Discovery Of New Gene That Causes Intellectual Disability

....A new study involving Canada's Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) has found a gene connected with a type of intellectual disability called Joubert syndrome. ....

Visual Abilities May Be Improved By Strobe Eyewear Training

..."Our results varied, but stroboscopic training does seem to enhance vision and attention....

For example, after training with the eyewear, participants were more sensitive to small amounts of motion. They also were better able to pick up visual details that were only available for about one-tenth of a second. Preliminary data also suggest a possible improvement at a dribbling skills test with the varsity soccer players.

The results show the eyewear does affect vision performance, but there is still much more to learn, said Mitroff, whose main body of research concerns the ability to see hidden objects in displays, such as security scans or radiological films. More research is needed to figure out how little or how much exposure to the eyewear has an effect, how long that effect may last and which skills are affected most.....

Surgical Outcomes in Convergence Insufficiency-Type Exotropia

.....Successful outcome in convergence insufficiency (CI)-type exotropia was closely related to the patients' response to monocular occlusion. In patients with CI-type exotropia maintained after monocular occlusion, unilateral resection-recession based on near-distance measurements is recommended......

Comments: Why would you want to do surgery on a CI? Unless the angle is huge....I would use optometric vision therapy (OVT) first...expecially since OVT has been shown to be quite effecive. DM

Functional Benefits of Adult Strabismus Surgery

The most common functional benefits from strabismus surgery in the adult patient are restoration of binocular vision and elimination of diplopia and/or a compensatory head posture. Adult patients with chronic strabismus have been thought to have the potential to achieve only a cosmetic result from surgery. ..... several studies have shown that unexpected sensory fusion is possible ...

Comments: For decades ophthalmology has been saying you can't change adults' vision function status...but now it seems you can. Please note that there are always risks to surgery....also note that there are no (at least none I can find) placebo controlled, randomized, prospective NEI supported clinical trials that show strabismus surgery is effective and that its outcomes last for any length of time. DM

Additive Neurocognitive Deficits in Adults with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and Depressive Symptoms

....Depressive symptom severity was significantly correlated with processing speed, verbal memory performance, and shifting in the ADHD and ADHD + DEP groups. Results suggest that the co-occurrence of ADHD and depressive symptoms in adults is associated with additional neurocognitive impairment.....

One Eye or Two: A Comparison of Binocular and Monocular Low-Contrast Acuity Testing in Multiple Sclerosis

.....Binocular summation of acuity occurs in MS but is reduced by optic neuritis, which may lead to binocular inhibition. Binocular summation and inhibition are important factors in the QoL and visual experience of MS patients, and may explain why some prefer to patch or close 1 eye in the absence of diplopia or ocular misalignment....

Traumatic Brain Injury Survivors Network

A message to all members of Traumatic Brain Injury Survivors Network Development Project 

 

BRAIN INJURY RADIO - HOSTED BY LEE CARLSON MONDAY MAY 30 - 7:PM PACIFIC TIME http://www.blogtalkradio.com/braininjuryradio/2011/05/31/using-creativity-to-heal--hosted-by-lee-carlson Call in number to speak with the host (424) 243-9540  if you want to be a guest please call in 10 minutes early

Visit Traumatic Brain Injury Survivors Network Development Project at: http://tbisurvivorsnetwork.ning.com/?xg_source=msg_mes_network

New PubMed Journal:Biomedical Imaging and Intervention Journal

Biomedical Imaging and Intervention Journal

    ISSN: 1823-5530 (electronic)

    URL: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/journals/1203/

    Archive includes volume (2005) to the current issue

    Note: There is no embargo delay for this journal

RISK FACTORS FOR BEHAVIORAL PROBLEMS IN FETAL ALCOHOL SPECTRUM DISORDERS

....Children and adolescents prenatally exposed to alcohol faced greater risk of substantive behavioral problems 1) if they were less visibly alcohol affected and 2) the longer time they had spent in residential care. The results underscore the clinical importance of appropriate services and care for less visibly affected children with FASD and highlight the need to attend to children with FASD being raised in institutions.....

In Late Teens The Pace Of Brain Development Is Still Strong

.....The brain changes during the teen years, for instance by pruning away connections that no longer seem needed. By measuring the brainwave signals of sleeping teens ages 15-16 and again a few years later, researchers found that the process does not appear to slow as teens approach adulthood. ....

Cost-effectiveness of Early Treatment for Retinopathy of Prematurity: Free PDF

.....Early treatment of retinopathy of prematurity is both efficacious and economically desirable. Because of  the high lifetime costs of severe visual impairment, the early treatment strategy provides long-term cost savings.....





Pediatrics 2009;123:262-269

Visual Perception And Attention Can Be Changed By Passive Stimulation

....The gold standard to achieve a lasting change in behaviour and perception is by means of training and practice, which intensively stimulates the brain" ..... "In case of learning through passive stimulation, training is replaced by stimulus exposure, but in order to be effective, it has to conform to specially adapted timing." As the scientists have shown, visual perception is impaired after slow visual stimulation, whereas rapid stimulation leads to improved perception. ..... The changes were remarkably stable, as the effects remained unchanged for ten days.

Optometry & Vision Development: The Dedicated Dr. John Streff Issue

I just had an opportunity to do the final review of  the next issue of Optometry & Vision Development volumne 42 #2, 2011. This issue is dedicated to Dr. John Streff, a pioneer of developmental optometry and features many of his articles. It will be going to press shortly. While we wait for the online version...or for it to arrive at our office via snail-mail here's the Table of Contents to wet your appetite!


Editorials
Mistakes Were Made (Yes by You!)
Dominick M. Maino, OD, MEd, FAAO, FCOVD-A

Dr. John Streff: ICO Foundations
Arol Augsburger, OD, MS, FAAO

What Was So Special?
Brenda Heinke Montecalvo, OD, FCOVD, FAAO

Remembering John Streff
Glen T. Steele, OD

John Streff - A Photographic Tribute

Dr . John Streff at the Gesell Institute
Dominick M. Maino, OD, MEd, FAAO, FCOVD-A

Articles
Visual Skill Areas
John W. Streff, OD

Optometric Care for a Child Manifesting Qualities of Autism
John W. Streff, OD

Optical Effects of “Plano” Prisms with Curved Surfaces
John W. Streff, OD

Application of Lenses for the Myopic Individual
Richard J. Apell, OD, and John W. Streff, OD

Retinoscopy Measurement Differences as a Variable of Technique
John W. Streff, OD and Verne E. Claussen, OD

Viewpoints: The Value of Observation
John W. Streff, OD

Literature Review

Current Eye & Vision Science Literature
David A. Goss, OD, PhD, FAAO, FCOVD-A

Practice Management

Deep Dive Drill Down into an EHR Implementation Roadmap
Christopher Grant

Handling Difficult and Awkward Situations
Toni Bristol

“ Building Your Ideal VT Practice” Part 3 Starting and Growing a Therapy-Only Office
Thomas Lecoq, Amee Lecoq

NewsMakers
Call for Papers - Call for Photographs

iPad EMR Apps: A Guide to Electronic Medical Records

I just received info about how iPads are being used in medicine. iPads are gaining ground in the healthcare industry and many hospitals and physicians are looking into adopting Apple tablets and looking into iPad-based EHR options. Michael Koploy of the Software Advice blog sent me this info...

------

There are there different type of electronic health record systems that work on the iPad: web-based EMRs, remote access EMRs, and native iPad EMRs. All of these systems have their own positives and negatives. Web-based EMRs are often ONC-ATCB certified (and can help physicians and hospitals receive government incentives!), but are often not made to use Apple's iOS operating systems. Remote access EMRs work just fine, but again, they are made to run Windows operating systems and appear as such on the iPad. Native iPad EMRs are the best iPad EMR solution, but as of today, none are certified by the ONC-ATCBs. This may change, though, as iPads gain even more popularity.....

Thanks for the heads up on this Michael.... I just read the article and it is one I would recommend to all docs.  It's interesting that one of the vendors listed is NextGen. This is the EHR used by NOVA and is the one being instituted at the Illinois Eye Institute where I work. I'm going to read all about the NextGen app right now! DM

Parents Active for Vision Education

Do your children have learning related vision problems, binocular vision problems, vision information processing problems, eye turns and/or amblyopia? Watch this video. Click on the title above for more information about PAVE! DM

ICO, Graduation, Speech-a-fying and Singing!

The Illinois College of Optometry recently held its commencement ceremonies at the Rockefeller Chapel on the University of Chicago campus. It was an awesome day! The sky was dark and overcast, but the smiles on everyone's face brighten the world. If you watch closely, you will not only see the smiles on the graduates' faces, but you will also see a certain blogger I know give the Alumni Welcome to the new graduates as the newest alumni of ICO and direct the Graduate and Faculty Choir singing ICO's alma mater. An incredible day. Click above to watch this video. DM

Self measure your PD for $.99

   Sunmore Systems, a U.K.-based software developer, is introducing Pupil Meter, an iPhone app designed for consumers who purchase glasses online. An iPad version, Pupil Meter Pro, is aimed at the professional optometrist. (From the OD2OD newsletter courtesy of Dr. Mike Cohen) 

PD FOR $.99:

        According to Sunmore, the Pupil Meter accurately measures pupillary distance.  The Pupil Meter Pro can measure binocular and monocular PD, seg height and optical center. PD measurement displayed is equivalent to far PD. 

The price of the basic app to a consumer is $0.99 and the price of the “PRO” app to ECPs is $9.99.

Comments: If you do not receive Mike's email newsletter...well, you should. click on the title above to learn more. DM

New Research Shows Promise For TBI Treatment

.....identifying drugs that can reduce the accumulation of proteins in the brain that are a result of traumatic brain injury and thus halt the progression of the injury. It is the focal accumulation of an abnormal form of the tau protein, ...., that causes central nervous system dysfunction. ..... Currently there are no drugs available to stop, or even slow, tau production or aggregation. The identification of such drugs is an urgent medical and societal issue. .....

April Issue of AOANews: Quotes this Blogger!

The April issue of the AOANews (American Optometric Association) was kind enough to quote me in the 3D Vision story (page 1,20) and to feature a story about all the optometrists who were inducted into the National Academies of Practice in Washington, DC recently (page 16 story and photo). My thanks to all in the AOA. To read these stories and more click on the title above. DM

ICO ALUMNI COUNCIL PRESIDENT’S REMARKS to the 2011 Graduates

Illinois College of Optometry

ALUMNI COUNCIL PRESIDENT’S REMARKS

to the

Class of 2011

Last weekend as the President of the Illinois College of Optometry's Alumni Council, I had the honor of speaking to not only to the 144 ICO Graduates...but also the other 1000 attendees of ICO's recent Commencement Ceremony held at Rockefeller Chapel  University of Chicago this past Saturday. So after the processional, the bag pipers, the big speeches and the handing out of diplopmas....I said.....

On behalf of the Illinois College of Optometry Alumni Council and the 8000 member Alumni Association, I congratulate you on your incredible achievement. As new graduates, you are now a member of the ICO Alumni Association. Welcome! Welcome! Welcome! With your hard work and ICO’s guidance you have the best Optometric education in the nation. You have the knowledge and credentials to become very successful personally, professionally and fiscally. We hope that you will often reflect upon your wonderful experiences at ICO. May the voices of the faculty, images of ICO’s buildings, and most importantly, the ICO people who have meant so much to you always remain within your hearts and minds. Your education does not stop upon graduation. Education is a life-long endeavor. Be proud of your accomplishments and remain involved in your chosen profession and supportive of your alma mater. You are our future. You will determine the future of our profession. Remember fondly where it all began. The Illinois College of Optometry and its Alumni Association are here to help you achieve your goals.

Now, when this ceremony is over and you are fully fledged alum, I want you to take your smart phone, go to Facebook, and LIKE the Illinois College of Optometry Facebook page. When you do this, the Alumni Council President will donate $1.00 for each alumni “LIKE” and you can already begin your contributions of time, talent and a bit of my treasure to ICO. Congratulations. Good luck. And Thank you

Optometric Vision Therapy: Bunt Ball

The Bunt Ball optometric vision therapy procedure may be used in the doctor's office or by the optometrists' patients as an out of office at home therapy technique. This procedure improves hand-eye coordination, visual pursuits, self-control of motor activity, motor planning, motor accurracy and more. This video has been placed in the public domain and may be freely distributed for non-commerical purposes only and should be used under the guidance of your family optometrist. Questions? Contact Dr. Dominick Maino at [email protected]. Copyright 2011 Dominick M. Maino

Children Recall Very Early Memories, But Lose Most Of Them Later On

....Young children can remember their earliest years, but cannot recall most of them later on, ....The majority of adults cannot remember anything about their lives before they were three or four years old.....

Contact Lens Wearers Are Significantly Non-Compliant Before, During, And After Contact Lens Wear

.....Contact lens wearers are significantly non-compliant in virtually all the active steps involved in soft contact lens wear, including hand washing, case hygiene, lens disinfection and following the recommended lens replacement schedule, according to new data on patient attitudes and behaviors regarding compliance with soft contact lenses. ....

Comments: Tell me something I don't know! With due deference to all my colleagues who are expert contact lens people, I could never understand why someone would, upon their own volition, stick a piece of plastic in their eye. This could be because as an optometry student I tried a million different CLs and none seemed to work for me...remember however, that that was back in the contact lens stone age when dinosaurs still roamed the Earth!

The patients that I interact with who are contact lenses wearers, I usually tell them something like: "You are just renting these contacts. If you do not abide by the lease (you know...all the things they are supposed to do to be happy and healthy CL wearers that they typically don't do), I will evict you from the lenses!" I actually went to a teenager's house once to evict her from her lenses because I was sure she was going to loose an eye if she kept wearing them the way she was wearing them. (Mom and dad were friends.) She then started to be much more compliant.

The best way to improve compliance? Research shows you need to get the patient to like you. Yep, it's that's easy....and yet sometimes, that hard. OK all you CL wearers...do what your doc tells you to do. OK all docs...be nice...get the patient to like you! DM

Healthy Vision Month, May 2011

...an estimated 14 million Americans are currently visually impaired due to eye diseases and disorders, and this number continues to grow as the population ages. Of adults aged 40 and older, more than 4 million currently have diabetic eye complications, more than 2 million have glaucoma, and more than 1.75 million have age-related macular degeneration. Millions of Americans have common, correctible vision problems such as nearsightedness, farsightedness, presbyopia, and astigmatism. The prevalence of nearsightedness alone has increased 66 percent in the past 30 years, according to a 2009 NEI study. ...

Comments: Eye disease diagnosis and treatment is certainly important. Don't forget that the #1 cause of treatable visual impairment worldwide is uncorrected refractive error. It's amazing what a simple pair of glasses can do to improve the world! DM

LifeSaver Cards BI (Divergence): Optometric Vision Therapy Procedure

The LifeSaver Cards are often used to improve eye coordination as a part of an optometric vision therapy program. This video describes how to use the LifeSaver Cards Base In to improve digergence skills.

The Base Out LifeSaver Cards Video can be found here.

This video was developed by the students of Dr. Dominick M. Maino and may be freely used for non-commercial purposes.

These videos has been placed in the public domain and may be freely distributed for non-commerical purposes only and should be used under the guidance of your family optometrist. Questions? Contact Dr. Dominick Maino at [email protected] Copyright 2011 Dominick M. Maino

Long-Term Surgical Outcome of Partially Accommodative Esotropia

Partially accommodative esotropia is an acquired strabismus characterized by high hyperopia, a normal AC/A ratio, and a deviation that responds only partially to spectacle correction. .... This retrospective study was done to determine the risk factors for a poor surgical outcome, and to evaluate the efficacy of hyperopic spectacle reduction in the long-term management of consecutive exotropia. Of the 108 patients enrolled, 19% had a residual esotropia, 37% were surgical successes, and 44% developed consecutive exotropia. ....The high rate of consecutive exotropia following standard surgery suggests that augmented surgery for partially accommodative esotropia is highly likely to result in overcorrection.

Comments: Surgery for strabismus can have very poor outcomes. Where are the placebo controlled, double-blind, prospective, randomized clinical trials to support surgery for strabismus? Why do 3rd parties pay for this procedure when it's outcomes are so variable? Why do OMDs perform this procedure if they do not have the NEI supported clinical trials to produce the "evidence based medicine" needed to justify the time, expense and potential risky outcomes (even if death is unlikely....this is a surgical procedure that requires general anesthesia)? This article is available free by clicking on the title above. DM

Illinois College of Optometry Name that Seat Campaign

 When I went to ICO the 4th year classroom was where Pediatrics is now. In the 80's the new lecture center was built....twenty years later...the sound system is awful....the HVAC is always too loud...and it is never comfortable in there...and if you are the one lecturing...well....let's not even go there. Today students and faculty and ICO's CE lectures need a state of the art facility. This is it!! DM

Join us today. Be a part of ICO history. Honor a loved one, colleague or family member...name a seat for them....or even yourself! It will be a donation that will give for decades. Click above to watch movie. DM

Autistic Kids Learn To Survive, And Thrive, In College

.....In many ways, Mark Heim is a typical senior at Colorado State University. He has the kind of smart humor you'd expect from someone who excels in computer science, engineering and math; his T-shirt reads, "Department of Redundancy Department."...But as a student living with Asperger's syndrome,... the everyday social interactions of college life can be awkward. Heim is part of a new influx of kids with autism who are heading off to college, creating a new demand for college services to help students with autism fit in, graduate and find jobs.....

Optometry's Meeting: Be There!

.....On the opening day of Optometry’s Meeting®, five innovative societies will offer attendees the chance to increase their knowledge in specific areas of optometry. They will hear from experts in dry eye and ocular surface disease, glaucoma, the retina and vision therapy.


Participating societies include:
•College of Optometrists in Vision Development: www.covd.org
•Optometric Glaucoma Society: www.optometricglaucomasociety.org
•Ocular Surface Society of Optometry: www.ossopt.com
•Optometric Retina Society: www.optometricretinasociety.org
•Vision Leads Foundation: [email protected]....

Having Both Autism and Epilepsy Linked to Raised Death Rates

....People with both autism and epilepsy have a much higher death rate than those with autism alon.....Researchers examined brain tissue donated to the Autism Speaks Autism Tissue Program, and found that 39 percent of the donors with autism also had epilepsy, which is significantly higher than the estimated rate of epilepsy among the general autism population.... and found that people with both autism and epilepsy have an 800 percent higher death rate than those with autism alone...

Children, Adolescents Taking ADHD Medications At No Greater Risk Of Severe Cardiovascular Events

....Despite recent concerns that medications for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder... could increase the risk of cardiovascular events in children and adolescents, an observational study ..... finds they are no more likely to die from a severe cardiovascular event than those who do not take the drugs. ....

The Brain Performs Visual Search Near Optimally

....This ability to recognize target objects surrounded by distracters is one of the remarkable functions of our nervous system.  ...."Visual search is an important task for the brain. Surprisingly, even in a complex task like detecting an object in a scene with distracters, we find that people's performance is near optimal. That means that the brain manages to do the best possible job given the available information....."....

"Like" the Illinois College Facebook Page and Raise Money for ICO!!

If you are a graduate of the Illinois College of Optometry (ICO) and have not gone to the ICO Facebook page and "Liked" us....if you do so now, a certain ICO Alumni Council President I know will donate $1.00 for every new "Like" by an Illinois College of Optometry alum up to 1200 "Likes".

You must be an ICO graduate to take advantage of this very special offer!! Support ICO. Do it today. Do it now! Do it. Thanks.

Dominick M. Maino, OD, MEd, FAAO, FCOVD-A, (aka ICO Alumni Council President)

Illinois College of Optometry Facebook Page

BTW if you are not an alum....well, you can "Like" us too even if no $$$ amount is associated with the Liking!

New Journal added to PubMed:Pediatric Reports

The following new journal from PAGEPress has been added to PubMed Central.
Pediatric Reports
ISSN: 2036-7503 (Electronic)
URL: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/journals/1528/

Archive includes volume1 (2009) to the current issue

Note: There is no embargo delay for this journal