AudioBoo – Facebook for the Visually Impaired

This note is from Alex Nicholls”

Hi John,

Hope you’re well. I have been researching sites that provide useful information to people with disabilities and in particular those who are blind, and I came across the LVATUG blog.

 I thought you might wish to tell your readers more about Audioboo, the social sound network – there are huge numbers of visually impaired people turning to the platform as their social media site of choice. Most people take using the internet, apps and popular social networks for granted. However for people with sight loss, if a tool isn’t accessible, it can make the difference between being able to benefit from using it or simply not… as I’m sure you well know!

I have spoken to a few users, and you can listen to them telling their stories of how Audioboo has changed their lives and the way they communicate. Or, please find a press release below, if you would prefer to publish the story in a more traditional news format.

·         Amy ‘BrailleSnail’ – http://audioboo.fm/boos/1235054-audioboo-i-m-lovin-it

·         Ricky – ‘Caribbean Blindman’ – http://audioboo.fm/boos/1252647-audioboo-audioboo-keredy-andrews-interviews-me-about-the-reason-why-do-i-audioboo-28min-cafe

·         Kevin Satizabal – ‘KevinSatizabal’ – http://audioboo.fm/boos/1280309-audioboo-why-am-i-on-it-and-why-do-i-love-it

I would be happy to set up a conversation with a representative from Audioboo if required, but I look forward to hearing whether this might be of interest to your readers.

 Best wishes,

Alex

For more info: audioboo.fm

3D DigiGlasses in Development in Europe

The DigiGlasses project aims to help this group of visually impaired people by providing them with a glasses like digital tool to convert the real view of the environment to a sharper, more focused picture by increasing contrast and using edge detection.

The plan is to develop a pair of digital “glasses” working with a camera chip, a signal processing unit and a small LCD or LED screen. The captured picture will be analyzed and processed based on the necessary corrections. One of the planned corrections is contrast increasing and edge detection which will help the visually impaired recognize the different objects in their surroundings.

The DIGIGLASSES project is a research project funded by the European Commission with the aim to develop glasses that can correct sight difficulties caused by different eye diseases for the visually impaired. The device to be developed intends to integrate the functions of current visual aid devices (zoom, contrast improvement etc.), and provide a 3D vision for the users customized to the specific symptoms of the users eye disease.

For more info: http://www.digiglasses.eu/node/31

Doctor Writes Guide for Macular Degeneration Eyeglasses

Dr. Randolph C. Kinkade, a Connecticut optometrist and founding member of the International Academy of Low Vision Specialists, has written the Guide for Macular Degeneration Eyeglasses: Low Vision Treatment.  The book helps educate individuals and their doctors about the newest ways to help people see better with macular degeneration and low vision.

For reading and writing there are Prismatic Magnifying Spectacles (PMSs), Spectacle Miniature Telescopes (SMTs) and ClearImage II Reading Microscopes.  They provide higher magnification than regular eyeglasses, often making reading easier.   They do make things better, but they cannot make things perfect warns Dr. Kinkade.

For seeing in the distance (10 feet and beyond), like watching television, driving and seeing people’s faces, new E-Scoop Glasses and Spectacle Miniature Telescopes (SMTs) are available.  SMTs for distance viewing are available in full-diameter and bioptic designs.

“No pair of eyeglasses can eliminate developing blind spots created by macular degeneration, but they do make things larger,  giving you a better chance of seeing and reading,” Dr. Kinkade said.

The Implantable Miniature Telescope (IMT) is another new treatment option for people with advanced stable macular degeneration and is discussed in the book.

An electronic copy of the Guide for Macular Degeneration Eyeglasses: Low Vision Treatment can be requested by emailing    rkinkade@optonline.net     A printed version can be requested at (800) 756-0766.

For more info:

http://www.heraldonline.com/2013/05/10/4850712/doctor-writes-guide-for-macular.html

http://www.lowvisioneyeglasses.com/   Click on FAQ

Nutritional Supplement Recommendations Clarified By The National Eye Institute

The National Eye Institute (NEI) recently revisited its original recommendation of nutritional supplements AREDS for treating age-related macular degeneration (AMD) – daily high doses of vitamins C and E, beta-carotene, zinc, and copper – to test claims that it might be improved.  NEI concluded that there was no overall additional benefit from adding omega-3 fatty acids or a 5-to-1 mixture of lutein and zeaxanthin to the original formulation.

Analysis of AREDS2 showed that participants with a low dietary intake of lutein and zeaxanthin pre-study who took an AREDS formulation with lutein and zeaxanthin during the study were about 25 percent less likely to develop advanced AMD compared to participants with similar dietary intake who did not take lutein and zeaxanthin.

For more info: http://www.medicaldaily.com/articles/15198/20130506/macular-degeneration-nutritional-supplement-recommendations-clarified-national.htm

 

Jim Bohannon show discusses Visual Impairment

On May 8, Jim  discussed visual impairment on his radio show.

There are over six point six million Americans of all ages who are either blind or have a significant vision impairment. Slightly more are female rather than male, and slightly more are under the age of 65 than above. Two-thirds of blind or visually-impaired adults do not have even a high school education, and one-third have incomes that place them below the poverty line. Most tellingly, the unemployment rate for blind and visually-impaired adults is a staggering 63 percent. Living a fulfilled, independent life for these people is an uphill battle. However, more and more, technology is helping make the difference in helping the blind live rewarding and independent lives, both at home and in the workplace. We’ll learn more about blindness, other visual impairments, and how technology is helping to level the playing field with two guests: Charlie Collins, who is visually-impaired himself, the founder and CEO of the firm Vision Dynamics and ophthalmologist Dr. Howard Charles, of New York’s Mount Kisco Medical Group.

They discussed telescopic implants, stem cell research, retinal implants, AMD injections, talking books and various assistive technology.

For more info: http://www.jimbotalk.net/programhighlights?date=20130508

This discussion starts 40 minutes into the program and lasts about 45 minutes.

What it is Like to Have an Artificial Retina

This article is by Gail Johnson.

Elias Konstantopoulos gets spotty glimpses of the world each day for about four hours, or for however long he leaves his Argus II retina prosthesis turned on. The 74-year-old Maryland resident lost his sight from a progressive retinal disease over 30 years ago, but is able to perceive some things when he turns on the bionic vision system.

“I can see if you are in front of me, and if you try to go away,” he says. “Or, if I look at a big tree with the system on I can maybe see some darkness and if it’s bright outside and I move my head to the left or right I can see different shadows that tell me there is something there. There’s no way to tell what it is,” says Konstantopoulos.

A spectacle-mounted camera captures image data for Konstantopoulos; that data is then processed by a mini-computer carried on a strap and sent to a 60-pixel neuron-stimulating chip that was implanted in one of his retinas in 2009.

 

German company Retina Implant, for example, recently completed human tests with its 1,500-pixel implant that does not depend on a camera but instead directly harvests light and transmits that data to remaining neurons (see “Microchip Restores Vision”). A photodiode array replaces the photoreceptors.

Commanding view:California’s Second Sight developed the Argus II system, which sends image data captured by a spectacle-mounted camera to a retina implant.

Some people with artificial retinas can read large letters, see slow-moving cars, or identify tableware. Other patients experience no benefit.

For more info:  http://www.technologyreview.com/news/514081/can-artificial-retinas-restore-natural-sight/?utm_campaign=newsletters&utm_source=newsletter-daily-all&utm_medium=email&utm_content=20130509

AREDS Eye Supplements need a Tweak

A new study by the Journal of the American Medical Association  shows that adding omega-3 fatty acids to the mix probably won’t help, but that replacing beta-carotene with two other nutrients might be a good idea.

Among key results:

• Simply adding omega-3s or lutein and zeaxanthin to the standard AREDS formula did not help or hurt.

• Taking away beta-carotene and reducing the zinc dose (meant to reduce side effects such as urinary tract problems) didn’t hurt.

• Using lutein and zeaxathin instead of beta-carotene produced somewhat better eye protection and no increased risk of lung cancer.  Those supplements were especially effective for people whose diets were low in the nutrients.

     The findings, though they sound complicated, will make counseling patients easier, says Julia Haller, ophthalmologist in chief at Wills Eye Institute, Philadelphia. She had patients in the study. The results suggest that all patients can take the same formula — dropping  beta-carotene and adding lutein and zeaxathin — without worrying about smoking history, she and Chew say. 

   While the supplements don’t prevent advancement of AMD in all patients, Haller says, they are well worth taking.

   “This is a disease largely driven by genetics and aging, and those are two things we can’t do anything about,” she says. “This is something patients can do to slow the progress, put the brakes on the train.”

There’s no evidence the supplements help the vision of healthy adults or people with earlier stages of AMD. The supplements also have not been shown to prevent cataracts, though an additional study published Sunday showed some possible protective effect from the lutein and zeaxathin formula in people with low levels of the nutrients in their diets.

  But Chew says the best advice for most people is to “eat a good balanced diet with plenty of leafy greens and fish.” Such a diet is good for hearts, she says, “and it certainly can’t hurt your eyes.”

Abdhish Bhavsar, a retina surgeon in Minneapolis and a clinical spokesman for the American Academy of Ophthalmology,  notes that smoking is a major risk factor for AMD progression. So for smokers with the disease, the most important advice is to stop smoking, he says:  “What vitamin they take has a much smaller impact.”

For more info: http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/05/05/eye-supplements-macular-degeneration/2134069/