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Five Vision Topics Added to NIHSeniorHealth Website
June 20, 2005 - Eye diseases and conditions leading
to vision loss increase significantly with age, and the number of people
with vision loss is expected to rise as the population grows older. To
help senior citizens and baby boomers learn more about these conditions
and vision loss, the NIHSeniorHealth Web site is adding five new topics
on vision: glaucoma, cataract, age-related macular degeneration (AMD),
diabetic retinopathy, and low vision.
Accurate, up-to-date information about these
conditions is only a mouse click away at
www.nihseniorhealth.gov, says the National Eye Institute.
Glaucoma, cataract, AMD, diabetic retinopathy, and
low vision are common in older Americans.
> While glaucoma can strike anyone, the risk for
this eye disease, which can damage the optic nerve and result in vision
loss and blindness, is much greater for people over age 60.
> Cataract surgery is one of the most common
surgeries done in the U.S. By age 80, more than half of all Americans
either have a cataract or have had cataract surgery.
> AMD, a leading cause of vision loss in
Americans 60 years of age and older, affects the part of the retina that
allows you to see fine detail and blurs the sharp central vision needed
for straight-ahead activities such as reading, sewing, and driving.
> One in every 12 people with diabetes age 40
and older has vision-threatening diabetic retinopathy, a complication of
diabetes and a leading cause of blindness.
> People age 65 and older, as well as African
Americans and Hispanics over age 45, are at higher risk for low vision,
which makes reading the mail, shopping, cooking, watching TV, and other
everyday tasks difficult.
Low vision and blindness can lead to loss of
independence and reduced quality of life for older Americans, says Paul
A. Sieving, M.D., Ph.D., director of the National Eye Institute (NEI),
which developed the content for the vision topics on the Web site.
Older Americans now can turn to NIHSeniorHealth to learn more about
prevention, early detection, and treatment of eye diseases. The Web
sites special features, including various large-print type sizes,
open-captioned videos, and an audio version, are especially useful to
those who already suffer from vision loss.
One of the fastest growing age groups using the
Internet, older Americans increasingly turn to the World Wide Web for
health information. In fact, 69 percent of wired seniors surf for
health and medical information when they go online.
NIHSeniorHealth, a joint effort of the National
Institute on Aging (NIA) and the National Library of Medicine (NLM), was
designed especially with seniors in mind. The site, which is based on
the latest research on cognition and aging, features short, easy-to-read
segments of information. Additional topics coming soon include problems
with taste and smell, stroke, osteoporosis, and falls. The site links to
MedlinePlus, NLMs premier, more detailed site for consumer health
information.
The NIA leads the federal effort supporting and
conducting research on aging and the health and well-being of older
people. The NLM, the world's largest library of the health sciences,
creates and sponsors Web-based health information resources for the
public and professionals. The NEI conducts and supports research that
leads to sight-saving treatments and plays a key role in reducing visual
impairment and blindness. All three are components of the National
Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland, part of the U.S. Department
of Health and Human Services.
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) The
Nation's Medical Research Agency is comprised of 27 Institutes and
Centers and is a component of the U. S. Department of Health and Human
Services. It is the primary Federal agency for conducting and supporting
basic, clinical, and translational medical research, and investigates
the causes, treatments, and cures for both common and rare diseases. For
more information about NIH and its programs, visit
www.nih.gov.
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