National Eye Health Week

Despite the fact that over half of all blindness and visual impairment could be prevented, with early diagnosis, only 66% of UK adults have taken an eye test in the past 10 years, according to the RNIB.

So the RNIB are running National Eye Health Week, to raise awareness of how to look after your vision and avoid sight loss.

As well as possibly preventing blindness, regular eye examinations can also lead to the discovery of the early stages of other illnesses, such as diabetes, so can be useful for general all-round well being, not just seeing if you need glasses.

The RNIB point out a number of simple ways of avoiding sight loss, such as stopping smoking, wearing sunglasses, wearing safety goggles when doing DIY and eating a balanced diet, all of which could reduce the figure of 100 people in the UK losing their sight every day.

Sight loss can happen to anyone so looking after your eyes is very important and something most people don’t think about until it’s too late.

Visit the RNIB web site for more information on Eye Health Week.

Katie: The Science of Seeing Again - Channel 4 Tues 7 Feb

With all the recent news about stem cell research into restoring vision in some sight conditions, (includng this story on VWS), Channel 4 are showing a programme tomorrow night following Katier Piper, a model who lost the sight in her left eye after an acid attack.  She has injections of embryonic stem cells into her eye,  which could potential restore her sight.  The programme also deals with the ethics issues in the procedure, which some think is morally wrong as it uses cells from human embryos.

The programme airs tomorrow at 9pm on Channel 4 and will be available on 4oD online a day later.

Click here to view online from Feb 8

Stem cell research could lead to the reversal of sight loss

It was announced last week that the first ever European trails using embryonic stem cells has been approved by regulators.  Moorfields Eye Hospital in London will start the trails on 12 patients with  Stargardts Disease, a form of macular degeneration, which causes sight loss at an early age.

• Read a previous Vision Web Sight post on the story by clicking here.

The initial trails will take the form of injecting tiny amounts of retinal stem cells into the eye, initially to assess the safety of the procedure.  If this is successful it is hoped that higher doses will help regenerate the damaged retina and restore eyesight, effectively “curing” the disease.

In America, trails in safety of stem cell therapy for people with spinal injuries is already taking place.  Bone marrow transplants using stem cells and the growing of a new windpipe from the patient’s own stem cells have been successful in recent years.

Macular Degeneration (MD) is one of the biggest causes of sight loss (47% in the UK).  It’s thought that if everyone lived long enough, everyone would eventually develop some form of MD and become blind.  Stem cells can regenerate all forms of human tissue, so it is hoped that this treatment could help other forms of degenerative sight loss.

There is some controversy over the use of stem cells in medicine.  It is opposed by Pro-Life groups because the embryo is destroyed when the cells are harvested.

Links:

• BBC News: UK medics lead Europe’s first embryonic stem cell trial
• Guardian online: First trial of embryonic stem cell treatment in Europe gets green light

The Blind Traveller

Sometimes the stories you hear in the news about blind people doing extraordinary things (such as running marathons, breaking blind land speed records or climbing mountains) can be intimidating when you’re experiencing sight loss.  Some of the things I hear about blind people doing, I wouldn’t have even attempted fully sighted! 

Not everyone is an adrenalin junky or wants to be a record breaker, or whatever, but just wants to live as normal a life as everyone else.  Sometimes their disability can make that seem like an heroic effort in itself and going into your shell is so easy.
However, these stories can also help people realise that a disability doesn’t have to prevent people from achieving their goals or even just doing the things they love.
As someone still getting used to getting around with deteriorating eyesight the story of “Tony the Traveller” is inspiring.

I met Tony Giles this week.  He was born with a genetic disease the eventually robbed him of all sight and has only 20% hearing without his hearing aids.  He also had a kidney transplant in 2008.   He was telling me how he’d not long returned from a solo trip to Argentina and Antarctica.  He has travelled the globe, visiting all 50 U.S. and all 10 Canadian states, crossed the Artic Circle and bungee jumped in New Zealand.

With the help of local guides and fellow travellers he befriends he has visited more countries, experienced more exotic locations and tasted more weird and wonderful local cuisines than most people will in a lifetime.  Tony is 33.

Tony has written a number of books, in the form of his travel diaries, also available in different accessible formats.  You can find out a lot more on his web site "Tony the Traveller" .

For anyone going through the life changing effects of losing their sight, stories like Tony’s can highlight the fact that things they may have thought would become impossible to do, are still out there to experience, even if it might just take a little more thought and effort in how to achieve them.

Quote from the Tony the Traveller web site about his book “Seeing the World My Way”:

“Seeing the World My Way follows Tony Giles’ journey of hedonism and thrill-seeking adventure as he travels across North America, Asia and Australasia. Full of drama, danger and discovery, this fascinating travel biography is a young blind man’s view of the world as he sets out to achieve his dream, dealing with disability whilst living life to the limit.
From bungee jumping in New Zealand to booze filled nights out in New Orleans, Seeing the World My Way is a no-holds-barred account that is certainly not for the faint hearted. Travel the world in a whole new way with Tony Giles’ frank, honest and exhilarating romp through one adrenaline-fuelled experience after another.”

VWS - winner of 2010 Vision Impaired Blog Award

Happy New Year!

So it's 2011 and I'm back at the Royal National College for the Blind (and am back at the computer!).

Well it seems Vision Web Sight has been named one of the top 20 blogs for the vision impaired by Medical Assistant Schools! 

And nominations for 2011 are being taken now, so if you like VWS please click here to vote.

"This award highlights the very best blogs about being vision impaired on the internet as determined by the internet community. With the growing prominence of the internet in today's society, allowing for more people to have more access to information, the medical field is a very important niche. More and more people are trying to diagnose themselves, and although this tendency cannot be helped, the information they are using can definitely be ensured to be top notch. And so Medical Assistant Schools has provided the Top Blog Awards, not only to recognize those bloggers who are blogging with great content, but because we want to provide any information seeker with the best resources possible."

Quote from Medical Assistant Schools

Stem cell treatment could help the blind

People suffering from Stargardt's macular degeneration, where the  retina cells at the back of eye are destroyed in early childhood may soon be able to have injections of embryonic stem cells with the hope of repairing damaged photo-sensitive cells.

Clinical trials have been given the go ahead, in only the second group of people in the world to receive stem cells derived from spare IVF embryos left over from fertility treatment.  Pro-life groups are against the use of stem-cells taken from embrionic "potential human lives". 

The trails could place take early next year and although they are designed to test the safety of the treatment in humans, improvement in the sight of patients may also become aparent within the first six weeks.

It is believed that medicine could be revolutionished by stem cell treatment due to their ability to repir tissue and organs with-in the body without need for transplant. Robert Lanza, chief scientific officer
 of US technology firm Advanced Cell Technology, the company conducting the trails, said "We've tested these cells in animal models of eye disease. In rats, we've seen 100 per cent improvement in visual performance over untreated animals without any adverse effects,"
 
Click here to read the news story from The Independent

Prosthetic retinas help blind mice see

Trials of prosthetic retinas in mice have given hope that people with vision loss due to retinal degeneration or damage could regain their sight.  Previous attempts at prosthetic retinas have only managed to relay simple pixilated shapes and patterns to the brain from the photoreceptors at the back of the eye.  The current research by Sheila Nirenberg and colleagues at Weill Cornell Medical College in New York has produced a visual information sent to the brain similar to that of healthy eyes.

When light enters a healthy retina it activates light-sensitive photoreceptors which process and send information to ganglion cells.  These cells transmit a pattern of electrical activity to the brain, which interprets the image.  Previous attempts at prosthetic retinas stimulate the ganglion cells directly.  However they don't use the patterns or "codes" that the cells use to send messages to the brain so only simple messages can be transmitted.

Nirenberg's team compared the signals going into healthy mice retinas with the output from ganglion cells, and produced an algorithm to recreate this "code".  Then using gene therapy they transfered the protein channelrhodopsin into the ganglion cells of blind mice, in order to make them responsive to light.  A computer processor, using Nirenberg's algorithm, encodes images from a tiny video campera imbedded into a pair of glasses rapid light pulses shone into the eye.

The ganglion cells treated with channelrhodopsin send signals to the brain in the normal way.  As the image is already "encoded" the brain sees a much more detailed image than images sent directly to the ganglion cells.  By analysing the  ganglion cell output from blind mice with prosthetic retinas compared to this of normally sighted mice it was shown that the output resembled each other, suggesting the technique presented a clearer image than old prostheics.

As people with retinal degeneration's retinas no longer send visual information to the brain, these prosethetics could be a way of restoring the sight of people with damaged retinas.  Though human trials have yet to be carried out, the research is an exciting prospect for many people suffering loss of vision due to retinal degerneration.

For the full story from New Scientist click this link:
New Scientist "Blind mice can see where they run" article

Brazil win World Cup

Congratulationto England on their fourth place in the IBSA World Blind Football Championship 2010.  The eventual winners of the "Blind World Cup" were Brazil who beat Spain 2-0 in the final at the weekend.

The part-time players of England were beaten 1-0 by China, who took third place.  The Brazilian, Spainish and Chinese teams all play their football fulltime in bigger leagues in their respective countries, so well done to the English team.

For full results, match reports and more details on the competition, visit the Blind2010 web site by clicking here.

"Children's eyesight at risk"

In the same way parents get their children to brush their teeth and have regular visits to the dentist, they should taske steps to protect their children's eyes from harmful UV and have regular eye checks.

A story in yesterday's Observer newspaper highlights a report that suggests "British parents and teachers are unwittingly putting children's eyes at risk by not making them wear sunglasses and not having their sight tested during the critical first eight years".  All children in the UK have the right to free eye tests every two years.

Diagnosing sight problems early is essential in avoid further problems in later life.  Eye tests can spot problems that could otherwise be thought to be learning difficulties, such as dyslexia, or prevent conditions progressing into untreatable sight loss as the child gets older.

New research by the Association of Optometrists estimates that a million children have an undetected sight problem and almost 70% of schools do not have eye screening.  Whilst most schools insist on hats and sunscreen during hot weather, sunglasses are seen as a fashion accessory rather than helping protect a child's health.  Young eyes are susceptible to UV glare which is a major cause of long term damage in later life. Up to haf of all sight loss in later life can be prevented if cuaght early enough.

"The World Health Organisation estimates that, because young people's eyes are more sensitive to UV absorption, up to 80% of a person's lifetime exposure to UV will occur before the age of 18. Under-12s are particularly susceptible because the clear lenses in their eyes are not yet properly formed and one in five parents does not take any measures to protect their children's eyes."

Quote from The Observer, 22 August 2010

The lack of eye tests can mean vision problems go undetected and the child has difficulty learning and their behaviour may be effected, becoming shy and reserved or over comprensating by becoming loud and disruptive.  With many conditions being easily treated, testing a child's eyesight can be essential for their development as well as their future eye health.

The article lists a number of facts about eye health:

■ NHS sight tests are free to children aged up to 18 in full-time education, and help towards the cost of glasses is available.

■ Children do not need to be able to read to have a sight test, as optometrists can use pictures instead of letters.

■ Only 7% of children aged under 5 are taken to the opticians.

■ 15% of secondary schoolchildren have never had their eyes tested.

■ 63% of parents say their children only wear sunglasses on holiday.

■ An eye test can detect health problems such as diabetes or high blood pressure.

■ As children spend more time outside, their eyes receive on average three times more annual UV exposure than adults.

■ A Transitions Optical survey revealed 90% of British people are unaware of the need to protect their eyes from the sun."

Read the full article by clicking here.

The Blind Me documentary on BBC iPlayer

If you missed the documentary "The Blind Me" on BBC Three last night it is available to view online on the BBC iPlayer for a week.

The documentary is an interesting look at the lives of four teenagers facing the ups and downs of life and coping with blindness.  It's unfortunate that programmes like this are only watched by people who have are themselves, or someone they know, is affected by the subject matter.  The documenatary would show the sighted the everyday problems that the blind face, that most people take for granted.

Click here to go to the BBC iPlayer page.

Disney theme parks, the good and the bad

A couple of news items caught my attention regrading the world famous Disney theme part resorts, relevant to the blind and visually impaired.  They highlight opposing ways that Disney help and hinder the enjoyment of the theme parks for people with visual impairments.

The first is the news that two American visually impaired annual pass holders, Cari Shields and Amber Boggs, are filling a class action against The Walt Disney Company for an alleged violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act.  They claimn a number of policies discriminate against blind and visually impaired people, 9including not allowing costumed staff not being allowed to interact with visually impaired guests who visit the park with their guide dogs.

"Mrs. Boggs and Ms. Shields allege other violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act. They are not seeking monetary damages, but only demand that Disney provide more reasonable accommodations for the visually impaired, such as portable Braille maps of the parks, areas to cage or leave service animals during rides, reduced or free admission for service aides, keyed rather than digital lockers, Braille menus in the park restaurants, and adequate lodging for service animal while visually impaired guests visit the park."

Quote from the PRWeb Online, Visabilty from Vocus web site.  Read more about the story by clicking here.


The second story concerns how Walt Disney World and Disneyland are actively making moves to help the visually impaired (and people with other disabilites) to enjoy their attractions on a more level playing field as the fully sighted.

A newly designed hand-held device gives audio description on attractions, including rides and outdoor areas.  The wireless device can detect the guests location and transmit appropriate information for the area.

• Detailed audio description of key visual elements, including action and scenery, for more than 50 attractions.
• Amplified audio for most theater-type attractions for guests with mild to moderate hearing loss.
• Handheld captioning that enables guests to read captions while enjoying specific rides.
• Activation of closed captioning in pre-show areas where television

Quote from Orlando Attractions web site.  Click here for the full story.

The service is free for disabled guests and Disney and development partners WGNB have patented the device and hope to make the technology available outside of Disney resorts in a variety of other applications such as retail, sports events and museums.  It is already being used in a number of other attraction and will receive the National Society of Professional Engineers 2010 “New Product Award” next month.
Disney does offer other services for disabled guests including brail guide books and maps and accessiblity for wheelchairs and specially designed wheelchairs for sand and aquatic attractions.

Sight matters

This week is National Eye Health Week in the UK (14 to 20 June 2010).

With the slogan "Vision Matters", eye care charities, organisations and health professionals have got together to promote ways of keeping your eyes healthy, the importance of eye care and regular eye tests.

Sight is the sense people fear losing the most, so visit the National Eye Health Week "Vision Matters" web site by clicking here to find out about events and learn about eye tests.

Did you know?

1.8 million people in the UK are living with sight loss. For 53% of these, a simple sight test and new spectacles could really help.*

A sight test can detect early signs of conditions like glaucoma, which can be treated if found soon enough

During a sight test, other health conditions such as diabetes or high blood pressure may be detected.

For healthy eyes, eat well, don’t smoke and wear eye protection in bright sunlight.

Quote from Vision Matters web site

Get involved and tell your friends about the importance of eye checks.  Most vision loss is preventable, so catching problems early is essential.

Bionic vision with-in four years

Researchers in Australia claim that we could see successful "bionic eyes" with-in four years, which could help people with advanced retinal degeneration.

News.com.au reports a prototype for the 98 electrode eye processing system has been showcased at the CeBit Exhibition by experts from the ICT Research Centre of Excellence at the National ICT Australia (NICTA) and could be ready by the year 2014.

A video camera built into a pair of glasses transmits images in real time to a handheld, video processing unit.  Light patterns represented as electrical pulses are transmitted from the unit to a rentinal implant contaimning an array of electrodes.  These electrodes will activate remaining retinal cells that send visual information along the optic nerve to the brain, where the image is interpreted.

Quote from Centre for Eye Research Australia

The NICTA are working on developing a microelectronic chip consisting of more than 1,000 electrodes with a tiny wireless data link, which will be implanted in a patient’s eye.

The intrenwsion is to create a divice that helps blind and visually impaired people in the same way that hearing ainds help the deaf.  Guide dogs and whote canes are useful in helping the blind navigate their way around bit don;t overcomethe problems with over-hanging objects.  The bionic eye will help distinguish such obsticals and help give back independence to people with sight loss.

Read more about ther bionic eye from the  NICTA by clicking here.

First steps to future cure of retina related eye problems?

Reports of the creation of early-stage retinas in the laboratory give hopes for the future development of transplant ready retinas, which could help treat as yet incureable eye conditions such as macular degeneration and retinitis pigmentosa.

Scientists at UC Irvine in the USA have created the first ever three-dimentional tissue structure usining human embryonic stem cells, an eight layer, early-stage retina.  In the process, called differentiation, the stem cells can be directed to become specific cells types  that make up the retina.  Tests are being performed to see if these lab created retinas improve vision in animals before human clinical trials are carried out.

Millions of people could benefit from retinal transplant with macular degeneration being the leading cause of age-related blindness and retinal pigmentose being a common form of sight-loss from an early age.

Read the full story at The Medical News by clicking here.

Guide Dog of the Year 2010 nominations

The Guide Dogs for the Blind Association UK are taking nominations for 2010's Guide Dog of the Year awards.

There are three catagories to find the dog which has helped their blind owner avoid danger in a heroic manner, changed their owners life for the better or has adapted outstandingly to new and unusual situations.  One dog from these winners will be named Guide Dog of the Year 2010.

Beyond the Call of Duty – for dogs that have performed a heroic act, or helped their owner avoid a dangerous situation.

Life Changing – for dogs who have given their owners the mobility and confidence to take on a new challenge; e.g. going to work, trying a new hobby…or something completely different.

Outstanding Work – for dogs whose work is exceptional; e.g. adapting to a new environment or circumstances, or mastering complex skills.

Quote for the Guide Dogs web site
 
For details on how to nominate a dog visit the Guide Dogs web sight by clicking here. 
 
Nominations must be in by 23 June.  Winners will be announced on Wednesday 8 September at a ceremony at the Museum of London, Docklands, London.

Cooking for the visually impaired

A new cookery book has been published with recipes and tips for the visually impaired.

Author, Maxine Turkington, is partially sigted herself and has written the book Cookery for VIPs with over 120 recipes and practical advice for the blind and visually impaired.  Cooking can be a chore with limited vision and it can be all to easy to fall back on less healthy convenience food or expensive takeaway.  Cooking is made pleasuable and tips on where to start and how to be safe and more organised in the kitchen are included in the large print book.

Priced £12.50 plus £2.50 postage and packing from the RNIB web site, 30% of proceeds go the the RNIB.

Click here to order Cookery for VIPs

The car that the blind can drive

Losing my sight has meant I have had to give up driving.  Maybe I need one of these.  Wired.com reports on a new car which is so technologically advanced even blind people can drive.

The dune buggy was developed by undergraduate students at Virginia Tech, as part of a challenge from the National Federation of the Blind.  It tells the driver which way to go and gives a countdown to upcoming corners.  The cars laser range finder estimates distance and various vibrations in a specially worn vest and voice software convey commands to the driver so they know when to turn, break and other actions.

"We are not only excited about the vehicle itself, but also the potential spinoff technologies from this project that could end up helping the blind,"

Quote from Dennis Hong, the director of the Virginia Tech's Robotics and Mechanisms Laboratory on Wired.com

Read the full story by clicking here.

Accessible online book archive

A press release last week from the Associated Press announced a project which plans to put over one million books online for people who have difficulty reading.

The "Internet Archive" in San Francisco have hired hundreds of people to scan thousands of books so they can be put into a digital format that screenreaders can read and make them available to the blind and visually impaired.  The percentage of books even available in audio format is miniscule compared to the number of hard copy textx available to sighted readers.  Only about 5% of published books are converted into an accessible format for the visually impaired.

Brewster Kahle, the organization's founder, says the project will initially make 1 million books available to the visually impaired, using money from foundations, libraries, corporations and the government. He's hoping a subsequent book drive will add even more titles to the collection.

"We'll offer current novels, educational books, anything. If somebody then donates a book to the archive, we can digitize it and add it to the collection," he said.

The problems with many of the digitized books sold commercially is that they're expensive, they're often abridged, and they don't come in a format that is easily accessed by the visually impaired.

Quote from Associated Press

It is usually only profitable, popular books from the last few years that are currently converted into accessible forms.  The Internet Archive "working to get all books online".

Now people unable to read standard books will have a choice unavailable to them before.

Visit the Internet Archive by clicking here.  Most texts are free to read or download though some have restrictions.  They also have free audio, movie and image files and links to projects like the Open Library, which has a list of 20 million books that are already available in accessible formats and where to find or buy them.

UK Election 2010

It's nice to know that my local polling station were more than happy to make it easy for me, a visually impaired person, to vote.  They offered me help and a magnifier so I was able to read the ballot paper, without question.  My "VIP Visually Impaired Person" badge is always useful in situations like that.

To read what rights you have as a disabled voter see you previous post by clicking here.

For the main welfare policies of the main parties that may effect you as a disabled voter read my post here.

You have until 10pm tonight to vote.  Don't miss you chance.

Electric cars to sound like the Millennium Falcon?

Regulators in the European Union, the United States and Japan are considering allowing manufacturers of electric and hybrid cars to emmit an array of sounds, from the usual car engine noise to sci-fi style sounds, to combat the problem that these cars can be eerily silent compared to their petrol engined counterparts.

They could even have their own "signature" sounds so they can be differentiated.  Engine sounds could also help drivers who may feeling disconcerted when accellerating silently.

A recent study by the University of California has highlighed the dangers of these silent cars, especially at low speeds such as pulling away from parking spaces, when running only on their electric engines.  Accidents involving blind and visually impaired people are more likely as they can't hear the danger, like ordinary cars.

The charities Guide Dogs for the Blind Association and the National Association of Local Societies for Visually Impaired people (NALSVI) have been campaigning for a sound to be added to the vehicles to increase safety:

The silent engines of newly introduced hybrid and electric cars and buses pose another safety threat to all those who rely mainly on their hearing to assess whether it is safe to cross the street. While supportive of greener engines, the challenge should be to identify a technology that is both environmentally-friendly and safe for pedestrians, thus benefiting all, say the charities.

Shared Space schemes and silent vehicles affect a wide range of pedestrians: blind and partially sighted people (including those with hearing and other impairments), young children, seniors, runners, cyclists, and any inattentive pedestrian.

Statement from Guide Dogs for the Blind web site

Reports that the cars may make sci-fi sounds like the spaceships from the Star Wars movies might even be a selling point!