At Lifetime Eyecare, we not only keep updated on your vision health, but also on vision news that is circling around the globe. Here is a short summary of a few articles we thought would interest you!
Bono and Revo Start “Buy Vision, Give Sight” Campaign
Bono of U2 and Revo Sunglasses have partnered up to start the “Buy Vision, Give Sight” program. The partnership hopes to raise $10 million to create easier access to eye exams and prescription eyewear for people who live in under-resourced areas. “Thanks to good medical care my eyes are okay, but tens of millions of people around the world with sight problems don’t have access to glasses, or even a basic eye test,” says Bono, who was diagnosed with glaucoma 20 years ago.
Visit the Revo website to find out more.
Estimated 108 Million Living with Correctable Vision Impairment
A new study estimates 101 million people around the world suffer from refractive errors that could be corrected with eyeglasses or contact lenses, and an estimated 7 million are blind due to correctable refractive errors, often in need of cataract surgery. Kovin Naidoo, OD, PhD said “This huge magnitude of vision impairment, so readily corrected, should be of interest to world societies and trigger even greater efforts to bring about correction.”
Zika Virus Now Linked to Retinal Lesions
According to a new study published in JAMA Ophthalmology, the mosquito-borne Zika virus is now linked to retinal lesions in newborns. Its known that the Zika virus can create severe complications when the infection occurs during pregnancy, usually in the form of microcephaly in the newborn. Nearly 35 percent of the babies in the study with microcephaly have also developed vision-threatening lesions, often in both retinas.
Read more on JAMA’s website
Climate Change Can Harm Eyes
The effects of climate change have created new environmental factors that could be harmful to your eyesight. This was the subject of a recent National Institutes of Health symposium. Sheila West, Vice Chair for research at the Wilmer Eye Institute, explains 3 different factors in which climate change can damage your eyes.
Read more on NIH’s Website
