The Schepens Eye Research Institute have discovered a chemical in the eye that triggers non-neuronal cells to turn into progenitor cells, a stem-like cell that can generate new retinal cells. The research is published in the Investigative Ophthalmology and Visual Science journal, and offers hope for patients with damaged retinas due to diseases such as macular degeneration and retinitis pigmentosa.

A study published in the Archives of Ophthalmology has indicated an association between women who take postmenopausal hormones and the risk of developing age-related macular degeneration (AMD), which is the chief cause of blindness and loss of vision among older adults. According to the study led by Diane Feskanich, for women who had taken oral contraceptives, postmenopausal hormones reduced the risk of progression to advanced stages of AMD.

ScyFix has developed a device that treats eye diseases, such as glaucoma and macular degeneration, with electric currents. The clinical trials are currently underway in India and the U.S. The company hopes to be the first to introduce an FDA approved device designed to restore eyesight. Until now, the use of electricity to slow or even reverse the effects of eye diseases has never made it out of a laboratory, said Dr. Thomas Samuelson, a founding partner of Minnesota Eye Consultants.

People suffering from age-related macular degeneration (AMD) have twice the risk of dying from heart attack or stroke, Australian researchers report.

“We found a positive long-term link between AMD and subsequent cardiovascular and stroke mortality in a population of older Australians,” said lead researcher Dr. Paul Mitchell, from the Centre for Vision Research in the Department of Ophthalmology at the University of Sydney. “This was particularly increased for late-blinding cases.”

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