|
|
| Medicine Information |
 |
|
|
Treating Lazy Eye in Older Children
Many eye doctors believed until recently that if a child's vision was impaired because of a "lazy eye," the condition could not be corrected past the age of six or seven years. However, a study funded by the National Eye Institute, part of the National Institutes of Health, has found that amblyopia or "lazy eye" treatment can be effective in children age seven through 17. In fact, many of the 517 children studied at 49 eye centers showed improvement in their vision. "Age alone should not determine whether or not to treat," said Michael Repka, M.D., a pediatric ophthalmologist at the Johns Hopkins Children's Center and a co-author of the study. Even teenagers benefit from treatment, said Repka. Amblyopia is a common cause of vision loss in as many as 3% of children in the US. During infancy or childhood, the vision loss occurs when the brain favors one eye over the other. The other healthy eye does not receive brain input, limiting visual development. The most common causes of 'lazy eye" are nearsightedness, farsightedness, or a crossed or wandering eye (strabismus). The reason vision in the amblyopic eye improves is due to the brain's plasticity, says Susan Cotter, O.D., a pediatric optometrist at the Southern California College of Optometry and co-author of the treatment study. Neuroplasticity means the brain can change with learning. By forcing the unused eye to work, the brain will process the sensory information and adapt. As a result, vision improves. Children in the study were divided into two groups, randomly selected. One group wore only prescription classes. The other group either wore glasses and an eye patch or glasses, an eye patch and eye drops. The latter group was also instructed to read, draw, or do other close-up activities as well since "near-vision activities are visually stimulating," says Cotter. The patch, eye drops and close-up work forced the test subjects to use their amblyopic eyes. Children wore the patch for two to six hours per day. Children 12 years and less also used eye drops. However, "eye drops blur the eye all day which is why the teenagers wore only patches, which could be removed while driving," says Cotter. If children in the study could read two more lines on the eye chart with the amblyopic eye, the treatment was considered successful. According to the National Eye Institute, 53% of children in the study ages 7 through 12 who wore glasses and a patch for 2-6 hours per day, and did near-vision activities could read two or more lines on the eye chart after 24 weeks. But only 25% in this age group could do the same. Twenty-five per cent of children ages 13 through 17 who wore eye glasses and a patch had improved vision whereas 23% who wore only glasses improved. Of those children in this age group who had been previously treated for amblyopia, 47% who wore glasses and a patch and did close-up work had improved vision. On the other hand, only 20 % improved who were treated with only glasses. "This study shows how important it is to screen children of all ages for amblyopia," said study co-chairman Richard W. Hertle, M.D., Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh. If children also have strabismus and will undergo surgery to correct the eye muscle imbalance, they should be treated first for amblyopia, says Cotter. "Surgery doesn't help amblyopia. If the child has surgery and amblyopia still exists, one eye with 20/100 vision, for instance, will be blurry; consequently it will be difficult or impossible for the brain to fuse the two images together into one," says Cotter. Atropine eye drops may serve to improve compliance because the child doesn't require monitoring. Adhesive patches are also used to increase compliance in young children as it is difficult for them to peek. "Children can't be monitored all day," says Cotter. Although the adhesive patch is hypoallergenic, some children with sensitive skin experience irritation when the patch is removed. So some doctors allow their patients to switch to cloth patches. Cloth patches with side shields still block vision in the affected eye. The number of hours that the children wore their patch was through self report. "This is a real world, treatment effectiveness study," says Cotter. "I do the same clinically." A new study is planned to learn about the effects of near-vision activities on amblyopia. Sources: Article reviewed by Diana Clarke is a teacher and health educator. Her articles have appeared in newspapers and magazines, such as the San Jose Mercury News and the World of English.
Medicine - Google News |
|
|
|
Alternative Medicine Mexico: Drugs Galore! You are going to find this incredible and I assure you I am not making any of this up: You can waltz into any pharmacy (Farmacia) in Mexico and buy almost anything without a prescription. Except for controlled substances, you can get most anything you want or need simply by asking. Alcohol Rehabilitation Centers - Take An Informed Decision Alcohol rehabilitation centers in the United States offer a wide range of treatment programmes for your recovery from alcoholism. Robotic Future of Hospitals; Pandemic Prevention and Bio-Terrorist Attack There is a huge concern in the medical industry that if a biological weapon were released that those sick might come to the hospitals in such large numbers that before you realized an attack had occurred everyone in every nearby hospital would also be infected. Then of course the hospital itself would be rendered useless and all those already in the hospital no matter what the reason would literally condemned. The biggest issue with this is that those places we have available to help our populations stay well would be immediately and totally useless. For some background on the World Think Tank discussion and on-going subject of bio-terrorism control and isolation, please see this page: Vioxx Recall leads to Vioxx Lawsuits Vioxx is a nonsteroidal anti-inflammagory drug (NSAID) that reduces inflammation, pain, fever, osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis stiffness, and menstrual pain. However, Vioxx has been shown to cause blood clots, heart attacks, stroke, Stevens-Johnson Syndrome, kidney damage and other dangerous and potentially deadly side effects. Top Ten Reasons Why We Hate IBS! Irritable bowel syndrome can be a nightmare?constant diarrhea and terrible stomach pains, or unbelievable constipation and never-ending gas. While it's good to stay positive and keep looking for help, sometimes it's even better to just have a good old moan! Protect Yourself Against the Flu Vaccine! The vaccine industry insists that their vaccines against the flu serve as the key to a healthy winter. Although there has not been a serious flu epidemic for 38 years, their vaccines are prescribed to millions of people each year. You may wonder why perfectly healthy people are injected with a normally harmless bug whose strains mutate from year to year? Although flu vaccines can never be accurate, encouraged by their employers, millions of employees submit to a flu jab each year, trying to avoid the loss of working days. Generic Drugs: How They Cost You Less? If you are wondering why the chemist has charged much less than what you expected then it is not because he has developed sudden liking for you or the government decided to subsidized your medical bill. Medical Error Crisis The unfortunate truth about medical errors is that they plague the poor and uninsured, reflecting the great medical inequality in our country. For those who do not consider medical errors to be a problem, consider this: medical errors kill between 44,000 and 98,000 Americans every year. This reflects the fact that medical errors kill more people per year than breast cancer, AIDS, or motor vehicle accidents. Doctors complain of inflated medical malpractice insurace costs, but medication-related errors for hospitalized patients cost around $2 billion annually. Drug Them and Send Them Out It was around 1986, when my son Lewis was diagnosed of having ADHD. I like using the term "accused" of having ADHD. I really disagree with anyone who goes this route to get the child to learn. Most of the time it's the teachers of our children that does the diagnosing. Is this sane? Should we trust their opinion. The Pharmaceutical Drug Cartel and the FDA According to the Los Angeles Times, the California Association of Physicians and Surgeons, and even the Center for Diseases Control's own admission, well over 100,000 people in this country die each year from "properly" administered prescription drugs. This is absolutely shocking! Zyprexa Side Effects are Deadly: Effects Include NMS Zyprexa is a prescription drug that treats schizophrenia, acute mania and bipolar disorder. It is a psychotropic drug that treats the psychotic disorders of the mind but unlike other drugs for psychotic disorders, Zyprexa is an atypical antipsychotic. Eli Lily, the manufacturer of the drug Zyprexa, has been accused of promoting off-label prescriptions of Zyprexa, many to children, knowing that the FDA would force them to include risk information on the label and that the FDA has not approved the drug for use with children. Risks and side effects of Zyprexa include diabetes, hyperglycemia, pancreatitis, weight gain, tardive dyskinesia, neuroleptic malignant syndrome. The FDA has stated the Zyprexa should not be used if a patient is a child or has ADD, depression, addictions, treating aggressive behavior, or mood elevation, but it continues to be given to these people. Cetyl Myristoleate Seperating Fact From Fiction I am a strong believer in Cetyl Myristoleate for the treatment of arthritis. For the last three years I have been researching and writing about Cetyl Myristoleate. I am constantly searching for new research and contact and interview every doctor I can find that works with it. The purpose of the article is to evaluate the claims made about Cetyl Myristoleate on the myriad of web sites that sell it. It you want more information on the research that documents the effectiveness of Cetyl Myristoleate then do a search for my article, "Cetyl Myristoleate: Science or Speculation". The Ease of Using a Motorized Wheelchair to Improve Mobility No person likes to feel housebound and dependent on others. While people who have been injured or suffering from a debilitating disease may not have full functionality of their motor skills, it is still possible for them to be semi-independent and mobile with motorized wheelchairs and other home medical equipment. It can't be over emphasized how critical that sense of independence can be. Quality, dependable Motorized Wheelchairs and other home medical equipment are the means of transportation that many people choose as their way to get around. Antibiotics 101- What You Absolutely Need to Know Introduction I Hurt All Over... How to Ease Away the Pain of Fibromyalgia! At one moment, a life of activity consumed with enjoyable activities like biking, golfing, going to the movies, out to dinner. Then one day, it's gone. Replaced with constant pain and fatigue. Here's the lowdown on fibromyalgia. Over The Counter Pain Medication: How To Choose The Right Drugs With the recent front-page news about the possible hazards of pain medications, you may be taking a look at your over-the-counter (or OTC) pain medications with a wary eye. While all drugs, including those you don't need a prescription for, can be dangerous, some basic knowledge can help you avoid the pitfalls for the pain relief you need. OxyContin Addiction: Doctors & Drug Lords OxyContin is a narcotic drug, an opiate, that has been approved by the FDA to legally treat chronic pain. Chronic pain is documented medical condition, a progressive disease of the nervous system and spine that causes constant a patient to experience constant, excruciating pain. Chronic pain is caused by the failure of the body's internal pain control systems and is accompanied by changes of the chemical and anatomical makeup of the spinal cord. Left untreated, the condition will spread to unaffected areas. A patient suffering from chronic pain does not produce enough natural opiates, so a pharmaceutical opiate like OxyContin is an effective treatment for the disease. Emollients and Lubricant Drugstore Laxatives Stool Softener Laxatives - Emollients How Distressing is Social Phobia? I remember a friend in college who would blush, sweat, and tremble when required by a teacher to speak in class. A few weeks before the presentation, he'd be anxious, agitated, and could not sleep. Because I was still a student then, I did not have any clue what he was going through. But I knew that something was terribly wrong. Rogue Online Pharmacies: The Internet War Of 2005 Online Pharmacy owners who haven't been working within moral and governmental regulations are in for the ride of their lives. In past months, many of these so called "rogue pharmacies" have either voluntarily shut down or been closed by the powers that be. However, the major illegitimate players have been unable to cover their tracks, and some have been outright irresponsible.
|
| home | site map | |
© 2006 www.elearn-university.org |
