NovaVision Seeks to Improve Access to Vision Restoration Therapy for American Soldiers With Impaired Vision Due to Traumatic Brain Injuries

NovaVision's Vision Restoration Therapy is Presented Before the U.S. House Committee on Veterans' Affairs

Greater use of Vision Restoration Therapy on members of military with brain injuries could help more American soldiers regain their sight without drugs or surgery, according to testimony that will be presented to a U.S. House subcommittee today.
Randolph S. Marshall, M.D., M.S., professor of neurology and director of the Division of Stroke and Critical Care at Columbia University Medical Center, will testify today before the House Committee on Veterans Affairs Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations. His testimony will address the supporting science and benefits associated with Vision Restoration Therapy (VRT), a non-invasive rehabilitative therapy cleared by the Food and Drug Administration to help stroke and traumatic brain injury survivors restore lost vision. The therapy is based on visual stimulation, which the patient performs daily at home on a dedicated medical device. Dr. Marshall is currently conducting independent research on VRT and in August 2007 his work was published in the peer-reviewed journal, NeuroRehabilitation and Neural Repair (http://www.cumc.columbia.edu/news/press_releases/marshall_vrt_stroke.html). Dr. Marshall has been treating patients with VRT since 2004.
"My research of VRT has demonstrated that among stroke and traumatic brain injury survivors who underwent VRT, brain activity increased in visual processing areas of the brain. This was an exciting finding because it suggests that the brain is responding accordingly to the treatment," said Dr. Marshall. "Given the clinical benefits that I have seen with VRT in my patients, I am pleased that this therapy may be offered more widely to U.S. soldiers."
"Soldiers with traumatic brain injuries, as well as stroke survivors, need increased access to ground-breaking treatments like Vision Restoration Therapy," said NovaVision Chief Executive Officer Navroze Mehta. "Dr. Marshall's testimony today will help make more people aware of an important therapeutic tool that doctors and patients can use to help restore lost vision."
Through an August 2007 agreement with the Tampa Polytrauma Rehabilitation Center, NovaVision, Inc. donated five VRT devices to be used for American soldiers and veterans with impaired vision caused by traumatic brain injury during combat.
"We are honored to be working with the Tampa Polytrauma Rehabilitation Center to provide Vision Restoration Therapy to American soldiers whose lives have been impacted by vision loss caused by brain injuries," Mehta said. "Moving forward, we are proud to work closely with the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs to ensure soldiers nationwide have access to VRT in their local veteran's hospitals," Mehta continued.
About VRT
To help stroke and TBI survivors improve their vision, NovaVision developed VRT, an FDA-cleared device designed to stimulate the neurons in the brain responsible for vision. VRT is completely non-invasive. Through this at-home rehabilitative therapy, patients can regain lost vision without the use of drugs or surgery. VRT is currently available in nearly 50 centers nationwide and more VRT centers are being added routinely.
About NovaVision, Inc.
NovaVision, Inc., headquartered in Boca Raton, Fla., develops and provides scientifically based, innovative medical devices and comprehensive solutions to restore the vision of patients with neurological visual impairments. NovaVision's FDA-cleared NovaVision VRT(R) (VRT) is based on neuroplasticity - - the brain's ability to adapt and form new connections to compensate for injury. NovaVision diagnostic testing maps areas where vision may be improved, and therapy targets and stimulates regions within the brain's vision- processing areas.
VRT is based on more than 10 years of research with clinical studies published in leading journals, including Nature Medicine, Neurology, and The Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience. Data from a recent retrospective study identified that more than 70 percent of U.S. patients who underwent NovaVision VRT for an initial six-month treatment period showed significant improvement in their vision.
More than 1,000 stroke and traumatic brain injury patients have been treated with NovaVision VRT, and clinical results are positive. NovaVision VRT is currently offered at 50 leading neurological, eye and rehabilitation centers nationwide. For more information and a list of centers offering NovaVision VRT, please visit http://www.novavision.com/ or call 888.205.0800.
Contact:
Ellie Kline, Edelman on behalf of NovaVision
Ph. 212-704-4528
Email: elinor.kline@edelman.com

NovaVision, Inc.

Source - The Earth Times

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