| For Immediate Release | Media Contact: |
| April 23, 2019 | Julene Joy (ARVO) |
| 240-221-2929 or jjoy@arvo.org |
ARVO and EBAA Launch EyeFind
New online tool helps researchers locate eye tissue
Rockville, Md. – The Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) and the Eye Bank Association of American (EBAA) today announced the launch of a new online tool that will more easily connect eye and vision researchers with eye banks. The new tool, called EyeFind, will help these researchers more efficiently obtain eye tissue that is critical for their research.
“Obtaining human eye tissue is vital to the work of many vision researchers. Yet, it can be challenging to obtain such tissues,” said Dan Stamer, ARVO’s President-elect and the Joseph A. C. Wadsworth Professor of Ophthalmology as well as a professor of biomedical engineering at Duke University, who led the project for ARVO. “EyeFind was developed to better connect researchers with the crucial human eye tissues they need so they can better understand the underlying causes of blinding human eye diseases that lead to treatments.”
More than one year ago, a working group was formed from both organizations to develop a tool to improve communication between researchers and eye banks while speeding-up and easing the process of bringing human eye tissue into labs. EyeFind uses a series of questions to identify the type of tissue needed by the researcher and then lists eye banks around the United States that can provide the tissue. Users can then contact the eye banks to discuss their project and secure the tissue. Most U.S. eye banks have already registered on EyeFind. Prior to EyeFind, researchers located eye tissue by successively calling or emailing eye banks directly until they found the tissue needed for a study – a process that could take significant time and resources for both researchers and eye banks.
“Providing ocular tissue for research is central to fulfilling eye banks’ mission to restore sight to those in need,” said Kevin Corcoran, EBAA’s president and CEO. “EyeFind will help connect eye bankers with researchers whose work can transform the lives of countless people around the world.”
A demonstration of EyeFind will take place during the ARVO Annual Meeting in Vancouver, BC on Monday, April 29 at 9am PST. The demonstration will be available live on ARVO’s Facebook page www.Facebook.com/ARVOinfo as well as on the ARVO website: https://www.arvo.org/annual-meeting/press/online-press-conference/.
To access EyeFind, visit www.EyeFind.org.
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The Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) is the largest eye and vision research organization in the world. Members include nearly 12,000 eye and vision researchers from over 75 countries. ARVO advances research worldwide into understanding the visual system and preventing, treating and curing its disorders. Learn more at ARVO.org.
The Eye Bank Association of America (EBAA), established in 1961, is the oldest transplant association in the nation and sets standards, provides education, and engages in advocacy to support eye donation, and cornea transplantation and research. EBAA has led the transplantation field with the establishment of medical standards for eye banking, and comprehensive training and certification programs for eye bank personnel. Over 90 member eye banks operate in the United States, Canada, Europe and Asia. These eye banks made possible 84,297 sight-restoring corneal transplants in 2017. To learn more, visit www.restoresight.org.