Blind people “see” through brain maps

Eyezone Blog-Blind people have brain map for 'visual' observations too

Is what you’re looking at an object, a face, or a tree? When processing visual input, our brain uses different areas to recognize faces, body parts, scenes, and objects. Scientists at KU Leuven (University of Leuven), Belgium, have now shown that people who were born blind use a ‘brain map’ with a very similar layout to distinguish between these same categories.

Our brain only needs a split second to determine what we’re seeing. The area in our brain that can categorize these visual observations so quickly is the so-called ventral-temporal cortex, the visual brain. Like a map, this region is divided into smaller regions, each of which recognizes a particular category of observations — faces, body parts, scenes, and objects. (more…)

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70th World Health Assembly

Eyezone Blog-70th World Health Assembly-IAPB-2017

Member State Side Event

Towards Universal Eye Health: Taking stock of progress against the Global Action Plan – what’s working and where to from here?

Thursday 25 May 2017
12.30pm – 2.00pm
Room XXIV (24), Palais des Nations, Geneva

Lunch and refreshments will be provided and there will be simultaneous translation in English, French, Russian, Spanish, Chinese and Arabic. (more…)

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Healthy vision starts with a dilated eye exam

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Getting a comprehensive dilated eye exam is one of the best things you can do to keep your eyes healthy. In this painless procedure, an eye care professional examines your eyes to look for common vision problems and eye diseases, many of which have no early warning signs.

Different from the basic eye exam you have for glasses or contact lenses, a comprehensive dilated eye exam can help protect your sight by making sure you are seeing your best and detecting eye diseases in their early stages, before vision loss has occurred. (more…)

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It’s Healthy Vision Month! Make your vision last a lifetime

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When it comes to our health, we often visit our doctor or nurse regularly to make sure our bodies are healthy. But what about our eyes? They’re not always top of mind, but they’re just as important.

During Healthy Vision Month, held each May, the National Eye Institute (NEI) reminds you to make your eye health a priority and encourages you to take important steps to protect your sight. (more…)

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Is your optometrist ready for the AI-future on its way?

Eyezone Blog-Is Your Optometrist Ready for the AI-future On Its Way-WCEA

For many it’s a simple choice – if you have problems with your eyesight, see an optometrist. As we get older, most of us will probably need glasses, particularly for those that spent most of the working life hunched over a computer all day long. But this once seemingly straightforward profession of optometry is changing, rapidly. And these changes which are coming to the field of optometry may very well signal things to come in other areas of health service as well. (more…)

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Saudi Ophthalmology Award to Kovin Naidoo for work in childhood blindness and cataract

Eyezone Blog-Saudi Ophthalmology Award to Kovin Naidoo

Professor Kovin Naidoo, CEO of Brien Holden Vision Institute has been awarded the distinguished Prevention of Blindness (POB) Shield Lecture award.

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, May 1, 2017 — The Prevention of Blindness (POB) Shield Lecture award recognizes individuals who have made a significant contribution to the prevention of blindness and vision impairment in their country or globally. The lecture is a feature of the internationally recognized event, supported by the Saudi Ophthalmology Society, which attracts over 1,500 attendees each year. As the awardee, Prof. Naidoo presented on his novel research and public health optometry work. (more…)

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ROP Initiative for premature babies in India

EYEZONE Blog-ROP Initiative for premature babies in Maharashtra

Retinopathy of Prematurity (ROP) causes babies to needlessly lose their vision. It is one of the leading causes of blindness in premature infants in India.

INDIA, (IAPB), April 27, 2017 — The Queen Elizabeth Diamond Jubilee Trust and the Public Health Foundation of India are launching a Retinopathy of Prematurity Initiative in the western state of Maharashtra. The project will train staff to screen for ROP, provide support services, and conduct research to tackle the disease.

India has the largest number of preterm births in the world. “Our goal is to help support sustainable and scalable services for the detection and prevention of severe retinopathy of prematurity which are integrated into the Government of India’s health care system”, explained Dr. Astrid Bonfield, Chief Executive at the Trust. (more…)

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Are your listening? Your pupils indicate if you are

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A new Dartmouth study finds that listeners are most likely to tune in when a speaker delivers the most emotional peaks of his/her narrative, as revealed by synchronous pupil dilation patterns of speakers and listeners due to shared attention.

The findings also demonstrate how empathy comes into play. While listeners with both high and low empathy tuned in for the climax of a story, overall, listeners with higher empathy tuned in more. (more…)

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