News Blinks — December 2, 2016

 News Blinks — December 2, 2016

Here’s a quick look at some industry news you may have missed this week. 

  • The U.S. Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) plans to add a sound requirement to all newly manufactured hybrid and electric light-duty vehicles to help protect pedestrians who are blind or have low vision.
  • Scientists in Russia have reportedly developed a way to grow retinal tissue from reprogrammed cells, which could possibly be used to restore vision in those with macular degeneration.
  • A recent article on NewsDeeply.com takes a look at the women at the forefront of the battle against trachoma, reportedly one of the leading infectious causes of blindness in the world.
  • Researchers from the University of Michigan have discovered a new type of photoreceptor — only the third to be found in animals — that is 50 times more efficient at capturing light than the rhodopsin in the human eye.
  • Researchers from Washington University in St. Louis have shed light on the genetic makeup of a parasite that causes river blindness in parts of Africa and Latin America in a step towards eradicating it.
  • A new study conducted by Marcus Autism Center, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, and Emory University School of Medicine has found young children with autism do not avoid eye contact on purpose, rather they miss the significance of social information in others' eyes.
  • A study from the University of Central Florida has found heads-up display technology — such as Google Glass — may slow down the brain's response time.
  • A recent report on Fortune.com says Novartis and Google will not be starting human clinical trials of their new smart contact lens this year as originally hoped.
  • Investigators from the University of California, Berkeley have found while it may be hard to tell the difference between humans and androids in sci-fi TV shows, in real life it takes the human brain less than second to tell the difference.
  • The National Eye Institute (NEI) published a consumer-facing release detailing the experiences of a woman who had lost her vision to diabetes in an effort to raise awareness on the importance of yearly dilated eye exams.
  • Last year, emergency rooms in the U.S. treated 251,800 toy-related injuries, and 44 percent of those injuries were to the head and face area, according to a consumer-oriented press release issued by Prevent Blindness, who declared December as Safe Toys and Gifts Awareness Month.
  • The American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) also recently issued a consumer-oriented release with five tips on avoiding toy-related eye injuries.
  • The American Optometric Association (AOA)'s AOA Focus publication recently received four awards at the 2016 MarCom Awards including one gold, one platinum and two honorable mentions (see press release below).
  • Envision recently received a National Public Health Thank You Day Award from the Sedgwick County Health Department for its Public Education and Envision Vision Rehabilitation Center programs that provide vision education and awareness to both reduce risks of vision loss and help the typically sighted understand the challenges of those living with visual impairments.
  • ZEISS recently announced the formation of a new center to accelerate its digital transformation. ZEISS Digital Transformation Partners will reportedly develop scalable digital solutions, products and services.
  • Allergan has partnered with actress Marisa Tomei to help further Chronic Dry Eye disease awareness, and Allergan will reportedly donate $1 to Guide Dogs for the Blind for every Dry Eye Quiz taken through December 31, 2016 on restasis.com.
  • A team from LensFerry S, a subsidiary of CooperVision, recently traveled to Mexico with Optometry Giving Sight to help provide free eye exams and glasses to those who otherwise do not have access to vision care. The team reportedly visited two schools near Oaxaca, Mexico and provided 1,000 eye exams to elementary school students.
  • AbbVie recently announced the winners of its inaugural Sustainable Healthcare "Patients as Partners" Award, including a handheld device that allows patients to monitor their intraocular pressure at home.
  • In an effort to be more eco-friendly, Super Optical International has teamed up with Shark Glass Recycling North America to use recycled windshield glass in their lens blocks.
  • Sunglass brand Vuarnet opened its first pop-up shop in the Soho area of New York City for the holiday season.
  • Product design and development firm Cambridge Consultants have reportedly developed a new technology called Viewi allowing patients to monitor glaucoma using a headset and smartphone.
  • Vision care startup Sightbox has raised $1.8 million to fund a new service for people who wear contact lenses that would reportedly combine popular aspects of vision insurance, online retail and customer service, while also generating new business for local optometry businesses across the U.S.
Click here to read the full press release

Source: Various

  • <<
  • >>

Comments