Condensed from Macular Degeneration: The Complete Guide to Saving and Maximizing Your Sight, by Lylas G. Mogk, M.D., & Marja Mogk (September 2004. Reprinted by permission of the authors.) Many family members and friends of people with ARMD have asked me what they can do to help. Here are fifteen tips: 1. Be direct about [Read More]
News
Stem Cells Have Restored Vision
by Dan Roberts November 2004 Scientists from Harvard’s Schepens Eye Research Institute have, for the first time, successfully improved the vision of mice with transplanted stem cells. Neural stem (progenitor) cells were obtained from day-old mice and grafted into the degenerating retinas of mature mice. The transplanted cells were then seen to develop into mature [Read More]
Drugs & Supplements With Adverse Effects on Ophthalmic Conditions Drugs
This list of drugs is derived from the American Academy of Ophthalmology Syllabus for “Drug-Related Adverse Effects of Clinical Importance to the Ophthalmologist (F.W. Fraunfelder, MD, Instructor). For details about each drug, see the Syllabus. DRUGS topiramate (Topamax) 10% phenylephrine pledgets (Neo-Synephrine) sildenafil (Viagra) isotretinoin (Accutane)amiodarone (Cordone) hydroxychloroquine/chloroquine (Plaquenil) marijuana tamoxifen Bisphosphonates: alendronic acid ibandronate pamidronate zolendronate Carbonic Anhydrase [Read More]
Antioxidant Values in Fruits And Vegetables
by Dan Roberts September 2004 A study from Tufts University in Boston ranks the antioxidant value of commonly eaten fruits and vegetables using an analysis called ORAC (Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity). This is a test tube analysis that measures the total antioxidant power of foods and other chemical substances. Antioxidants are special compounds that protect [Read More]
Charles Bonnet Syndrome (CBS)
by Dan Roberts September 2004 This syndrome is characterized by visual hallucinations in people who have a sudden change in vision such as that brought on by macular degeneration. Named after the man who first described it in 1780, it was later defined as “persistent or recurrent visual pseudohallucinatory phenomena of a pleasant or neutral [Read More]