Real Life 'Bionic Eye' to Be Available by the End of 2013
The very first bionic eye, the Argus II, will be ready for the general public by the end of 2013, according to a story in the Singularity Hub. It is designed to restore some measure of eyesight to people suffering from retinitis pigmentosa.Contributor: Mark WhittingtonPublished: Nov 23, 2013 (Source: Most Recent Health Wellness - Associated Content)
Source: Most Recent Health Wellness - Associated Content - November 24, 2013 Category: Other Conditions Source Type: blogs
NIH and Other Public Private Partnerships to Research Treatments for Multiple Diseases
Over the past few weeks, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has made a number of important announcements regarding collaborations with industry as well as the funding of several new research initiatives. Below is a summary of these stories.
NIH Partners With Eli Lilly and Others on Rare Diseases
FierceBiotechResearch reported that NIH selected four (4) new preclinical drug development studies to uncover new therapies for rare diseases. The projects will be funded through the Therapeutics for Rare and Neglected Diseases (TRND) program under NIH's National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences, NCATS, whic...
Source: Policy and Medicine - October 4, 2013 Category: Health Medicine and Bioethics Commentators Authors: Thomas Sullivan Source Type: blogs
Alpha IMS Vision Restoring Wireless Retinal Implant Now Cleared in Europe (VIDEO)
Germany’s Retina Implant AG has received European regulatory approval to begin offering its Alpha IMS implant for restoration of moderate sight in people blinded due to retinitis pigmentosa. The system essentially replaces the function of the retina, capturing light on a 3×3 mm wireless microchip that has a 1500 pixel resolution, and stimulating the optic nerve based on what the chip sees. The Alpha IMS doesn’t use an external camera, so looking around is done naturally with the eyes rather than the head, as in some systems.
Thirty six people have received the implant so far, and the latest study involving ni...
Source: Medgadget - July 8, 2013 Category: Technology Consultants Authors: Editors Tags: Ophthalmology Rehab Source Type: blogs
Retinal Implant Alpha IMS Brings Sight to Blind in New Study (w/video)
Retina Implant AG, a German developer of subretinal implants to help restore sight of people with retinitis pigmentosa, has announced publication of results of a new clinical trial of its Alpha IMS system. Nine blind people received the 3×3 mm wireless microchip implants that feature a 1500 pixel resolution. The implants capture light and in turn stimulate the optic nerve, which delivers visual signal data to the brain.A distinct advantage of the Alpha IMS is that, unlike other similar devices such as the recently released Argus II, it does not rely on an external camera. Instead, light is detected inside the eye, ena...
Source: Medgadget - February 21, 2013 Category: Technology Consultants Authors: Gene Ostrovsky Tags: in the news... Ophthalmology Rehab Source Type: blogs
FDA Approves Second Sight’s “Bionic Eye”
For patients who have lost their vision due to degenerative retinal disease, the dream of seeing again might just be a reality. After a unanimous recommendation for approval by the Ophthalmic Devices Advisory Panel in September 2012, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has now officially approved Second Sight’s Argus II Retinal Prosthesis System, aka “the bionic eye” [1].
In a healthy eye, the photoreceptors (rods and cones) in the retina of the eye convert light to electrical signals that then travel via the optic nerve to the visual cortex in the brain. Argus II is indicated for patients with a con...
Source: Highlight HEALTH - February 19, 2013 Category: Medical Scientists Authors: Shula Pollard, Ph.D. Source Type: blogs
FDA Approves First Retinal Implant
The FDA’s green light for Second Sight’s Argus II Retinal Prosthesis System gives hope to those blinded by a rare genetic eye condition called advanced retinitis pigmentosa, which damages the light-sensitive cells that line the retina. The Argus II includes a small video camera, a transmitter mounted on a pair of eyeglasses, a video processing [...] (Source: Neurobot)
Source: Neurobot - February 16, 2013 Category: Neurologists Authors: Dimitrios A. Adamos Tags: Stories Brain Interfaces Source Type: blogs
FDA approves first retinal implant for adults with rare genetic eye disease
Did you catch this the other day? The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved the Argus II Retinal Prosthesis System, the first implanted device to treat adult patients with advanced retinitis pigmentosa (RP). The device, which includes a small video camera, transmitter mounted on a pair of eyeglasses, video processing unit (VPU) and an implanted retinal prosthesis (artificial retina), replaces the function of degenerated cells in the retina (a membrane inside the eye) and may improve a patient’s ability to perceive images and movement. The VPU transforms images from the video camera into electronic data that i...
Source: Medicine and Technology by Dr. Joseph Kim - February 15, 2013 Category: Technology Consultants Tags: FDA medical devices Source Type: blogs
FDA Approves Argus II Bionic Eye from Second Sight (w/video)
Second Sight Medical Products has won FDA approval for its Argus II bionic eye for the treatment of late stage Retinitis Pigmentosa (RP). This announcement comes after the European approval in 2011, and widespread support from the FDA’s Ophthalmic Devices Advisory panel. The Argus II system was apparently shortlisted for approval under the Humanitarian Device Exemption, which has been put in place to expedite technologies for under-served patient populations.With millions more suffering from other degenerative eye disease like glaucoma, macular degeneration, and diabetic retinopathy, it is likely that Second Sight will b...
Source: Medgadget - February 14, 2013 Category: Technology Consultants Authors: John Hewitt Tags: Rehab Source Type: blogs
Fight Aging! Newsletter, February 4th 2013
Discussion
- Latest Headlines from Fight Aging!
- A Podcast Interview With Aubrey de Grey
- Wrapping Nanoparticles in Cell Membranes
- Vegetarianism Associated With Lower Risk of Heart Disease
- A Commentary on Radical Life Extension
- The View of Mortality as Not Easily Explainable By Common Genetic Variants
- Foundational Work For Nervous System Repair
- Magnetic Levitation in Tissue Engineering
- Advocating Intermittent Fasting
&nb...
Source: Fight Aging! - February 3, 2013 Category: Health Medicine and Bioethics Commentators Authors: Reason Tags: Newsletters Source Type: blogs
Altering Eye Cells to Restore Vision
An approach to therapy for degenerative blindness that involves reprogramming existing cells rather than introducing new ones:
Doctors may one day treat some forms of blindness by altering the genetic program of the light-sensing cells of the eye. [Working] in mice with retinitis pigmentosa, a disease that causes gradual blindness, the researchers reprogrammed the cells in the eye that enable night vision. The change made the cells more similar to other cells that provide sight during daylight hours and prevented degeneration of the retina, the light-sensing structure in the back of the eye.
"We think it may be signific...
Source: Fight Aging! - January 28, 2013 Category: Health Medicine and Bioethics Commentators Authors: Reason Tags: Daily News Source Type: blogs
USMLE Questions – Characteristic Disease Findings
The United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE) is designed to emphasize knowledge of clinical scenarios and clinical pearls, even on Step I. Listed below are some commonly encountered disease findings and characteristics.
Feature
Disease
45, X chromosome
Turner’s syndrome
5-HIAA increased in urine
Carcinoid syndrome
Aganglionic rectum
Hirschsrpung’s disease
Apple-core sign on barium enema
Colon cancer
Arched back (opisthotonos)
Tetanus
Argyll-Robertson pupil
Syphilis
Ash leaf on forehead
Tuberous sclerosis
Auer rods
Acute myelogenous leukemia
Austin Flint murmur
Aortic regurgitation...
Source: Inside Surgery - January 18, 2013 Category: Surgeons Authors: Editor Tags: Surgpedia USMLE diseases findings VMA water hammer pulse Source Type: blogs
Fight Aging! Newsletter, January 14th 2013
Discussion
- Latest Headlines from Fight Aging!
- Endurance Training Associated With Longer Telomeres
- Unpublished Reader's Digest Interview on Aging and Longevity
- Fat Tissue Knockout of Mitochondrial Transcription Factor A is Beneficial, and May Extend Life in Mice
- Regenerating Hair Cells to Restore Hearing
- Identifying a Mechanism for Nematode Longevity via Bifidobacteria in the Diet
- Towards Therapies for Regeneration of Dental Pulp
- News from the...
Source: Fight Aging! - January 13, 2013 Category: Health Medicine and Bioethics Commentators Authors: Reason Tags: Newsletters Source Type: blogs
Cell Transplants to Rebuild the Retina
An example of the sort of work presently taking place aimed at retinal regeneration:
The researchers worked with mice that are blind due to complete loss of the light-sensing photoreceptor cells in their retinas. This is the most relevant mouse model for treating patients who are blind from retinitis pigmentosa. After two weeks, the researchers showed the cells transplanted into the eye had re-formed a full light-detecting layer on the retina and the mice could see. The cells used were mouse 'precursor' cells that are on an initial path towards developing into retinal cells.
A pupil constriction test showed that, of the ...
Source: Fight Aging! - January 8, 2013 Category: Health Medicine and Bioethics Commentators Authors: Reason Tags: Daily News Source Type: blogs
