Attendees can try it out.
(Press Release) BRIDGEWATER, NJ – Global eye health company Bausch + Lomb announced the launch of a new virtual reality tool. The Age-Related Macular Degeneration Virtual Experience, unveiled during the annual meeting of the American Optometric Association, held June 21-25 in Washington, DC, will allow eye care professionals to experience the daily challenges this condition brings their patients with mild to more advanced stages of AMD.
“We’ve developed several initiatives to raise awareness around this condition. Now, for the first time, we’ve created a platform that goes beyond traditional awareness and enables eye care professionals to see what life is like with AMD,” said Joseph Gordon, president, Consumer Health & Vision Care, Bausch + Lomb. “We are continuously looking for creative ways to educate the public about eye health and we hope by showing eye care professionals their AMD patients’ struggles first-hand, it will encourage them to be even better stewards of care.”
AMD is a progressive eye disease affecting an estimated 13 million people and is a leading cause of vision loss in people age 50 and older. Approximately one out of five people over the age of 65 will be diagnosed with the disease, characterized by the loss of central vision. While there is no cure, certain steps, such as smoking cessation, regular exercise, a healthy diet and taking an AREDS 2 eye vitamin, can help reduce the risk of progression. PreserVision AREDS 2 has the nutrient formula recommended by the National Eye Institute for people with moderate-to-advanced AMD.
“I spend a lot of time talking to my AMD patients and their family members about steps they can take to help reduce their risk of disease progression,” said Jeffry Gerson, an optometrist from Grin Eye Care in Leawood, KS. “Now, after being able to fully relate to what my patients are dealing with through the AMD Virtual Experience, it has underscored, even more, the importance for me as a practitioner to communicate to my patients the importance of reducing their risk of progression.”
AOA attendees are invited to experience the virtual reality tool by visiting the Bausch + Lomb booth (#155) at any time during the meeting.