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Prevent Blindness America (PBA) has received a grant from the Maternal and Child Health Bureau, a government agency, to promote eye care for young children.

PBA plans to establish the National Universal Vision Screening for Young Children Coordinating Center. The Center will help develop statewide vision screening and eye health programs for all children before they enter school. It will also help states coordinate their existing vision screening programs, as well as create a standardized performance measure for the screenings.

Prevent Blindness America will also build a National Expert Panel on Young Children’s Vision Screening, including experts from the fields of ophthalmology, optometry, pediatrics and public health.

PBA hopes to improve the current situation, in which more than 12.1 million school-age American children have some type of vision problem, yet only one in three children has received eye care before the age of 6. Significant vision problems that are common among children include lazy eye, crossed eyes and high amounts of nearsightedness, farsightedness and astigmatism.

For more information on Prevent Blindness America, visit www.preventblindness.org.

PBGA will be moving into leased space in the Center for the Visually Impaired (CVI) building in Midtown Atlanta.

This move will provide a 35 percent cost savings for our office space, while providing all the amenities that we need – a clinic, training rooms and conference rooms – even better than our current space. With our cost savings, we’ll be able to serve more Georgians through our programming efforts. Our move to the CVI building will have a positive ripple affect for vision care in Georgia.

PBGA provides free vision screenings to more than 30,000 four-year-olds throughout Georgia to ensure that these children are “vision ready” to learn and conducts Vision Outreach^© clinics throughout the state for seniors, adults in need and those without access to eye care.

Prevent Blindness Georgia’s new address effective January 1 is  739 West Peachtree Street, Suite 200, Atlanta, GA 30308-1137. The phone number remains the same – 404-266-2020. For more information and to donate to the work of Prevent Blindness Georgia, visit www.pbga.org.

Many people take buying a pair of glasses for granted. For Hortense R., a 54-year-old African-American woman from DeKalb County, new lenses mean the difference between working and not working, and provide safety for her and fellow travelers on busy Atlanta expressways.

Hortense can continue working as a home health care provider thanks to the new bifocals she received through a Vision Outreach clinic conducted by Prevent Blindness Georgia. Wearing her first ever pair of glasses, Hortense is excited that she can now see the exit signs on the expressway – especially important when she’s going to unfamiliar work assignments.

“My glasses are such a blessing,” she said. “I needed them three years before and didn’t even know how to get them with my financial situation.” A diabetic, Hortense was the recipient of a dilated eye exam through a Prevent Blindness Georgia vision clinic held at Central Presbyterian Church in Atlanta.

Hortense is also touched by the way she was treated. “It means alot to be treated with kindness and dignity, especially under those circumstances,” she said. “Kudos to everyone involved!”

We are only able to offer clinics through the help of generous donors. Please help us continue to serve by donating online or mailing your contribution to:

For more information about PBGA, visit www.pbga.org.

America’s pharmaceutical research and biotechnology companies are developing 34 medicines for diseases that disproportionately affect American women. The new report, Medicines in Development for Women, is presented by the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America in cooperation with Prevent Blindness America and other national health organizations.

In addition to glaucoma and dry eye medicines in development, the report lists 155 medicines in development for diabetes, also a major cause of vision loss for women.

Treatment of age-related eye diseases, including glaucoma and diabetic eye disease, costs $51.4 billion annually.

For the full report, please visit www.phrma.org.

For more information on Prevent Blindness, please visit www.pbga.org.

As shoppers begin to purchase toys and gifts for children, they need to mindful of what gift is the safest, especially for younger children.

According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), there were an estimated 235,300 toy-related injuries treated in emergency rooms across the country.  Most of the injuries were to the head and face and consisted of lacerations, contusions or abrasions.  And, 73 percent of the toy-related injuries reported were to children ages 14 and younger.

We know that families are being more budget conscious this holiday season and we want to make sure the money we do spend is spent wisely. We hope that everyone takes just a moment to really think about the gifts they are buying and make sure they are appropriate for a child’s age and development level.

Prevent Blindness Georgia suggests the following:

• Make recommendations to family members and friends about gifts that you feel are appropriate for your child.

• Inspect all toys as much as possible before taking them out of the box.  Once opened, go through each part of the toy to make sure there are no small parts that could be choking hazards or sharp edges.

• Avoid toys that shoot or include parts that fly off. BB guns and air guns should not even be considered toys. Flying toys caused 9,600 injuries in 2008.

• Gifts of sports equipment should always be accompanied by protective gear (such as a basketball along with eye goggles, a baseball with a batting helmet with a face shield).  90 percent of all sports-related eye injuries can be prevented by using the appropriate eye protection.

• Educate yourself on what products have been recalled.  Contact the CPSC at (800) 638-2772 or go to www.cpsc.gov.

• Keep toys meant for older children away from younger ones.  Closely monitor all activities to make sure smaller children do not have access to toys that are not at their age-appropriate level.

• Inspect toys for sturdiness. Your child’s toys should be durable, with no sharp edges or points. The toys should also withstand impact.  Dispose of plastic wrapping material immediately on toys as they may have sharp edges.

• Never give toys with small parts to young children.  If a part of a toy can fit inside a toilet paper roll, the toy is considered a choking hazard and is not appropriate for children under the age of 3.

For more information on safe toys and gifts, please visit Prevent Blindness Georgia at www.pbga.org.

Diabetes is a growing epidemic. Nearly 24 million people in the United States (U.S.) have diabetes, yet one-fourth of them do not know they have it.(1) In addition, 57 million people in the U.S. have pre-diabetes, and most are unaware they have the condition. Diabetic retinopathy, a disease that damages blood vessels of the eye in people with diabetes, can occur even during the pre-diabetes stage.

The best method for detecting diabetic retinopathy is a comprehensive eye exam.

A regular eye exam provides healthcare professionals a clear view of the

blood vessels in the eye; and abnormalities in these blood vessels are indicative of many known health conditions, including diabetes.

Early detection can not only save patients’ eyesight but also alert them to the presence of disease before it causes serious damage.

An eyecare exam is more than just a way to get glasses and contacts; it’s an integral part of the healthcare continuum.

Additional Information:

• Diabetic retinopathy can occur up to seven years before diagnosis of type 2 diabetes, and up to 21% of people with type 2 diabetes have retinopathy when they are first diagnosed with diabetes. This means an eye exam could lead to an earlier diagnosis for people who do not know they have the disease.
• Early detection and treatment through an annual eye exam can prevent most vision loss related to diabetes.
• Diabetes is the leading cause of new cases of blindness in adults 20-74 years of age.
• Individuals with diabetes are 40 percent more likely to develop glaucoma and 60 percent more likely to develop cataracts than those without diabetes.
• The risk of developing diabetic retinopathy increases with the number of years you’ve had diabetes. After 15 years with the disease, almost 80 percent of people with type 1 diabetes have some form of diabetic eye disease.
• In people with diabetes, diabetic retinopathy more than doubles their risk of developing heart failure.
• In a 2006 analysis of BRFSS in five states, prevalence of diabetic retinopathy ranged from 2.7% to 4.3%. • 93,000 new cases of blindness each year could have been prevented through timely detection and treatment.

For more information, visit www.pbga.org or click here.

Thank you to everyone who attended the PBGA Drive Fore Sight Golf Tournament. Because of your donations, many more prekindergarten children and in-need adults will be able to receive the eye care the need.

We grossed over $110,000, thank you to our sponsors! Click here for photos.

Platinum Sponsor — CIBA VISION

Gold Sponsor — Infosys Technologies

Silver Sponsor — UGL Unnico

Silver Sponsor — Norton, Rubble & Mertz Advertising

Lunch Sponsor — Mediaedge:CIA

Cart Sponsor — Midlands Packaging Corporation

Awards Sponsor — Morrison & Foerster, LLP

Golfer Gift Sponsor — GFK Audits & Surveys

Thank you to our raffle donors and congratulations to our winners!

For more information about PBGA, visit www.pbga.org.

*Article from KGO TV, San Francisco, CA*

Soldiers returning from Iraq may be vulnerable to an injury they don’t even realize they have. Now because of a study in the Bay Area, many are receiving detailed exams of their eyes.

While Marine Corporal Jason Poole was spared some of the memories of the explosion that injured him, he was spared none of the force. He was on foot patrol near the Syrian border in Iraq when a roadside bomb blew up.

Eight surgeries later, Jason is deaf in his left ear and blind in his left eye. But on this trip to the VA Hospital in Palo Alto, it’s the right eye doctors are concerned about.

Doctor Glenn Cockerham helped lead a study of bomb blast survivors like Jason. It is a group who, unlike in other wars, now helps make up the largest percentage of vision loss patients.

But these traumatic eye injuries aren’t always visible at first glance, like the more common gunshot wounds of previous wars. Doctors are now discovering detached retinas, ruptured corneas, even tears in the iris. And some damage is hidden well below the surface.

“The optic nerve can be damaged anywhere from brain to the eyeball,” said Dr. Cockerham.

Doctor Greg Goodrich co-authored the study, which has led to stepped up diagnostic care for the most seriously injured vets.

“There is a directive from central office, based on our research, that mandates that all of them have comprehensive eye and vision examinations,” said Dr. Goodrich. “This includes ocular injury, as well as brain injury that affects the visual system.”

The focus on brain injury targets cases like Jason, who says he has trouble reading and focusing since his recovery.

While nobody knows how many vets may have suffered hidden vision problems, one private estimate put the number of at-risk soldiers in the hundreds of thousands.

“We do know that in the trauma center half the patients we are seeing are due to blast events,” said Dr. Goodrich.

In the meantime, Poole is undergoing regular monitoring for the damage to his right eye, and setting his sights on the future.

Dr. Goodrich and Dr. Cockerham have been nominated for an Olin Teague Award for their research into eye injuries. It’s given for work that most improves the lives of injured veterans.

(Copyright ©2009 KGO-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.)

For more information on the eyes and eye surgery, visit www.preventblindndess.org.

Prevent Blindness America’s “Economic Impact of Vision Problems: The Toll of Major Adult Eye Disorders, Visual Impairment, and Blindness on the U.S. Economy” study shows that diabetic retinopathy costs $490 million annually in direct costs for outpatient, inpatient and prescription drug services.

According to the CDC:

• In 2007, 3.3 million adults with diabetes (aged 18 years or older) reported visual impairment, that is, trouble seeing even with their glasses or contact lenses on.

• In 2007, 71.7 percent of adults, aged 18 years and older, with diabetes in 38 states reported receiving a dilated-eye examination within the last year,

• 23.6 million, (7.8 percent), Americans have diabetes, including 5.7 million who have yet to be diagnosed.  Another 57 million have pre-diabetes.

• In 2007, 15.1 percent of U.S. adults with diabetes smoked, 38.2 percent reported being physically inactive, 83.5 percent were overweight or obese, 51.1 percent were obese based on self-reported height and weight, 67.0 percent of U.S. adults with diabetes reported having hypertension, and 62.6 percent reported that their cholesterol was high.

Here are a few ways to protect your eyes:

• Healthy blood glucose levels are like carrots: Both are good for your eyes. Keeping up with blood glucose management lowers the risk of developing eye disease and keeps existing eye disease from getting worse.

• It’s worse under pressure. High blood pressure can cause damage to blood vessels in the eye, and can make diabetic eye disease worse. Talk to your doctor about ways to control your blood pressure.

• Cholesterol counts. High cholesterol can also cause damage to blood vessels in the eye. Keep cholesterol down to keep eye disease from developing or worsening.

For more information on diabetic eye disease, visit www.preventblindness.org/diabetes.