NeuroVision Talk for MDS

MDS TALK ON NEUROVISION & AMD

SPEAKERS: Nir Ellenbogen, CEO, NeuroVision Singapore and Allan Fong, Pilot Study Coordinator


DATE & TIME: Saturday, 18 October, 2pm – 3pm

VENUE: 19 Tanglin Road #05-23, Tanglin Shopping Centre, Singapore 247909

CONTACT: Anne at 62387387 or email: alleyes@singnet.com.sg to confirm attendence

The talk will cover the following topics:

EXPLANATION OF NEUROVISION

NeuroVision’s NVCTM vision correction technology enhances eyesight without surgery or medications. It optimizes the performance of the neural or “back end” of the visual system — nothing is changed optically.

The technology has been developed through research focused solely on how the brain processes vision, and is based on two decades of visual neuroscience research.

ABOUT NEUROVISION’S EYE PATHOLOGIES STUDY

With the mission to provide a better quality of functional vision, NeuroVision starts looking into ways to improve vision of individuals who are having reduced central vision due to various eye pathologies such as dry ARMD, Central Serous Retinopathy (CSR) and so on.

NeuroVision, in collaboration with Essilor International and the Singapore Eye Research Institute has started a pilot study to evaluate the efficacy of NeuroVision’s NVC TM – for the vision improvement of people with reduced visual acuity due to various eye pathologies.

Up to 50 participants; aged 10-70 years old; eye pathology stable; having best corrected vision range 6/7.5 to 6/30 due to eye pathologies will be recruited for the study.

Participants will be given a course of NeuroVision treatment sessions (around 30 to 40 sessions in pace of 2-3 times a week) at the NeuroVision Centre located at SNEC and will be followed up for 12 month after the treatment with quarterly vision tests. The study is currently recruiting participants.

Ageing eyes? Oranges and leafy vegetables can help

By Lee Hui Chieh
The Straits Times

Patients suffering from an age-related eye disease may be able to enhance their vision by eating more brightly coloured fruit and vegetables, a study here has found.

The study by Alexandra Hospital homed in on 46 patients with age-related macular degeneration (AMD), in which the centre of the retina called the macula - which enables the eye to see details - deteriorates, resulting in blurred vision and even blindness.

It found that patients who had higher levels of pigment in the macula, from having eaten foods with natural pigments, could see better than those with lower pigment levels.

On a 16-line eye chart, patients with higher pigment levels saw 12 lines on average; those with lower pigment levels saw an average of only seven.

The main researcher of the study, Dr Kumari Neelam, 37, said: 'The significance of this finding is that, for people with macular degeneration, their vision will be better if they have more pigmentation.'

Two yellow pigments found in the macula, known as lutein and zeaxanthin, have the job of filtering out damaging rays of light. If they are in short supply, the macula of the eye becomes more vulnerable to damage from ageing or severe myopia.

Their levels can be raised only through eating foods containing such yellow pigments, such as green leafy vegetables, maize, kiwi, grapes, oranges, pumpkins, and wolfberries.

To do the study, which was completed this month, Dr Neelam, a registrar of Alexandra Hospital's opthalmology and visual sciences department, measured the level of pigment in patients' eyes, as well as in the eyes of 14 healthy people.

To get more conclusive results, DrNeelam hopes to start a bigger study next year on 800 to 1,000 people, both AMD patients and those with healthy eyes.

She hopes that the bigger sample size will yield the normal range of pigment levels in healthy eyes here, the average amount of both pigments people consume in their diet and how this translates into the pigment level in their eyes.

All this data will in turn help determine the amount of certain foods or nutritional supplements that patients with low pigment levels should take, Dr Neelam said.

It is not known how many people here have AMD, but a community study on 574 people aged 60 and above in 1997 found that 27 per cent of them suffered from it.

To raise awareness of AMD, hospitals, eye clinics and optical centres here have banded together to run public forums and eye screenings for age-related eye diseases, including AMD, this week.

For $6, individuals can have their eyes screened at participating centres until this Friday.

A week of awareness

The MDS supported the annual nation-wide AMD Awareness Week by organising two support group sessions on Saturday.

After receiving a plaque of appreciation from guest of honour Minister Lim Boon Heng, who is in charge of ageing issues in Singapore, MDS got down to work at the Idea Lab of Alexandra Hospital.

MDS president Sharon Siddique hosted a session in English before secretary Peh Shing Huei chaired one in Mandarin together with Exco member Anny Leow. Exco member Sam Fong will also host a session on Wednesday.

This is the second year that MDS is a partner of the AMD Awareness Week.

Breakthrough lens for the VIPs

A new type of lens can now be inserted into the eye to help severe macular degeneration patients see better - giving much hope to sufferers.

This ground-breaking surgery in Britain is called the IOL VIP (intra-ocular lens for visually impaired people) procedure. It is very similar to a cataract removal, in which the ocular lens is replaced with an artificial one behind the iris.

For IOL VIP (see picture above), a second lens is also placed in front of the iris - creating a slightly magnified image much like a telescope. As a result, light entering the eye is directed to a healthy part of the retina and away from the macular scar, giving patients back some of their useful vision.

The procedure is painless and takes about 20-30 minutes under simple eyedrop anaesthesia. It is easy to carry out and the effects are almost immediate. It was first successfully carried out in March 2007.

Seventy-three-year-old grandmother Mary Johnson is one of the first patients to benefit. She said: "I noticed the difference more or less straightaway. When you have macular degeneration you no longer take your sight for granted, and being able to get out in the garden to pick up the weeds has meant so much to me.

"One day I was walking through town with my husband and I said: 'Look! I can see House of Fraser!' I was so excited that I was able to read the sign. Hopefully, with time, my sight will improve even more. But if I stay as I am now I will be satisfied."

But ophthalmic surgeon Sakkaf Ahmed Aftab, who runs a clinic from Grimsby's St Hugh's Hospital and was one of the first surgeons to be trained in the IOL VIP pointed out the surgery is not suitable for everyone.

It is also not a miracle cure and is only appropriate for patients who have lost a significant level of vision. However, it can restore enough of a patient's sight to drastically improve their quality of life.

"This is a procedure for people who cannot see," he said. "There's no way that after having this you would be able to read small print or start driving again. But that's why this work is so rewarding - because you are giving people back their vision when before they had none at all."

Click here to read the complete article and here to find out more about IOL VIP. See below for a video of how the procedure is carried out.

No more injections?

Uncomfortable, intimidating and regular injections into your eye could be a thing of the past if a tiny metal coil succeeds as the new drug dispenser for retinal problems.

The spiral-shaped coil (see below) - which looks just like the children's toy "slinky" - can be injected into the eye using a needle in a minimally invasive procedure that takes just 15 minutes.


After that ONE injection, no more is needed for two years. This is because the drugs are mixed into a material which coats the slinky. As the coating slowly dissolves, the drugs are released over a period of up to two years.

Now, the most effective drugs for macular degeneration patients, such as Lucentis, Avastin and Macugen, are all directly injected into the eyes. The injections often have to be repeated every month, something which patients find uncomfortable.

The new device, which is called I-Vation, is meant to stop this hassle and pain. It is made from a metal alloy. The Slinky is coated with a synthetic material that incorporates the drugs. As the coating breaks down, it releases drug particles into the eye.

The design and thickness of this material can be adjusted so it degrades at the required rate. The spiral shape means there is a large surface area available for the drug coating, allowing the release of drugs for up to two years.

The coiled shape also makes it possible to lodge the device against the white of the eye, without the need for stitches. It will be out of the line of sight of the patient, so it cannot be seen. It can also be easily removed and replaced.

Soon, you may be able to tell your children or grandchildren that you have something like Toy Story's Slinky Dog in your eye!

Please click here to read more.