EXCESS BLUE LIGHT EXPOSURE MAY BE A RISK FACTOR FOR MACULAR DEGENERATION

As blue light-induced damage accumulates over a lifetime, by the time you are in your 40s and 50s, you are at an increased risk for AMD, vision impairment, and decreased visual performance. This article in the  Milwaukee Journal Sentinel explains possible protective measures you can take.  There is a lot of blue light entering the eye from the sky here in Arizona, so wear your sunglasses!

DONATING BLOOD LOWERS HEART RISK FOR THOSE WITH OBESITY

Healthday

An interesting finding from this study is that after three weeks of donating blood, those with obesity lowered their systolic blood pressure from 148mmHg to 130mmHg.

ORAL MINOCYCLINE MAY BE USED TO TREAT DIABETIC MACULAR EDEMA

http://www.iovs.org/content/early/2012/05/11/iovs.11-9413.abstract

Conclusions: In this pilot proof-of-concept study of DME, minocycline as primarytreatment was associated with improved visual function, central macular edema and vascular leakage, comparing favorably with historical controls from previous studies. Microglial inhibition with oral minocycline may be a promising therapeutic strategy targeting the inflammatory etiology of DME.

Ophthalmology News Article | Smoking and Risk of Age-related Cataract: A Meta-analysis |4076465

Ophthalmology News Article | Smoking and Risk of Age-related Cataract: A Meta-analysis |4076465

This study shows that smoking increases the risk for nuclear cataract.

STEM CELL TREATMENT FOR MACULAR DEGENERATION

Stem-Cell Clinical Trials Move Debate Beyond Labs - WSJ.com

This is very exciting because to date, there has been no definitive treatment for dry macular degeneration. Studies on rats have demonstrated treatment success for AMD using stem cells, but studies have not yet been done on humans.

Daily aspirin tied to risk of vision loss:study | Reuters

Daily aspirin tied to risk of vision loss:study | Reuters

Seniors who take aspirin daily are twice as likely to have late stage macular degeneration, an age-related loss of vision, than people who never take the pain reliever, according to a European study.

Treatment for Pink Eye

Pinkeye Treatment May Be on the Horizon

In the past, it has been thought that there is no treatment for pink eye. This article introduces a possible eye drop treatment to stop pink eye in it's tracks may be developed.

Xanthelasmata Identified as Independent CV Risk Factor - Forbes

Xanthelasmata Identified as Independent CV Risk Factor - Forbes

"The authors conclude that the presence of xanthelasmata could help clinicians when they diagnose heart disease and associated conditions. And they add that their findings “could be of particular value in societies where access to laboratory facilities and thus lipid profile measurement is difficult.”

An accompanying editorial concludes that, overall, the evidence highlights the importance of a comprehensive physical examination and suggests that xanthelasmata could be used by general clinicians to help identify people at higher risk of cardiovascular disease."

VITAMIN D MAY NOT BE CRUCIAL IN MACULAR DEGENERATION TREATMENT

Access : Reconsidering the connection between vitamin D levels and age-related macular degeneration : Eye

According to this study there is no correlation between vitamin D levels and macular degeneration progression.

ANTIOXIDANTS MAY HELP IN DIABETIC RETINOPATHY

European Journal of Ophthalmology

Oral antioxidant supplementation could be a useful adjunctive long-term therapy in the treatment of nonproliferative DR.

VIDEO GAMES MAY IMPROVE VISUAL ACUITY IN AMBLYOPIA

Most eye doctors believe amblyopia can't be improved past 11 years old.  This study suggests that 40 hours of video game play with the good eye patched will improve visual acuity 30% in patients with ambloypia who are older than 11 years old.

EATING FISH MAY HELP PREVENT MACULAR DEGNERATION

Eating fish may help your eyes - The Washington Post