Vision therapy techniques can correct not only visual problems, but also cognitive, emotional and physical difficulties. Based on the pioneering work of Dr Melvin Kaplan, this research-based book explains the basis of vision therapy, who it can help, and the outcomes it can bring. Visual perceptual problems can cause an array of difficulties, from reading and writing, to issues with balance, clumsiness, and tunnel vision. Severe symptoms can lead to a diagnosis of anxiety, depression, learning disability or even autism. In this groundbreaking book, Dr Kaplan shows how these symptoms point to interventions that change the way that the eyes process information, permanently counteracting visual deficits and impacting on behaviour. Case studies demonstrate how to plan and implement visual management programs according to a patient's symptoms, illustrating the wide range of life-changing results that vision therapy can achieve for people of all ages, regardless of severity of symptoms. Dr Kaplan also shares his expert knowledge of ambient yoked prisms - a tool that transforms light to alter visual stimulation, dramatically transforming perception and cognition. This accessible book presents readers - including parents and families, clinicians, and other professionals working with individuals with visual perception problems - with a comprehensive introduction to the benefits and methods of vision therapy.

Dyslexia affects about 10% of all children and is a potent cause of loss of self-confidence, personal and family misery, and waste of potential. Although the dominant view is that it is caused by specifically linguistic/phonological weakness, recent research within the field of neuroscience has shown that it is associated wtih visual processing problems as well. These discoveries have led to a resurgence in visual methods of treatment, which have shown promising results. 'Visual aspects of dyslexia' brings together cutting edge research from a range of disciplines - including neurology, neuroscience, and the vision sciences, to present the first comprehensive review of this recent research. It includes chapters from leading specialists which, in addition to reporting on the latest research, show how this knowledge is being successfully applied in the development of effective visual treatments for this common problem. Sections within the book cover the role of eye movements in reading, visual attention and reading, the neural bases of reading, and the relationship between visual stress and dyslexia. Making a valuable contribution in helping us develop a deeper understanding of dyslexia, this is an important book for those in the fields of psychology, neuroscience, and education.

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the leading cause of blindness in individuals older than 65 years of age. The authors of this book discuss the role of genetics, sunlight, diet, cardiovascular factors, smoking and alcohol as possible risk factors for AMD. Furthermore, the dry form is more common and accounts for about 85-90% of AMD patients in the USA, while Japanese AMD patients predominantely progress to wet-form or polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy (PCV). The function of a serine protein gene, HTRA1, in wet-form AMD patients is explored in detail. Conversely, the final chapter evaluates the therapeutic effects of high omega-3 fatty acids as anti-inflammatory agents in dry AMD patients. The preliminary findings indicate a promising therapeutic regime for dry AMD and perhaps for other retinopathies as well.

Retinopathy of prematurity is a disease caused by abnormal vessel regression of the retinal vasculature that affects premature infants with low birth weights. Despite significant improvements in screening guidelines and treatment modalties, ROP is still the leading cause of reversible paediatric blindness worldwide. The authors of this book explore the possibility of applying the concept of fractal analysis to images of retinal blood vessels for morphometric analysis and classification; the quality of life for children with retinopathy of prematurity; the differences in ethnicity and socioeconomic status that influence the prevalence, risks, outcome and management of ROP; the outcome and prognostic factors of the intravitreal administration of bevacizumab for ROP; the outcomes of transpupillary diode laser photocoagulation for ROP; new therapeutic strategies for treating ROP and late complications that can develop and persistent into later childhood and even adult life (for example, long-term refractive errors, amblyopia, strabismus and optic nerve abnormalities).

This book is for people with glaucoma and their families and friends. It provides information about open-angle glaucoma, the most common form of glaucoma. This book is also for individuals with cataracts, age-related macular degeneration, and diabetic retinopathy. It answers questions about the causes and symptoms of these diseases and discusses diagnosis and types of treatments available.

Macular edema is a serious eye disorder that can be seen in many conditions. Central retinal vein occlusion (CRVO) and branch retinal vein occlusion (BRVO) are frequent causes of decreased central visual acuity (VA) related to the appearance of macular edema (ME) and ischemia. This book discusses the risk factors, treatment options and long-term outcomes of macular edema. Some of the topics discussed include the management of diabetic macular edema; management of macular edema secondary to retinal vein occulsion by intravitreal bevacizumab; and macular edema in important tropical infections.

This series presents original leading edge results in the field of eye research. The focus in this compilation is on the anatomy of the cornea as well as the causes, symptoms and treatments for uveitis. Topics discussed include conjunctival-limbal autografts; gene therapy for corneal diseases; uveitis in juvenile idiopathic arthritis; retinal vasculitis in rheumatic disease; Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada disease and the clinical and immunopathological highlights of non-infectious uveitis.

A cataract is a clouding that develops in the crystalline lens of the eye or in its envelope, varying in degree from slight to complete opacity and obstructing the passage of light. This book reviews research in the field of cataracts inclusive of the application of virtual reality in cataract surgery simulation for ophthalmology training and an analysis of the surface properties of four different intraolcuar lens materials currently used in cataract surgery. Also discussed, herein, is the future of cataract surgeries; disability glare effects and cataracts as a problem of road safety in driving; the pharmacological treatment of ocular inflammatory diseases; among others.

It is well-known that the most common and largely used assistive technology among the visually impaired community is the white cane. Many technologies have been proposed as alternative assistive devices to improve the autonomous mobility of people affected by visual diseases. Nevertheless, whatever is the physical quantity used by these active assistive technologies - mainly ultrasonic or optical sensors - they present many limitations and none of them adequately meets the international guidelines defined for the electronic travel aids and the specific requests coming from the visually impaired community. The first chapter of this book aims to provide an overview of the existing travel aids for people affected by visual diseases, discussing pros and cons of available technologies. The aim of the next chapter is to convince the reader that solutions based on mobile visual aid systems will answer a critical societal challenge. Chapter Three explores the use of electromagnetic technology in support of visually impaired athlete runners. Chapter Four describes the present state of mobile technologies development taking into consideration the point of view of visually impaired people. Finally, the goal of the concluding chapter is to relate how the audio-description has been produced as a communication accessibility resource.

Sleep disorders are increasingly recognized to contribute to medical morbidities and mortality. More and more ocular diseases are linked to sleep disorders, among them in particular being obstructive sleep apnea. Management of these ocular diseases requires a good understanding of such association and often a collaborative approach with sleep disorder specialists. On the other hand, many patients with sleep disorders have concurrent ocular disorders. With this in mind, timely referral to ophthalmologists would greatly alleviate comorbidities and improve the quality of life in such patients. Eye Diseases Associated with Sleep Disorders emphasizes the underlying pathophysiology of each ocular disorder in the respective setting of sleep disorders. A typical case scenario is presented at the beginning of each chapter. The specific ocular disease is then described in reader-friendly terms to facilitate an overall understanding of the condition. The authors finally review the accumulated evidence regarding the association between ocular diseases and sleep disorders, from discussing possible underlying pathophysiologies to the analysis of clinical study data. With a good understanding of the pathogenesis, this book helps bring together primary care clinicians with eye care specialists for managing patient morbidities in an easily digestible figure-rich format.

This book is a collection of relevant topics dealing with recent advances in ophthalmology research. The selected review studies present novel investigation and prospects in ophthalmology concerning ocular stem cells, neurodegeneration, immunology, angiogenesis treatment, and ocular blood flow. All the chapters are written by experts in the selected fields. Discussed topics include novel treatment strategies for major causes of blindness such as age-related macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy, and retinal vein occlusions. In particular, the pharmacokinetic behaviours of the available anti-VEGF medications and their characteristics in conjunction with mathematical modelling used to explain the results seen in clinical trials and to predict the responses in still untested circumstances; and the specifics of the ocular vascular system and an overview of the currently used methods of ocular blood flow are reviewed. Novel applications and technology in ocular circulatory research are addressed; correlation of the pathogenetic mechanisms of two relevant neurodegenerative diseases glaucoma and Alzheimer's disease; the possible link in the context of the axon, dendrite, and synapse and the idea of compartmentalised degeneration of retinal ganglion cells in glaucoma is discussed; the promoters of innate immunity of the ocular surface is presented in context of dry eye syndrome; and the different aspects of stem cell use in treating ocular diseases, including ongoing research efforts and future prospects. This collection is intended for ophthalmologists, as well as for medical doctors from other specialities and medical students who have interest in the field of ophthalmology. The information presented in this book has both scientific and clinical relevance for the reader. This book has been conceived and prepared with the expectation that it would add new insights and inspiration for clinicians and researchers who deal with patients suffering from ophthalmic diseases.

This book presents topical research in the study of macular degeneration, including the correlation of phenotype and genotype in age-related macular degeneration; role of anti-VEGF therapies in neovascular AMD; the biochemical and genetic studies that support the treatment of the pathogenic retina and ocular blood flow in degenerative myopia.

Conjunctivitis (commonly called "pink eye" or "Madras eye" is an inflammation of the conjunctiva (the outermost layer of the eye and the inner surface of the eyelids), most commonly due to an allergic reaction or an infection (usually viral, but sometimes bacterial). In this book, the authors discuss allergic disorders of the conjunctiva as well as novel drug delivery approaches in dry eye syndrome therapy. Allergic contact conjunctivitis caused by ophthalmic preparations is explored and examined also are the clinical signs of conjunctivitis.

The modern physiology of vision has saved up many facts which contradict the accepted approach to mechanisms of primary visual perception. It had always been considered that an image of some object primarily constructed by the eye cornea and lens first unequivocally is projected to the matrix of photoreceptors (rod and cone cells), and then is exposed to processing in several layers of the nervous cells arranged behind them. However, the optical image is actually projected to photoreceptors through the layers of nervous cells, i.e. our retina is inverted. This book offers a new model of primary visual perception which is well co-ordinated with morphological and experimental data and eliminates the arisen contradictions.

The Ocular Biomechanics Group was established in 2002 with one clear target; to develop a virtual reality model of the human eye that can be used effectively and reliably to predict ocular response to surgery, injury and disease. This ambitious, and seemingly illusive, target helped plan our activities over the last 6 years and will still be focusing our efforts as we strive to create the necessary knowledge using experimental methods, build the predictive tools using programming and analysis means, and validate the findings in both the laboratory and the clinic. This book presents an overview of our biomechanical studies from laboratory material characterisation to finite element numerical simulation. The chapter describes what has been achieved and points at the remaining gaps in our knowledge. It explains that while much remains unknown in ocular behaviour, we are now in a good position to use available knowledge to progress predictive modelling and use it in actual applications such as improving the accuracy of tonometry techniques, planning of refractive surgeries and design of contact lenses. The discussion focuses on the cornea, although scleral biomechanics receive some mention. The chapter also refers to microstructural, biomechanical and topographic studies conducted by other research groups. Coverage of these studies has been necessary to provide a more complete image of current understanding of corneal biomechanics.

The consequences of aging populations combined with the strain to the human eye caused by computers and widespread poor nutritional practices has resulted in an upsurge of research dealing with vision. This new book presents leading-edge research in this field focusing on glaucoma, corneal transplantation and bacterial eye infections.

Retinal tissue may degenerate for a number of reasons. Among them are: artery or vein occlusion, diabetic retinopathy, R.L.F./R.O.P. or disease (usually hereditary). Retinitis pigmentosa, retinoschisis, lattic degeneration, and macular degeneration are characterised by progressive types of retinal degeneration. This book presents the latest research in the field.

The consequences of ageing populations combined with the strain to the human eye caused by computers and widespread poor nutritional practices has resulted in an upsurge of research dealing with vision. This book presents the latest research from around the world in this dynamic field.

This introduction to optics is intended as a supplement to a first course in undergraduate optics. This lively book conveys key modern terminology, and reinforces what it teaches with hundreds of fully worked out problems that run the gamut from candles to lasers.

Cataract affects at least fifty million people worldwide. Conventional methods of correction have always been thick spectacles and surgery. With the current changes in the approach to cataract treatment, the optometrist's role in the early detection and management of cataract is crucial. * Written specifically for optometrists by optometrists * Essential background information is provided together with more detailed aspects of clinical management * The book is well illustrated and fully up to date with the latest clinical and research findings