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Tallahassee Memorial Rehab Center Offers NovaVision™ VRT™ for Stroke & TBI Patients with Vision Loss

11/21/2005

11/21/2005 » Tallahassee Memorial Rehabilitation Center Joins Medical Centers across the United States Offering NovaVision ™ VRT ™ to Treat Vision Loss Caused by Stroke & TBI

NovaVision ™ VRT™ now available at Tallahassee Memorial to rehabilitate vision deficits once considered untreatable

BOCA RATON , FLORIDA — NovaVision™, Inc. today announced Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare's (TMH) Rehabilitation Center of Tallahassee, Florida will offer NovaVision™ VRT™ Vision Restoration Therapy™ (VRT™) to its patients. VRT™ is an FDA-cleared, non-invasive medical device that can help restore vision lost as a result of stroke or traumatic brain injury (TBI), a condition previously considered untreatable. While speech, physical and occupational therapies are the long-standing treatment regimens for stroke and brain trauma patients, VRT™ is the first FDA-cleared clinical application of rehabilitation for vision loss.

"Working with leading regional healthcare systems like Tallahassee Memorial is important to expand clinical access of NovaVision™ VRT™," said NovaVision™ President and CEO Navroze Mehta. "VRT™ provides a fourth pillar of rehabilitation to complement existing occupational, physical and speech therapies and is now available to help stroke and brain injury patients served by Tallahassee Memorial to improve their vision and their quality of life."

Developing the Fourth Pillar of Rehabilitation

The need for a rehabilitative therapy like VRT™ is substantial. An estimated 4.8 million people have survived a stroke (American Heart Association, 2004 Update), and at least 5.3 million Americans currently live with disabilities resulting from TBI (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, May 2004). Approximately 1.5 million stroke and TBI patients in the United States suffer from major visual field deficits, and that number grows by more than 90,000 new patients each year. To date, more than 800 patients have been treated with VRT™ and clinical results are positive. Data from a recent retrospective study show more than 65 percent of patients who underwent VRT™ for the initial six-month treatment period demonstrated measurable improvements in their vision.

VRT™ is based on the principle of neuroplasticity—the ability of partially damaged neurons in the brain to compensate for injury and adjust their activity in response to stimulation from the environment. After stroke or TBI, a zone of residual vision exists between regions within the brain's vision-processing areas. Within this zone, there are areas that can be improved using precise patterns of stimulation.

Following a clinical assessment and VRT™ diagnostic testing at TMH, VRT™ is conducted in the comfort of the patient's home with the use of a VRT™ medical device. The patient performs a customized therapy which displays stimuli on the screen in the area identified during the diagnostic tests that show potential for recovery. The patient responds to the stimulus while focusing on the fixation point displayed. Repeated exposure to these stimuli over an initial treatment period of approximately six to seven months may activate neurons and help improve vision, with some patients showing improvements within a few months of beginning therapy.

For more information about the NovaVision™ VRT™ clinic at Tallahassee Memorial's Rehabilitation Center please call 1.888.205.0800.