New Eye Drops May Prevent Vision Loss After Retinal Vein Occlusion:- Researchers developed new eye drops that can prevent vision loss after the retinal vein occlusion which happens to be the major cause of blindness for millions of people across the globe. A study that was conducted on mice said that the experimental therapy could have broader therapeutic effects that all the existing drugs which target a common cause of neurodegeneration and vascular leakage in the eyes. This study was published in the journal Nature Communications.

The retinal vein occlusion happens when a major vein gets blocked that is responsible to drain the blood from the retina. This happens through a blood clot. The blood and other fluids get leaked into the retina and damage the specialized light-sensing neurons which are called photoreceptors. The standard treatment relies on drugs that reduce fluid leakages from the blood vessels.

They need repeated injections directly into the eyes and the treatment even fails to prevent vision loss in most of the cases. Carol M. Troy, MD, PhD, professor of pathology & cell biology and of neurology in the Taub Institute for Research on Alzheimer’s Disease says the new treatment targets an enzyme called caspase-9. The caspase-9 becomes uncontrollably activated in mice when the blood vessels are injured by the retinal vein occlusion.

Several researchers are now preparing to test the eye drops with retinal vein occlusion in humans and the first phase of the clinical trial will start soon.