Matilda Ziegler Magazine for the Blind the source for blindness news and information since 1907

Unfortunately, it has nothing to do with the smell of your favorite pair of pants.  With laws going into effect that ban smoking in public places, it seems that legislators may have actually done some good for the public.  What seemed like an obnoxious habit that non-smokers had to deal with that may have been harming our health has now been confirmed as much more harmful than was previously thought.

Researchers have discovered that exposure to secondhand smoke can actually alter your genetic makeup.  For a long time there was a belief that prolonged exposure to secondhand smoke led to an increased chance for lung diseases and even lung cancer, but there was never any clinical proof of why that was occurring.  Now, there’s a smoking gun–no pun intended.

Scientists working at the Weill Cornell Medical College performed a study with both non-smokers and smokers to determine the difference between those who smoke regularly, and those who are exposed to secondhand smoke in the environment.  When the study was completed, it revealed that the non-smokers who only had minimal exposure to cigarette smoke, some of whom only had secondhand exposure, were found to have genetic changes in bronchial tissue that mimicked the tissue of regular smokers.  These genetic changes represent the beginning stages for various lung diseases.  While the study did not follow the subjects long enough to find out what affect those genetic changes had on their lung tissue, more studies are coming in the future.

The most interesting piece of the study was that it revealed how sensitive tissue is to any cigarette smoke at all and that exposure will result in changes at a genetic level.

While the study’s results do seem grim, it may actually help doctors to determine who is genetically predisposed to have an increased risk of lung disease and administer the proper drugs to counteract those symptoms.  This will also add massive amounts of legitimacy to those endorsing public smoking bans who have been saying that secondhand smoke is harmful but simply haven’t had the proof to back that statement up.  It seems that there is no question now.

To read the original article, please go to http://www.time.com/time/printout/0,8816,2012103,00.html

Scientists have recently discovered that by inserting a small sliver of collagen into the eye that it actually encourages other cornea cells to begin to regrow, eventually restoring vision to the patient.  It works as a sort of elemental building block for surrounding cornea cells to begin growth.  They need something to attach to, and since the cornea itself is made of collagen, the collagen implant that is placed in the eye is the perfect structure to make that happen.

This process is incredibly important for a couple reasons.  For one, the process is designed so that the patient’s cells are regrowing and no artificial tissue is being used that might possibly be rejected by the body.  Also, this will allow doctors to treat more patients who have damaged corneas–either through infection or injury–because it does not require any transplant tissue from another person.  With 42,000 people a year receiving cornea transplants, one can only imagine how many more may be waiting on the sidelines who could be treated with this process as well.

While this study is just beginning, their trials have been very successful.  If future trials confirm those positive results, this treatment could realistically become commonplace in a few short years.

This is a very large step in the right direction.  With more research being conducted to eliminate vision loss, it encourages scientists and doctors to experiment on many different types of vision loss so that they can get the full picture, so to speak, on how the eye works and what treatments can be given to ensure that it works properly.

To read the original article, please go to http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20100825/NEWS02/100829917/-1/headlines

When I was younger, I used to always fight with my mother about turning down the volume of everything from my headphones to the television.  Now, it seems that I’m lucky that she won so many of those fights.  A new study reveals that one in five teens have hearing loss.  In fact, since a study done from 1988 to 1994, hearing loss in teens aged 12 to 19 has increased 30 percent–a huge jump.

While the majority of the loss was considered mild, there was a sharp increase in those who experienced a loss of 25 decibels or more.  Doctors couldn’t definitively conclude that an increase of ear infections or volume of music was what caused the increase.  Rather, they believe that the relationship between volume and related side effects has become highly underestimated by today’s youth.

Most teens don’t pay attention to things like tinnitus, a ringing in the ears after they’ve been exposed to loud noises, and that may be the cause for increased hearing loss.  If it doesn’t cause noticeable pain, they may not think that there’s a problem and are less likely to report the issue to a parent or doctor.

Doctors are concerned that increased exposure to loud volumes without any intervention or personal prevention might lead to difficulties with language development and learning in general.

As I’ve gotten older, loud music has become less and less enticing and can, at times, be outright annoying if it lasts for too long.  When I was a kid, I used to listen to my music at a level that would make normal people cringe.  Hopefully today’s teens will grow out of the habit as I have, or else there might be serious issues that they’ll have to address in years to come.  Unfortunately, with hearing, once it’s gone, you can’t get it back.

To read the original article, please go to http://www.aolnews.com/surge-desk/article/teen-hearing-loss-soars-30-percent-in-three-decades/19591439

This article was sent to me by Ziegler reader Danni.  Thanks, Danni!

Results from a new study have found that the drug used to treat epileptic seizures called valproic acid, may halt or actually reverse vision loss caused by retinitis pigmentosa, a disease that affects countless people around the world.  The team who discovered this possibility work at the University of Massachusetts Medical School in Worcester and are planning on conducting specific trials to confirm that this find is indeed true and not a fluke.

Retinitis pigmentosa affects roughly one in four thousand people and normally causes vision loss by age forty.  RP is technically a group of diseases that causes degeneration of the retina and is linked to 40 gene groups, all of which cause different types of RP.  Up until now, the only treatment for RP was to inundate the patient with vitamin A palmitate, which slows the progression of the disease, but is unable to stop it entirely. 

All forms of RP are essentially processes of inflammation and cell death, both conditions that valproic acid is designed to fight against.  During this preliminary study, they administered specific doses of the drug to seven patients who had RP over a time between two and six months.  When the trial concluded, 5 of the patients experienced vast improvements in vision even though their RP had progressed to a point that is normally untreatable.

Now that the preliminary trial has proven to be promising, 2.1 million dollars are being put into a proper study to test the drug against a placebo and hopefully achieve a more concrete result with a larger pool of participants.

It never ceases to amaze me when drugs were created for one purpose but can actually have positive affects in other areas of medicine as well.  It makes you wonder what other drugs could help with many other conditions but simply haven’t been tested yet.  If nothing else, it seems that valproic acid may be the answer to eliminating RP and saving the vision of hundreds of thousands, if not millions of people.

To read the original article, please go to http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20100812/NEWS02/708129760/-1/headlines

If she was a car, the engine, transmission, suspension, brakes, and wheels would have all been replaced.  In the time span of nearly 12 years, Allison John has had all of her major organs transplanted.  Due to a series of serious illnesses that at times had her mere days from death, she received a new liver, kidney, heart, and lungs.  She is the first person in Britain to hold this amazing title.  Frankly, it’s surprising that anyone anywhere else has done this, too.

Now, as if she hasn’t seen the inside of a hospital enough, she has completed her medical degree and will become a doctor.  She says that her wealth of experience with both the procedures and the doctors involved will hopefully help her deal with patients of her own as she begins her new profession.

Her most recent and final procedure, the kidney transplant, almost didn’t happen because the doctors felt she was too weak for general anesthesia.  However, the procedure occurred years into her medical study and, using her knowledge, was able to convince doctors to numb her using an epidural.  The alternative was accepted, but it left her conscious throughout the entire procedure.  To keep herself distracted, she listened to music on her iPod.

As far as her luck goes, Allison considers herself to be very lucky.  It’s difficult to find just one matching organ donor, and she was able to find four.  Now, having been through more than any one person should endure, Allison is looking forward to her career as a doctor and is getting married in the near future as well.

To read the original article, please go to http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-1299589/Woman-ALL-major-organs-transplanted–qualifies-doctor.html?printingPage=true

A collection of Duke University bioengineers announced recently that they have developed a robot that can locate lesions in simulated human organs, accurately navigate a device to the spot of the lesion, and take samples of the tissue all without the help of a doctor.

By using 3D ultrasound pictures, the robot, nicknamed “Biopsy Bot,” can perform its tasks autonomously.  The ultrasound pictures serve as the robot’s eyes and a sophisticated assembly of processors connected to motorized hands allow it to guide instruments into the body of its patient.  In the tests that have been performed so far, the robot has been proven to be 93 percent effective.

The developers claim that the advantage to a system like this is that all of the necessary technology already exists and that the need to start from scratch has been entirely avoided.  The systems can be easily modified, which makes the Duke scientists all the more confident that this is a viable surgical solution in the future.

So what do you think?  Would you be comfortable having your appendix removed, a relatively simple surgical procedure, if it was being done by a robot without any human interaction? 

Personally, that premise is a bit unsettling.  While many surgeons are utilizing specially-designed robotic arms for procedures like heart surgery, they are in control of their movements at all times.  An autonomous robot may not know if it has clipped a vein, or if the anesthesia has worn off and the person is coming back into consciousness.

While this program is in its very infant phases, there are a lot of questions that need to be answered before this could ever be accepted by the general public.

To read the original article, please go to http://www.fastcompany.com/node/1672937/print

It seems that aside from being a reliable time waster, video games also have healing powers.  Just ask six year old Ben Michaels.

Ben suffered from a condition called amblyopia, which is more commonly called “lazy eye,” from the age of four.  Amblyopia is caused by one eye not focusing or aligning equally with the other eye, so the brain chooses to ignore the information received from the eye that is having difficulty.  His vision had decreased in that eye so drastically that doctors believed he would permanently lose sight if corrective measures were not taken. 

His general practitioner recommended Doctor Ken Nischal, who came up with the unconventional treatment method.  The doctor said that Ben should play a handheld video game, specifically Mario Kart on his Nintendo DS.  However, he needed to wear a patch over his good eye, forcing the amblyopic eye to work harder in hopes that it would correct the problems he was having.

After just one week of this treatment method, Ben’s vision improved nearly 250 percent.  He went from not even being able to identify his parent’s faces with his bad eye, to being able to read.  While his vision is far from perfect and there is more work to be done to try and completely correct the problem, this procedure is certainly an interesting way to tackle the issue at hand.

Doctors believe that this type of treatment is successful because video games require rapid eye movement and also train the eye to focus properly.  It is also a much easier treatment to implement because kids already enjoy playing video games.  This does present a slight conundrum for physicians, though, as they cannot positively determine if the success of the treatment is due to the fact that the children are more likely to wear the eye patch if they’re playing video games, or if there is a physiological improvement because of what the video game forces the eye to do.

Either way, it works and works quickly, so the how and why can be dealt with at a later time.

To read the original article, please go to http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-1289186/Boys-eyesight-saved-prescribed-daily-dose-Nintendo-Mario-game.html?printingPage=true

A 7th grade science class has made a discovery that has scientists repositioning satellites and studying pictures like crazy.  So what has them all excited?  A cave, actually.  But it’s a cave on Mars.

Taking part in the Mars Student Imaging Program at the Mars Space Flight Facility in Arizona, the students were analyzing pictures of the Martian surface that were taken by a NASA satellite orbiting the red planet.  At one point, they pointed out a faint black spot on the surface that was later identified as a skylight, a large hole in the roof of a cave.

According to Glen Cushing, a U.S. Geological Survey scientist, the caves were most likely formed by underground volcanic activity that stopped long ago.  Cushing also made sure to tell the students that their discovery was very important, as it was only the second known skylight found on the planet so far.

More detailed pictures are going to be taken of the site in coming months.  The cameras used to take them are so advanced that they may actually be able to see down into the hole from miles above the surface of the planet.

To read the original article, please go to http://news.yahoo.com/s/space/20100621/sc_space/7thgradersdiscovermysteriouscaveonmars/print

The reanimation of dead tissue has always been somewhat of a science fiction dream.  Stories like Frankenstein wouldn’t exist without it.  However, thanks to the Pentagon’s experimental science arm, DARPA, it may not be science fiction any more.

A biochemist named Mark Roth has discovered that if you cut off the oxygen supply to certain creatures in just the right way, they don’t die, and instead fall into a state of suspended animation.  He compares the whole process to a bear’s hibernation, though that does simplify it a little much.

He says that the great advantage to this, which is also the reason that the defense department is so interested in his research, is that if you can induce this hibernation correctly, there is no breathing and there is no heartbeat, but without either of those, wounds don’t bleed.  Thus, injuries that would’ve otherwise been fatal are now very survivable and the brain shuts down, but there is no damage done at all.  “If you were shot,” Roth says, “This is exactly what you would want.”  The key to inducing the hibernation lies in hydrogen sulfide, a substance that binds to cell mitochondria and blocks oxygen from being used by the body.

His research has been carried out on nematodes, which are incidentally very good subjects to start with when trying to discover how certain procedures may affect humans. 

Cleary the defense department is interested because of the possibility to reduce fatalities in the battlefield.  However, Roth states that this research could eventually lead to a greater understanding of this method, and thus a greater control.  Someday, procedures like his may be used to slow diseases like cancer, Alzheimer’s, and heart disease.

Perhaps science fiction will become science fact sooner than we thought.

To read the original article, please go to http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2007/12/zombie-mouse-ma/

Ambah Young is an 18 year old from Australia.  She’s got a two year old daughter and a body image issue.  As is common after child birth, her body just isn’t the way she wants it to look anymore and she doesn’t feel like she has the body of someone her age.  She says that she wants to reclaim her youth, and the easiest way to do that is to alter her body.  Exercise wasn’t giving her the results she wanted and she feels that the surgical corrections will help her get ahead in life.

According to the Australian College of Cosmetic Surgery, it has become common for young women to travel overseas to have these procedures done.  In Ambah’s case, she intends to go to Malaysia.

John Flynn, the surgery chief executive at the Australian College of Cosmetic Surgery is unsure that these procedures are an appropriate measure for someone as young as her.  He said, “She’s probably quite vulnerable in many ways and I think the medical service owes her a duty of care to make sure that the procedures she’s planning to be done are appropriate and there’s a big question mark over that.”  Above and beyond whether or not the surgeries are appropriate, when a person undergoes multiple procedures, the likelihood of complications is greatly increased.

Ambah is using a service dedicated to this type of trip called “Gorgeous Getaways,” one company among a whole budding industry devoted to assisting people in overseas trips to undergo cosmetic surgery.

Ambah is expecting to have a tummy tuck done, as well as breast augmentation and other procedures.  The total cost of her surgeries will come to roughly thirteen thousand dollars.  A friend lent her the money.

This article raises the question: How young is too young to undergo cosmetic surgery?  Now, on the one hand, after the birth of her daughter her stomach was stretched out and the skin lost its elasticity, leaving her with a flap of skin hanging above her waist that diet and exercise couldn’t fix.  If she was just going to have that taken care of, that’s understandable.  However, the breast augmentation and various other procedures are only for cosmetic purposes that don’t deal with the main issue she’s having.  18 years old is very young to be making these kinds of decisions and even if every precaution is taken during the procedures, complications could occur, some of which could be potentially fatal.  With a two year old daughter at home, is it even worth it to risk your life over things that really shouldn’t matter? 

The problem is that sometimes people hear about celebrities having cosmetic surgery done and they begin to think that it’s commonplace, that everyone does it, and that the inherent dangers are no longer present.  It creates a dangerous situation.

To read the original article, please go to http://www.news.com.au/national/year-old-ambah-young-has-cosmetic-surgery-to-feel-young-again/story-e6frfkvr-1225877308611