From the Field

Results of the 2002 National Health Interview Survey, establishes data on the prevalence of visual impairment, blindness, and four eye conditions (cataract, diabetic retinopathy, glaucoma, and macular degeneration) in the United States and characterizes these conditions within sociodemographic subgroups, thus providing new baseline data for future public health initiatives relating to visual impairment. DRUGS TO TREAT AGE-RELATED MACULAR DEGENERATION COMPARED IN TRIAL In late February 2008, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) initiated a head-to-head trial of two Genentech drugs designed to treat the wet form of age-related macular degeneration (AMD), which occurs when abnormal blood vessel growth harms or destroys part of the eye.