May 8th, 2011 by KerriSparling in True Stories
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So on Sunday night, I finished singing BSparl her bedtime song and leaned in to tuck her into her crib. But because she was giggling and reaching for me, I leaned in to give her an extra hug.
NEVER GO IN FOR THE EXTRA HUG.
Or at least that’s what someone should have whispered in my ear.
Because when I leaned it, she happened to reach up at the same time and her thumb met my eye with such force that it knocked me to my knees. Apparently, her thumb nail scraped off a section of my cornea (or, as my eye doctor said, “You know when you eat string cheese and you pull a section of the cheese off?” Thanks, Dr. S. I will never, ever eat string cheese again. Ever.) and severely damaged my eye. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Six Until Me.*
April 9th, 2011 by KerriSparling in True Stories
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“Everything looks good. No progress is good, actually. Means your eyes haven’t deteriorated any further in the last five months.” Dr S, my eye doctor at the Joslin Clinic, ran her fingers across the keyboard, typing notes into my online file.
“So it’s the same as back in November? When I moved from mild to moderate retinopathy?”
“Right. Still non-proliferative, but the same. Not worse, by any stretch. We’re working with a few spots, a very small bit of leakage, but nothing I’d recommend treatment for, other than watching it closely.”
I let out the breath I didn’t realize I was holding. The fluorescent bulbs in the room were bright and ricocheting off the white walls, making me feel like I was in an avalanche of light. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Six Until Me.*
January 21st, 2011 by Glenn Laffel, M.D., Ph.D. in Health Tips, News
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Last week, Nintendo became the latest consumer electronics maker to warn that kids shouldn’t use their three-dimensional image-based gaming devices because they may have a negative impact on development of the human visual system.
The warning came just a month before the company’s much anticipated release of the 3DS, which is just such a device that features a 3.5-inch screen which can create 3-D images without the need for special glasses. The 3DS is Nintendo’s most anticipated new product since it released the iconic Wii gaming device in 2006.
Sony’s PlayStation3, a similar product that requires glasses to create the 3-D effect, already carries a similar warning, as do 3-D TV sets made by Sony, Samsung, and Panasonic.
Nintendo’s warning applies to kids that are six years old or younger. The Japanese company advised parents to block access to the game machine’s 3-D mode for these kids, while adding that it was okay for them to use the 3DS in 2-D mode. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Pizaazz*
January 13th, 2011 by Medgadget in Better Health Network, Research
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Intraocular pressure is usually measured by applying a force on the cornea using a tonometer. Although sufficiently accurate, tonometers are only used in ophthalmologist offices and so don’t measure intra-day pressures. They also fail with people post cataract surgery that have a thicker cornea. Researchers at University of Arizona have developed a new device that measures intraocular pressure through the eyelid.
From the University of Arizona College of Engineering:
The self-test instrument has been designed in Eniko Enikov’s lab at the UA College of Engineering. Gone are the eye drops and need for a sterilized sensor. In their place is an easy-to-use probe that gently rubs the eyelid and can be used at home.
“You simply close your eye and rub the eyelid like you might casually rub your eye,” said Enikov, a professor of aerospace and mechanical engineering. “The instrument detects the stiffness and, therefore, infers the intraocular pressure.” Enikov also heads the Advanced Micro and Nanosystems Laboratory.
While the probe is simple to use, the technology behind it is complex, involving a system of micro-force sensors, specially designed microchips, and math-based procedures programmed into its memory.
Link: New Glaucoma Test Allows Earlier, More Accurate Detection…
*This blog post was originally published at Medgadget*
September 9th, 2010 by Medgadget in Better Health Network, News, Research
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Yanko Design blog is profiling the Braille Buddy project that aims to develop a simple-to-use tool to help people who’ve lost eyesight to learn Braille.
Braille Buddy has little retractable bumps that code for different letters, a keyboard, and a voice synthesizer that guides patients through different lessons. The voice will read out letters that a patient has to type back in Braille, and the tactile screen will display letters to read and identify.
Yanko Design: My Best Buddy Braille…
*This blog post was originally published at Medgadget*
