Man at eye doctor

January is Glaucoma Awareness Month 

Glaucoma is a leading cause of vision loss and blindness in the United States. It is a group of eye diseases that can cause vision loss and blindness by damaging the eye’s optic nerve. It often develops without noticeable symptoms, so it’s estimated that half of people with glaucoma don’t know they have it. Getting regular dilated eye exams is essential for early detection and for preventing further vision loss.  

Protect your vision and learn more about glaucoma, its risk factors, and treatment options.

Find resources about glaucoma

NEI Research News

A myopic eye grows too long from front to back. Light gets focused in front of the retina. Single-vision contact lenses focus distance vision on the retina, but peripheral light is focused behind the retina. Multifocal contact lenses focus distance vision on the retina and peripheral light in front of the retina, signaling the eye to slow growth.Multifocal contact lenses are concentric circles consisting of an add power treatment zone in the outer rings that focuses peripheral rays in front of the retina.

Contact lenses used to slow nearsightedness in youth have a lasting effect

In a follow up study, researchers found that children who wore special contact lenses to slow progression of myopia maintained the treatment benefit even after they stopped wearing the contacts as older teens.
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NEI launches video contest to inspire teens to explore science

Annual Eye on the Future Teen Video Contest inspires high school students from all backgrounds to explore science. Winners receive $2,000 and a trip to NIH.
Extracellular vesicle

Report on extracellular vesicles

A new report summarizes proceedings from an NEI workshop on extracellular vesicles (Evs) – cell-secreted nanoparticles that mediate cell-cell communication.

Funding for Vision Research

NEI funds more than 1,500 research and training grants to vision scientists across the country and around the world.

Learn more about funding opportunities