Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a leading cause of vision loss in the elderly, affecting the macular region of the retina at the back of the eye.

Funding Clinical Trials Share

Clinical trials are an essential step in the road to preventing, treating and, hopefully, curing disease. They test the safety and effectiveness of treatments before they are made available to the public. While clinical trials are necessary to ensure safety, getting a treatment approved by the FDA is a very long and very expensive process.

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The American Academy of Ophthalmology released a statement in August warning of an increase in diabetic retinopathy in Americans over the age of 40. A study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association found those with diabetes or a high risk for the disease - including many minority populations - are especially vulnerable for diabetic retinopathy, which can cause blindness.

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There's good news on the research front for those with severe damage to the surface of the eye, for whom corneal transplants have not been an option. A recently published article in the New England Journal of Medicine describes a successful approach that is being used to restore vision to numerous patients with limbal stem-cell deficiency.