The disease onchocerciasis, a major cause of blindness which affects some 37 million people worldwide, can be wiped out using drugs, says the UN health agency.
The disease onchocerciasis, a major cause of blindness which affects some 37 million people worldwide, can be wiped out using drugs, says the UN health agency.
New studies showed treatment with the drug ivermectin stopped further infections and transmission of the disease in three areas of Africa, the World Health Organization said.
Understanding of Hereditary Diseases That Lead to Blindness may be Improved by Mice Study
A novel technique, consisting of the induction of neuronal degeneration, for intense light exposure in the mouse's retina is being used as an experimental model of retinitis pigmentosa
A novel technique, consisting of the induction of neuronal degeneration, for intense light exposure in the mouse's retina is being used as an experimental model of retinitis pigmentosa
People in Africa, where 99 percent of infections occur, had been given free treatments of ivermectin since its development in 1987 by drug manufacturer Merck.
The drug kills the larvae of the parasite that causes the disease, but not the adult worms, so scientists thought treatments were needed every six months or year to keep it under control.
Tooth Implantation In Eye Restores Sight To Blind Man
A man who lost his eyesight in an accident at work can now see again, thanks to doctors who transplanted his tooth in his eye.
A man who lost his eyesight in an accident at work can now see again, thanks to doctors who transplanted his tooth in his eye.
But the new studies, published Tuesday in the journal PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases, suggest it can be wiped out with a long enough course of ivermectin.
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WHO to Start Clinical Trial on River Blindness Drug
The World Health Organisation said Wednesday it was launching a clinical trial for a drug that could halve the treatment period for river blindness.
The World Health Organisation said Wednesday it was launching a clinical trial for a drug that could halve the treatment period for river blindness.
Treatment was stopped in the three test areas, in Mali and Senegal and follow-up assessments between one-and-a-half and two years later showed no further infections or transmissions of the disease.
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The studies were carried out by research teams from the ministries of health in Mali and Senegal, in collaboration with the WHO multi-disease surveillance center in Burkina Faso.
Main funding came from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
Source-AFP
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