The way we perceive the world that surrounds is largely
dictated by what we see. In adults, blindness or impaired
vision is most often caused by cataracts, macular degeneration,
glaucoma and diabetic retinopathy. In children, the
main causes are strabismus, lamblyopia, retinopathy
prematurity, hereditary retinal diseases. Blindness
or visual impairment is responsible for inadequate visuo-motor
responses and reduces a patients ability to interact
with his environment. On top of reducing the patients
overall quality of life, the loss of autonomy suffered
by these patients is a financial burden on our health
care system and an emotional burden on their immediate
family. The importance of developing vision research
cannot be overstated if we want to insure that generations
to come are not plagued by the same vision problems
we see today.
This
Web site was developed as a reference tool for researchers
implicated in fundamental, clinical and evaluative research
and to help and inform the general public. The information
contained in this site is varied, among other things,
you will find a description of the Networks different
research axes as well as the work being done in each
axis, the list of researchers working in the field of
vision in Quebec, a glossary of the scientific terms
used in vision health and a summary of the most recent
and important discoveries in vision research.
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