have," he said.
The company hopes to start commercial production next year.
Sister of company chairman inspiration for glasses
Anne Lewis, who is legally blind as a result of Stargardt's disease, has been testing the prototype and is very excited about it.
"I see this product as a gift; I truly do," she said at the news conference announcing the funding.
Lewis is the sister of Conrad Lewis, eSight's chairman and one of the company's founders, and her disability was the inspiration for the glasses.
Stardgardt's disease is a form of macular degeneration that has destroyed Anne Lewis's sight except for her peripheral vision.
"It's like looking at a bubble and the inside of the bubble is black, the outside is clear," she said.
Lewis said using the glasses will allow her to read body language in meetings at work, stand on her deck and see flowers blooming, navigate shopping malls and flag down the right bus.
Unlike other products she has tried, it works even while she is moving.
The product is expected to be able to help people with age-related macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy, glaucoma and retinitis pigmentosa.
Users can record, zoom
Because the device is essentially recording a loop of video at all times, it will include special functions that people with normal vision don't have. For example, the user can save the last 10 seconds of what they saw at the press of a button so they can have another look at something that went by too quickly. The video can also be viewed later on a DVD player or computer. In addition, they could zoom in on certain things in their field of view.
Hilkes said the features are available because the "inherent guts" of the device are a computer.
"Once you pack a lot of electronics into a system like this, then creative people start to think of all kinds of ways that you could use it," he said.
In the future, the company hopes to market the technology to people with normal vision as wearable binoculars, night vision goggles or video gaming devices.
For more information go to www.maculardegenerationassociation.org
An Ottawa company is developing computerized glasses that help people with severe visual impairments see — as well as zoom in on and replay what they saw with the press of a button.
The company, eSight Corp., received a $500,000 grant from the Ontario government this week to develop its evSpex product as part of a special $4.5 million fund to help 10 start-up companies bring products to market.
The device, which resembles a pair of large sunglasses, has a high-resolution camera on the outside and tiny LCD screens on the inside that project images to the wearer's eyes.
Before the image is projected, it's custom-processed by a tiny computer, said company president Rob Hilkes.
"So that when it's presented to a person who has diseased eyes … it's presented to the pieces of their vision that are most functional," he added.
Réjean Munger, a senior scientist at the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute who helped develop the glasses, said that can help people with a variety of diseases.
"We can take advantage of every bit of vision they have," he said.
The company hopes to start commercial production next year.
Sister of company chairman inspiration for glasses
Anne Lewis, who is legally blind as a result of Stargardt's disease, has been testing the prototype and is very excited about it.
"I see this product as a gift; I truly do," she said at the news conference announcing the funding.
Lewis is the sister of Conrad Lewis, eSight's chairman and one of the company's founders, and her disability was the inspiration for the glasses.
Stardgardt's disease is a form of macular degeneration that has destroyed Anne Lewis's sight except for her peripheral vision.
"It's like looking at a bubble and the inside of the bubble is black, the outside is clear," she said.
Lewis said using the glasses will allow her to read body language in meetings at work, stand on her deck and see flowers blooming, navigate shopping malls and flag down the right bus.
Unlike other products she has tried, it works even while she is moving.
The product is expected to be able to help people with age-related macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy, glaucoma and retinitis pigmentosa.
Users can record, zoom
Because the device is essentially recording a loop of video at all times, it will include special functions that people with normal vision don't have. For example, the user can save the last 10 seconds of what they saw at the press of a button so they can have another look at something that went by too quickly. The video can also be viewed later on a DVD player or computer. In addition, they could zoom in on certain things in their field of view.
Hilkes said the features are available because the "inherent guts" of the device are a computer.
"Once you pack a lot of electronics into a system like this, then creative people start to think of all kinds of ways that you could use it," he said.
In the future, the company hopes to market the technology to people with normal vision as wearable binoculars, night vision goggles or video gaming devices.
For more information go to www.maculardegenerationassociation.org
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Increase Your Omega-3s
Within the polyunsaturated fat category, there are two important subclasses of fatty acids: omega-3s and omega-6s. Vegetable oils are rich in omega-6 fatty acids, and most Americans unknowingly get plenty of them in the diet. On the other hand, omega-3 fatty acids, which are found in fish and shellfish, tofu, flax, nuts and canola and soybean oils, are generally lacking in our diets.
Omega-3s appear to have a positive effect on heart rhythm and according to one recent study, may even reduce the incidence of the most common type of stroke. In fact, on the basis of the current research, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the use of a qualified health claim for dietary supplements of omega-3 fatty acids relating them to a reduced risk of heart disease.
Another intriguing area of research on omega-3 fatty acids pertains to their role in brain and visual function, as some research suggests they may have a role in preventing macular degeneration, a common form of blindness.
Continuing research involves the role of omega-3 fatty acids and the immune system, and suggests a positive influence on rheumatoid arthritis, asthma, lupus, kidney disease and cancer, as well as promising research at the National Institutes of Health on depression.
For more information go to: www.maculardegenerationassociation.org
Omega-3s appear to have a positive effect on heart rhythm and according to one recent study, may even reduce the incidence of the most common type of stroke. In fact, on the basis of the current research, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the use of a qualified health claim for dietary supplements of omega-3 fatty acids relating them to a reduced risk of heart disease.
Another intriguing area of research on omega-3 fatty acids pertains to their role in brain and visual function, as some research suggests they may have a role in preventing macular degeneration, a common form of blindness.
Continuing research involves the role of omega-3 fatty acids and the immune system, and suggests a positive influence on rheumatoid arthritis, asthma, lupus, kidney disease and cancer, as well as promising research at the National Institutes of Health on depression.
For more information go to: www.maculardegenerationassociation.org
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Palladium-103 plaque radiation therapy for macular degeneration: results of a 7 year study
Aim: To report 7 year results of ophthalmic plaque radiotherapy for exudative macular degeneration.
Methods: In a phase I clinical trial, 30 patients (31 eyes) were treated with ophthalmic plaque irradiation for subfoveal exudative macular degeneration. Radiation was delivered to a mean 2 mm from the inner sclera (range 1.2–2.4) prescription point calculated along the central axis of the plaque. The mean prescription dose was 17.62 Gy (range 12.5–24) delivered over 34 hours (range 18–65). Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study (ETDRS) type standardised visual acuity determinations, ophthalmic examinations, and angiography were performed before and after treatment. Clinical evaluations were performed in a non-randomised and unmasked fashion.
Results: At 33.3 months (range 3–4), 17 of 31 (55%) eyes had lost 3 or more lines of vision on the ETDRS chart, five (16%) had improved 3 or more lines, and the remaining nine (29%) were within 2 lines of their pretreatment visual acuity measurement. Overall, 45% of patients were within or improved more than 2 lines of their initial visual acuity. Five eyes developed macular scars, eight developed subsequent neovascularisation or haemorrhage, and three progressed through therapy. Two patients were lost to follow up. The most common finding of patients followed for 6 or more months (n = 18 of 29 (62%)) was regression or stabilisation of the exudative process. No radiation retinopathy, optic neuropathy, or cataracts could be attributed to irradiation.
Conclusion: Ophthalmic plaque radiation can be used to treat exudative macular degeneration. At the dose and dose rates employed, most patients experienced decreased exudation or stabilisation of their maculas. No sight limiting radiation complications were noted during 7 year follow up. Owing to the variable natural course of this disease, a prospective randomised clinical trial should be performed to evaluate the efficacy of plaque radiation therapy for exudative macular degeneration.
Methods: In a phase I clinical trial, 30 patients (31 eyes) were treated with ophthalmic plaque irradiation for subfoveal exudative macular degeneration. Radiation was delivered to a mean 2 mm from the inner sclera (range 1.2–2.4) prescription point calculated along the central axis of the plaque. The mean prescription dose was 17.62 Gy (range 12.5–24) delivered over 34 hours (range 18–65). Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study (ETDRS) type standardised visual acuity determinations, ophthalmic examinations, and angiography were performed before and after treatment. Clinical evaluations were performed in a non-randomised and unmasked fashion.
Results: At 33.3 months (range 3–4), 17 of 31 (55%) eyes had lost 3 or more lines of vision on the ETDRS chart, five (16%) had improved 3 or more lines, and the remaining nine (29%) were within 2 lines of their pretreatment visual acuity measurement. Overall, 45% of patients were within or improved more than 2 lines of their initial visual acuity. Five eyes developed macular scars, eight developed subsequent neovascularisation or haemorrhage, and three progressed through therapy. Two patients were lost to follow up. The most common finding of patients followed for 6 or more months (n = 18 of 29 (62%)) was regression or stabilisation of the exudative process. No radiation retinopathy, optic neuropathy, or cataracts could be attributed to irradiation.
Conclusion: Ophthalmic plaque radiation can be used to treat exudative macular degeneration. At the dose and dose rates employed, most patients experienced decreased exudation or stabilisation of their maculas. No sight limiting radiation complications were noted during 7 year follow up. Owing to the variable natural course of this disease, a prospective randomised clinical trial should be performed to evaluate the efficacy of plaque radiation therapy for exudative macular degeneration.
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